School Days, School Days

There's something in the air today that makes it feel like fall is here. Or, rather, something on the road--school buses! School started today here in Oregon, and everything feels right. For those of you like me whose lives seem to revolve around the school year (even though it no longer affects many of us directly), it's the time of year for memories. Crunching through leaves on crisp autumn days, running cross-country practices through fields of waist-high grass, sitting inside and sipping a cup of hot apple cider while curled up reading. Somehow, though, I never seem to remember the stress and chaos of school. Funny how that works! =)
Labor Day weekend was fun as well. It's always that last kickoff before school starts, usually hot with the anticipation hanging thickly in the air. Often we go to the state fair, but this year (for some strange reason that I can't figure out!) I didn't feel like walking in the hot sun for eight hours. Hmm, wonder why that is! Having a three-day weekend after a summer void of them was a refreshing break, however. Someone needs to schedule more holidays in summer! A three month stretch with only the Fourth of July seems a bit overkill.
The images above are of Iris' room. We're going for a classic Peter Pan look (sorry, Disney fans, the closer I get to being a mom, the more I dislike Disney), and luckily we know the right people. My college roommate (a graphic designer) came and painted the clouds from stillshots of the clouds in the new live-action Peter Pan (which, if you haven't seen it, is incredible). I thought she did a fabulous job! We have a little more work to do--mermaid lagoon (the closet) is being painted right now, and we still have a chair rail and baseboards to put up, but the end is in sight. Wonderful, as this has been quite the project! It began with retexturing the ceiling (just to give you an idea of what Josh has been doing) because we had popcorn up, but now it's looking wonderful. What a lucky baby!