Things I Can't Say

Tips and Tales from an Introverted Mom

Traditions: Back To School Style

Some people plan out their traditions.

And sometimes you just happen to stumble into a tradition.

We’re more of a stumble into tradition sort of family.

For Back-to-School, one of those traditions is to be sure to get a pic of our boys walking away to school.

Can you just imagine the progression of pics from a preschooler with a backpack that is about half his size all the way up to the high school senior, heading off out into the world….. it makes me a little weepy, just thinking about it.

Here are this year’s Off They Go shots:

The First Grader
The Kindergartener
The Preschooler
What are your back-to-school traditions? 

Comments

  1. This is one of our traditions too. We always seem to fall into ours. lol It's just the way it works out.
    I always get pictures of them in their new back to school outfit with their lunch box and back pack…front, back and side view. I know I'm a dork. lol

  2. Thank you so much for linking to the Back to School Traditions link up. What a great tradition! The backpack on your youngest looks so big. How neat to get to see them grow into their backpacks overtime!

  3. Love this Shell! And yes, the progression shots make me weepy, too.

    Also? All THREE at school! Oh my!

  4. We just take a picture of them that first day, never thought to do it from behind. A little late now since I have one in 9th grade.

  5. I like the idea of year to year progression pictures – though it does make one weepy, yes!

  7. Love those pictures! It would be cool if they kept the same back packs each year and you could see how much they grow.
    We do the same thing…a first day of school picture, usually infront of the tree in our yard. Drop off happens this Thursday and I am already starting to get weepy!

  8. we snap a pic of them getting on and back off the bus that first day. This will be my daughter's first year…but her first day is not until Friday, whereas Grade 2 starts tomorrow for my son.
    let's hope I remember to charge my cell so I can snap that pic!

    dontcha just love the backpacks that weigh more than they do? LOL

  10. LoL Shell. Should have read my blog last week as I spoke of now officially having Three "High Schoolers". Miss those days of the backpacks and big yellow bus. LoL

  11. I love the backpack on the preschooler! That picture is just the cutest thing! We don't have any back to school traditions yet, but hopefully we'll get something started.

  12. My first is just entering Kindergarten this year so we are still working on our traditions. But a picture will definitely top the list of ones we plan to try 🙂

  14. What a fun tradition! I love it when the backpacks are almost as big as the kids. 🙂

  15. Awwww, don't they look so cute and so grown up!

    I can remember my mom making all four of us girls get perms before the new school year. It was awful. We would beg not to get them but my mom always insisted. She said it made it easier to do our hair! I seriously didn't do my own hair until I was a freshman in high school. Now that I look back on it I realize how freakin' weird that tradition was.

    Funny, we all wore our hair straight when we went to college 🙂

  16. What a sweet tradition. We never had any growing up. That's kind of sad now that I think about it!

  18. Love the giant backpacks. We are a stumble on tradition kind of family too. We don't have much of a school tradition although we do take photos that first morning.

  20. What great photos of your "babies" heading off to school. Thank you sharing such an inspiring tradition with me. I look forward to taking progression photos one day of my now one year old baby boy.

  22. Awww, your three little men in their ginormous backpacks! Really cute photos. You have to keep taking those same shots every year to see the progression.

  23. I always take a picture the first day of school. I like the from behind shot.

    The picture and wearing a 1st day of school outfit their Grandma bought are really our only traditions for school. Most others we have we have stumbled upon, too.

  24. I love that you take the picture with them walking into school…that is fabulous. They look so cute with their big backpacks.

  25. Awww that's a great idea! And yes I can't imagine how those backpacks are going to change over the years. Hope you are having a great holiday!

  26. That is so sweet! Those backpacks look huge on little bodies. Makes me sad to think about my little guy going off to school in a couple years.

  30. We just take our pics by the front door. That way we get a shot of their faces rather than their backpacks, but your boys are so cute! With them gone, I guess you will have a little more blogging time…so that's got to be good!
    Sandy

  31. That's a fun idea! I may have to incorporate it into our traditions as the little guy gets older.

  33. What a fun tradition! My oldest starts school next year and I am definitely already thinking of traditions for us to begin. I am with you, a lot of the time we fall into traditions as a family.

  35. Oh my! Those book bags look HUGE!!!
    My mom always snapped our picture at the door and then getting on the bus.

  37. Since our oldest doesn't officially start preschool for a couple more weeks, we don't have any traditions yet. I did read about tracing her hand every year on the first day of school and keeping them on a binder ring. And I love your "off they go" shots.

    One of my 8th grade students a couple of years ago had a really cool tradition (that he didn't know about). His mom bought a copy of "Oh, the Places You'll Go" when he was in first grade. At the end of the year, she snuck it into school and had his teacher sign it (anywhere, with any message). She's done this every year. By 8th grade, the book was so full (because of having multiple teachers by middle school). She does it for each of her kids and her plan is to give it to him at graduation. It's on my "must do for my kids" list. 🙂

  38. That's a fun tradition! I always take pictures but don't really have a certain shot I always try and get- I need to do that

  39. Usually we do first day of school shots.. before they go to the bus.. they grow so fast.

  40. Adorbs! They will go crazy for these one day (or their wives and daughters will).

    My son is going to a 2's program gradual separation so we're going to have to start some new traditions. Photos OF COURSE!

  42. They look adorable!

    I always get a picture on the first day of my son standing by the front door with his backpack on, ready to leave the house. Tomorrow he starts middle school and tonight I may or may not have cried about that. Ahem. 😉

  43. Our traditions are always the unplanned kind as well. As for school, I always take a pic on the first day, but I've never done them at the same spot or anything.

  44. the kiddos get to pick whatever kind of pie they want for when they get home after the first day of school. yummy! Tomorrow is chocolate cream!

  45. My tradition is to have warm cookies waiting when you get off the bus on your first day…though now I'm going to rip off your walking into school shot. Thanks, Shell!

    Lots of yummy love,
    Alex aka Ma What's For Dinner

  46. Those big old backpacks make me laugh…we stumble into traditions too…I love it that way.

  48. I saw the cutest idea on pinterest that I am determined to try this year. You have them write their name on a piece of paper and hold it in front of them for a first day of school pic and do it every year to see the progression of how they grow and how their writing changes. Really want to try it with my soon-to-be preschoolers since I missed the boat with my oldest.

  49. I LOVE the idea of back to school traditions. I have yet to really start one but i will be putting lots of thought into it now. my second starts in 2 weeks. ::sniff sniff::