Put to the test.

School is around the corner.
This is not going to be that post. The one where I pour out my soul, and why it feels all bruised and tender from saying good bye to an Era, as Greta starts Kindergarten. (Although I imagine that post is on it's way. I have been looking at Greta with wistful eyes, and there's a quiver in my voice at times. The time draws near.)
But right now we are in a neat little pocket of time, where I still have my Greta all day, and there are Summer activities left to enjoy. (We have a wedding this week, and a fun trip to the Peninsula planned for the next.) Let's not short change Summer here.
But at the same time it might be wise to at least start preparing to welcome Fall. Not quite goodbye, and still the anticipation of hello.
In this spirit, I did my very first rounding up of back to school supplies.
With an official Back to School Supply List as a matter of fact.
It was a slightly intimidating list detailing quantities, dimensions, (I know I got the wrong sized Elmer's glue stick. The list specified Large, and specifically mentioned not Jumbo or Small. But the package would not tell me what size it was, and it was the only size Target carried. And although I was pretty comfortable that I wasn't looking at a Jumbo glue stick, I cannot with full confidence say that they could be considered Large. So I got 12 instead of 8, hoping to curry favor if a mistake was made, and hope that judgement would pass us over.) 
Brands are specified, and sometimes the state in which the item should be received. 
Like 24 SHARPENED Ticonderoga Pencils. I had to ask the nice man at Target to point me in the right direction to find these hallowed pencils. Then afterwards I spent a goodly portion of the afternoon on the back deck, crouched over a blue bucket, with Oliver watching and Greta holding an umbrella over my head for shade, as I sharpened 24 Ticonderoga pencils, while wondering if I'm at all cut out for the work it apparently takes to have a kindergartener.  No joke, I've got a blister to show for it.
So, I'm new to the rodeo, but what about moms with whole packs of kids? How many pencils are they sharpening? And what about the single dads?  Hand sharpening 4 or 5 kids worth of Ticonderoga pencils, as their ties dangle over trash cans, between meetings. That's 125 Ticonderoga Pencils! I felt for those men, and I became increasingly nervous about joining a system that apparently asks so much of their single fathers.
A friend told me later that you can buy them pre-sharpened. Which really is a relief.
See I've been to Kindergarten before, but never as a mom.
So it's all new to me to be walking Target aisles, feeling like I'm the one being tested for my ability to follow instructions. With trick questions added in. Like asking for Large Elmer's glue sticks, when sizes aren't marked. Who are these women? And what am I getting myself into?
Next week we will be meeting teachers, turning in our classroom supplies, and going over school curriculum. I'm sure I will know more by then.
In the meantime, my guard is up. This is going to be a new era for Greta, but I think it's going to be just as new for me too.