Before I had my third child, I admittedly used to (quietly) mommy shame a few moms out there that were super excited about the first day back to school. I wondered why they didn’t want to spend as much time with their kids as possible. Because before you know it, they’ll be too cool for you and busy with friends, school, sport and everything but you.
Didn’t they enjoy making all of those special summer memories with their kids? Ice cream runs, trips to the beach, water balloon fights, lazy days, camping, picnics, movie nights? I secretly thought that maybe they shouldn’t have had kids if they didn’t want to spend time with them.
Well that was then. My opinion on this topic has since changed – drastically! After having my third child things have changed in my mindset on it all. I am now on the other side of the fence. I understand why businesses market to parents with the comparison of back to school with the joy of Christmas – “it’s the most wonderful time of the year.” I now get it. It really IS wonderful. Don’t get me wrong – I love my kids more than I could have ever imagined AND I love spending quality time with them. It’s wonderful because at the end of the nine weeks (but who’s counting?!) of summer break, I’m totally exhausted and dreaming of getting back into a normal schedule and routine.
Summer break is amazing because we get to do all of those super fun things with our kids that we can’t normally do throughout the cold depressing winter. But the fun times are in between days of anxiety, stress and exhaustion. It’s a job in and of itself juggling what the plan is for childcare while you work or finding things to keep them busy and entertained so they don’t and spend 12 hours a day on their electronic devices.
Whether you are working full time and have your kids in daycare or sport and activity camps, or you’re a stay at home parent who now needs to be a nine-week full time entertainer, the struggle is real. Sunday Mimosas seem to be a bit of a need to help you from going bonkers – and don’t worry, there is no judgement on that or on the parents who sneak in a cooler to the splash pad. I get it. Big time.
Even for those parents with teenagers – they are still having to drive here and there and make sure that they’re not either burning the house down, having people over or spending 25 hours a day on their phones or gaming device.
Then there’s the whole food thing. I remember being so excited at the end of the school year about not having to make lunches for July and August. This was an illusion because since the first day off, I started to wish I had to make ONLY one lunch and two snacks for school. This summer felt like I was making morning snack, breakfast, brunch, snack, lunch, snack, another snack and then dinner – and then two more snacks!! Seriously?! Where do you put all this food?! You’re 50 pounds…do you have a hollow leg?
So this September, I joined the moms I secretly shamed and honestly didn’t even care that it was the end of summer. I was just so excited to be able to get us all into a normal routine. I’m now singing the praises of Back to School!
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