13 Things I Love about Back to School Time

1. My teens are happier. I’ve come to the conclusion that teenagers need constant exposure to their own kind or they become moody and difficult.

2. More time to write!

3. My husband and I are happier because there are less sibling arguments at the dinner table. Teenage sisters get along better when they’re at different schools most of the day.

4. The bags of school supplies relocate from our living room to school lockers.

5. All those fall clothes I bought my daughters start earning their keep, thus justifying the credit card bills.

6. Hours of uninterrupted silence in my office, which is located near the kitchen, in a high family traffic area.

7. Hearing about the girls’ adventures after school--new teachers, what friends did on their summer vacations, all the latest news about clubs, and other tidbits about school life.

8. I can manage to squeeze in a bit of free time to attack my TBR pile in the evenings because I’m able to work (uninterrupted) during the day.

9. Seeing our mini poodle’s wild welcome dance when the girls and my college professor husband arrive home after school.

10. Youth Symphony Orchestra starts up again, as do all of the girls' other school-year activities, so life gets more interesting than trips to the pool, drivers’ ed, and summer jobs.

11. With family life running more smoothly, my muse returns from her summer vacation, and I experience a renewed creative itch to write.

12. The coziness of fall. Hot herb tea on a rainy day, mellow music on the stereo, warm sweaters, and my dog on my lap.

13. Little bits of free time when I can catch a movie with my sister, or go out to lunch with a friend.

What are your favorite things about fall, or kids heading back to school? Any back to school memories of your own you’d like to share?