One of my friends blogged about the hectic pace of May and that it has somehow become the new December. There is constantly something going on or ending in a big way. I am getting better at saying "no," and accepting that I can't do everything, but it's so much harder when the kids are involved.
Ryan's first field trip was yesterday. It was just a trip to the zoo and we just went to the zoo last weekend, so I didn't feel too bad not chaperoning. Well, I didn't feel too bad until I dropped Ryan off at school that morning and he said, "You'll meet us at the zoo, right Mom?"
Um....no. I explained to Ryan that I had to work and he seemed alright with that, but the damage to my fragile mommy psyche was done. Never mind that I've been saving vacation time to take several weeks off this summer when the kids are out of school, I started wondering if I should have taken the day off and helped out. Never mind that there were other parents helping, I started to feel bad that I wasn't. Logically, I knew that Ryan wouldn't give the fact that I wasn't chaperoning a second thought, the "bad mommy" part of my brain kept whispering that I was ruining his field trip.
Of course, everything went swimmingly at the zoo. Ryan had a great time plus, one of my dear friends was the chaperone for his group and sent me pictures throughout the morning.
Today was field day at the school. It's another event that the PTA sponsors and several notes and emails went home asking for parents to volunteer to help out. Again, I declined to volunteer because it was a work day. I have never volunteered for field day, so I figured I was safe on skipping this one. Wrong again! This time it was Wesley who piped up as he was getting out of the car, "You're coming back for field day, right?"
Again, no.
Tomorrow night is the "artstravaganza" at the boys' school. I will be at that because it's in the evening, but Wesley has to be there before 6:00 and I don't get off work until 5:30, so it will be a bit of a rush. I won't have time to eat anything, which means I'll be hangry and trying to keep myself under control during the event. The only saving grace is that the performances are outside (read: you don't sit through everyone's performance) and the Kindergarten and second grade both perform early.
Friday is Wesley's field trip. Guess who isn't a chaperone for that one either?
Less you think I'm a complete slacker, I did take the last day of school off, although truth be told, it wasn't my intent. My intent was to take the morning off for Kindergarten graduation, then go into work after lunch. Of course, that was before learning that Wesley's class would be doing an awards ceremony and Popsicle party starting at 1:30. There is no way I could go to one child's event and not the other. And then school is out at 3:00, so really, what's the point of going back to work.
It just frustrates me sometimes how often parents are expected to be at school during the day. My job is very flexible and I can usually make stuff work, but not without feeling guilty about missing work, or missing the school event, or being at one and feeling like I should be at the other. What do parents who have more structured jobs do?
And this is just the school stuff. Before the end of the month we also have an out of town wedding that Duane and I are invited to that falls at the same time as Wesley's final soccer game and team picnic, which is the same time Wesley is supposed to put flags up on the veterans graves with the scouts for Memorial Day. We have a graduation party the evening we return. Ryan and I are going to walk in the Memorial Day parade with the library so Duane and Wesley can walk in the same parade with the scouts. I need to write a review for a book I haven't finished. We have two more graduation parties to attend next weekend - both out of town (and nowhere near each other) at overlapping times.
I'm ready for it to be June.
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