Let’s Go Peay!

That slogan gets me every time.

I work at Austin Peay State University, and we started the Fall Semester this week.

Things have been crazy busy and hectic trying to work through student requests, but I love the start of the semester. LOVE!

As a kid the start of the school year was always so exciting. New adventures, new lessons to learn, new school supplies. It was the one time of year that we got to really splurge. I loved picking out my new pencil boxes, folders, and back packs.

Yep huge nerd alert over here.

But my favorite thing about school starting was a tradition my dad started. The first day of class, he would take me to Baskin Robbins and we would chat about the day. We went every year from kindergarten until my senior year of high school. And every year, I got the same thing-double scoop mint chocolate chip and chocolate. My brother did the same thing on the second day of school, so we each had our individual school date with Dad. I had first child benefits and stole the first day privileges!

I have kept the tradition alive over the past decade, always finding someone to eat ice cream with me on that first day of classes even when I was no longer a student. But for the last decade there has not been a Baskin Robbins nor has it been a date with my dad, so it has not been quite the same.

Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

This year though the tradition was re-instated in full because Clarksville has BRs everywhere!

AND my dad was in town this week!

So we went and indulged in our 23 year old tradition, which is still one of my fondest memories growing up. We still chatted about our thoughts on education, although the conversation was much more sophisticated than what happened at recess and when the new Scholastic catalog was going to arrive. I should have gotten a picture, but we were too wrapped up in the conversation and the goodness of the BR.

This is definitely a tradition that I want to carry on to my kids. Such a simple way to get excited about the new year and be able to create intentional memories. And it was a great way to bond with my dad since it was just the two of us.

A little Armucation for you. The military allows soldiers to be absent from work the first day of classes for their own children. That way they can help get everyone where they need to be when routines haven’t been set, but also be there for the big moments that come with starting a new year at school. They are very family oriented when they are stateside, mostly because they know that the soldiers potentially miss out on all these things when they are deployed.

This week has been super nuts with Dad in town and it being the first week of school, so I have not been able to blog as much as I had planned. We are also going out of town this weekend, so things are getting pushed back so I can enjoy time with friends and family.

But here are some previews of what is to come:

The results of a blog gift exchange I entered
A blog award/recognition
a new blog partnership
updates on the doggie adoption
crafts galore…I have so many to put on here! I just haven’t had time!
my “math” class adventure

I hope you all have a great holiday weekend and had some good stories for the start of the academic year!

For now, I leave you with my 4th grade First Day of School picture. It was the only one I could find in my house. I was going through my tomboy stage and thought the hip action was super cool apparently.