Next stop Europe...

Well, for Lotte anyway. One-sixth of the Tripped Up Family is heading to Chicago now and then boards a plane to Warsaw, Poland to begin a 15-day European Choral Tour. She's competing in the World Choir Games in Riga, Latvia as part of her high school's European Tour Choirs. They will visit Prague, Vienna, and Budapest along the way. If you're interested, you can follow along with the Rockford Choirs via Twitter, their Facebook page, Instagram, and of course their blog.

Today's office

No pictures of Lotte leaving for Europe today because when you're holding onto two 5-year-olds' hands while keeping track of where the other 5-year-old wanders with periodic glances, not only do you not have hands to take a picture, but you also don't have the eye focus. That's okay, I would have gotten water (tears) all over my phone anyway. How can I end up not crying during graduation but end up balling when I drop her off for her Europe trip?

Closely averting two meltdowns while 57+ people gathered with all of their luggage and send-off people (on a windy day that even Pooh would find slightly mentionable) and still managing to get Lotte there early and well prepared, I'd say that was an afternoon of work. Here's hoping today's office environment will calm down all the rest of the emotions, for Tripped Up Mama and all three triplets, one of whom cried the whole way home because she didn't want to leave her sister. Mabybe later I'll just take another look at those photos of Prague & dream of seeing it all myself.

I could have danced all night

All glittery & sparkly

My blonde haired girl who used to say things like "you know what's the funnest place in the world, Mom? Disney," has grown into her golden-chestnut-auburn locks and recently donned a glittery dress and heels for Homecoming. It was her second year for this occasion.

Part of the updo

I should be used to this growing up business, right? I'm not. That's why it took me almost 2 weeks to talk about the dance and the fact that my eldest girl is growing up faster than I like. I still see my little 4-year-old girl with her short bob style haircut sitting in the midst of a ball pit, smiling from ear to ear. In a pink dress, because she was convinced at the time no one would know she was a girl if she didn't wear dresses every single day. (It made for a long kindergarten year, let me tell you. That's since changed, she only wears dresses for Homecoming now, it seems).

When they tell you it goes fast, you smile and nod. You look at them as if they're crazy. Wherever you are in the season of early parenthood, you're convinced that it couldn't get tougher and that potty training tasks, tripping over strewn toys, and crying through separation anxiety will never end. After a while, you realize they're right. It goes fast. Faster than you ever thought possible.

Besides cheering her high school football team on to victory the night before and taking the PSAT test as a practice exam that morning, Lotte spent Homecoming Night with friends and slept over at a best girlfriend's house when it was over. Super busy and using her dad's house as home base, I saw her for about 20 minutes during the whole weekend. That's when you realize you're really not the center of her world anymore, and she's doing all the things teenagers are supposed to do. The next time I blink, she'll be at college, and I'll be so glad to do her laundry when she comes home, just to get a few moments of her time.

Yeah, it goes fast. So I'm trying to make sure I enjoy every single dance step along the way. Soon that clock will strike midnight and childhood will turn into adulthood. It brings new meaning to the famous song from My Fair Lady.