It’s back to school day in my town. Not for me, my youngest is a senior year in college. While I’ve been feeling nostalgic the last few days with all the Facebook posts about little ones going back to school, I have to say there are some positive things about today for me.
1. I didn’t have to wake up at 6 and get a grumpy kid out of bed. (I woke up at 5 for no reason, but that’s a topic for another blog post!) And, I didn’t have to create Pinterest-worthy first day of school signs!
2. I had a golf lesson, played canasta and had lunch with friends. Those are things I never imagined I would be doing one day. But with no little ones at home, and a job I can work any hours I want to, I have time to do things – new things, different things! Still, golf?!
3. I won’t be spending the afternoon at Staples with millions of other families, with a list a mile long and an exhausted teenager. Followed by a trip to Target to get what Staples didn’t have. (Who am I kidding, I will miss the trip to Target!)
4. I won’t be spending my evening filling out the ream of paper sent home on the first day of school with all the reading and signing and making you wonder if you actually have more homework than your student. I will be having dinner in a pub with friends, celebrating someone’s birthday.
But, if I’m being honest, I’ll admit to missing some of the excitement of back to school time with little ones. I’ll miss them geeking out over finding the perfect backpack with their favorite character. As an all-things-paper lover I’ll miss helping them pick out the right folders, notebooks and pens. What I’ll miss the most is the joy and chatter of excited kids coming home to tell me all about their day, their friends and their teacher.
How is back to school time for you? Are you in the thick of it with little ones, happy or sad that you don’t have little ones, or are you unfazed by the back to school mania?
