…for the kiddies, and I am NOT ready. They start two weeks from today, which is Sept. 9.

…starts even sooner for me, and I am NOT ready. I start next Monday, and I am ready to do a Kira-style freak-out.

I have not done any school shopping. PLUS, there are all those things that I planned to do BEFORE school started again that are still NOT done. For instance, the girls’ want to paint their room. Most of the summer they have planned and argued about paint colors. It involves hunter orange and lime green and electric blue. You will need sunglasses to enter.

The big battle has been between the oldest and the youngest daughters. They both want green for their bed area, but Green is the youngest’s favorite color, so she thinks she should get it. I don’t fight. Frankly, I don’t see the problem with two greens, but to the girls, it is a Tragedy with a capital T.

I have meetings today, and I am supposed to have my syllabus done and in last week but definitely by Friday. I am working on that. I have it ALL done except I am still tweaking the calendar. It is on my to-do list for today.

There are other things on my to-do list. Things I wanted to get done before school started that I have not finished. I have a lot of projects in various stages.

But right now, I have to take a shower because I have to get going because I have a meeting at noon in Big Rapids and another one at two.

Oh, and I have to figure out what we are doing for Labor Day weekend. We had originally planned on going camping, but we may now do something else because we didn’t do a family thing for my birthday, which in the last few years was a tradition. The kids aren’t buying the “We went to Kid Rock instead” line because (OMG) the kids didn’t go. Who knew?

So, the options for Labor Day are 1) Cedar Point, 2) Bridge walk and 3) camping somewhere. This is further complicated because my sister will be visiting, and I want to see her PLUS we still need to do that clothes shopping thing.

Time is running out.

It is official — as of yesterday, I am 38.

I am proud to say I was able to blow out all of my candles with just one breath. OK, so there were only 10 candles on the cake (two were numbers). I was still able to do it without starting a forest fire.

My family took great pleasure in reversing the numbers and making me 83 instead of 38. I look damn good for 83.

What have I learned in my 38 years? Enough that I SHOCK my children with my wisdom. I was just talking the other day with my oldest, and she wanted to know why I was right so frequently. I let her know it was because once upon a time, I was a teenager, and I learned things from that experience. She isn’t sure she believes it.

It was a good birthday. I received presents and hugs from my family. My mom came over. We had steak and potatoes cooked on the grill with a yummy cake and Heavenly Hash ice cream, which is one of my favorites. Oh, and a salad, which I also love. And then I wrote a check for $650.

OK, that last part wasn’t so fun for my birthday, but it had to be done if I wanted to remain warm this upcoming winter. It was to pay for 10 pulpwood cords, which is a really huge pile of tree trunks. Now, once it cools down a bit and before it gets freezing, the hubby and kids and I must cut up the trunks into logs that fit in our wood stove and there will be a few logs we will also need to split, and there will be lots of hauling and stacking of firewood. The idea, however, is that by the time we need to use this wood, it will be dry enough to be good wood. (Doesn’t that line make you want to snicker?)

And I’m telling you — 10 pulpwood cords for $65 a cord is a steal in these parts. Some companies are getting $85 a pulpwood cord.

I should do a “what have I learned after 38 years” post, but I am not sure I have learned a whole lot. Maybe I will save that for my 83 year post. Right now, I know that I have an awesome husband and four very good kids, a job I love and I am surrounded by great family and friends. There isn’t a whole lot to complain about.

Life is good at 38.