Inhale-1, 2, 3. Exhale- 1, 2, 3.  This has been my mantra for the last 3 weeks.  I'm teaching a new grade this year (3rd) in a new classroom with new standards and my husband is the new assistant principal of my school.  That is a whole lotta new.  I'm adjusting, although I did call Matt "Babe" in front of my students the other day-Oops.  Hayden and Josie love having their daddy at school with them.  Some afternoons they stay late with Matt and hang out in his office.  All 5 Bergens are at Browning Pearce this year.  It is comforting knowing that we are all so close.  I like it.  I like it a lot.  Josie is having attachment issues this year.  She has cried several times at school because she misses me.  She did this a few times last year when she had a substitute teacher.  I try to remind her of how lucky she is to have both her mommy and daddy right down the hall, but I think that might actually be why she is feeling so sad. She knows that we are only steps away, but yet she can't be with us.  It is hard to see her so upset, but I know she will get through all this just fine.  Lucas is loving the nursery, and he was glad to be back with all his friends from last year.  Hayden has been picking him up for me in the afternoons which has been an enormous help.  I can't believe Hayden is old enough to perform such an important task.  Before I know it, I'll be sending him to the store to pick up some milk.  I love my innocent little Hay Man.  I wish sometimes I could just put him in a bubble and protect him from all the nonsense that he will encounter over the next few years.  What am I talking about FEW.  Third grade is the just the beginning of the social gymnastics he will participate in for the rest of his life.  Luckily, he is not as introverted as I am, but he has an extremely tender heart.  The other morning he cried about going to school because some kids were saying that he had buck teeth, which he doesn't.  I wanted to cry when he told me,  but I didn't want him to see me so affected.  I fought back tears as I squeezed him tight and reassured him that his teeth do not stick out.  I tried to give him the "Those kids are jerks, don't listen to them!" speech, but I don't know how effective it was.  Everyone wants to feel accepted and at that age no one wants to feel different.  I wanted to tell him to sock the next kid in the jaw that says he has buck teeth, but I don't promote violence, so instead I equipped him with a few lines to use in case those kids make any more remarks.  I thought about teaching him a few "Your Mama" comebacks, but I think I'll save those for when he is in fourth grade.  Kid drama is tough.  It is hard to know when we as parents should intervene, and I know that it is only going to get more difficult from this point on.  One day I will be living in a house with three teenagers.  I can only imagine the drama that will unfold daily beneath our roof.  It shall be interesting...