Twas the night before school

It's the night before school, and the house is all quiet,
but in the morning I fear, it will sound like a riot.
There'll be scrambling and rushing, a scene of mass chaos,
But I'll have none of that, for we can't miss the bus.

The girls right now are snuggled, asleep in their beds,
But not me, oh no, I'm awake filled with dread.
For how can I do it, send three off to school?
I hope I don't lose it, I must keep my cool.

The outfits are chosen, all picked with great care.
Accessories planned and ideas for hair.
Lunches are packed with good things to eat,
A sandwich, some chips and of course a sweet treat.

The backpacks are ready with first day supplies,
and paperwork already filled out line by line.
All possessions are labeled in case they're misplaced.
It's all by the door so the girls won't be late.

In the morning I feel I will be quite a mess.
No tears for this mama, I must do my best.
Emma's off to kinder, and Abby's in fifth,
Alli's in seventh, my they grow quick!

I know Emma's ready to take her next step.
But how about me, can I let her go yet?
And Abby so gentle, caring and sweet
will this be the year her handwriting gets neat?

And middle school, UGH, what a year ahead for my Alli,
she'll want to see games and attend the pep rallies.
Will she keep those straight A's, one after another,
or will thoughts of boys take over, it makes a mom shudder!

But it's been a long summer, we've had lots of fun.
And I can't wait any longer when it's all said and done.
For they've driven me crazy, given me reasons to shout,
And off they must go because homeschooling is out!

Yeah, I've been put through the wringer, day after day.
What are we doing, we're hungry, where can we go play?
Not a moment of quiet or an hour of peace,
It's been a summer of nonstop exhaustion for me!

So perhaps I won't miss them, when I'm home with just Kathryn.
We'll watch SpongeBob and Patrick and roll on the floor laughing.
We'll do crafts, run some errands and we'll get along fine.
And I can't wait to read Harry Potter at nap time.

The alarm will go off and I'll roll out of bed.
Fix them some breakfast so they're all nice and fed.
Brush teeth, wash faces, get dressed, fix the hair.
Hurry up now girls, we've got to get there!

And after the madness of "to do's" in the morning,
we'll walk to the bus stop, I might tear up without warning.
But I'll wipe them away and let them know it's all cool.
I love you, you punks, get your butts off to school!!