Let me tell you about my week. Monday & Tuesday it snowed. It snowed enough that school was canceled on both of those days. I was glad though because the kids & I had hoped for snow & this was the first real snow. Also, now that my daughter is in kindergarten, I see her less. When I do see her, we are either rushing around or getting homework done. It’s rare to have time to just BE with her; to hear her heart & just play.
However,
This meant that we got homework later in the week & believe it or not, in kindergarten, she gets a lot. We did 2 pages of the homework the first night we got it. Then, Thursday night, my daughter was performing at a basketball game. She did some cheers & a cute little dance. She was fearless & sassy & it was so great, but it was something. We were busy. We got home just in time to get her ready for bed. We got up this morning & I realized that we had a WEEK of subtraction to accomplish!
I want you to understand now, I am the mom who is always running late. It is all I can do to get my daughter to school by 8 am. Did I mention she has a 3 1/2-year-old brother who is a wild maniac of a boy? Sweet as can be, but CRAZY. I am not one of those moms who is good at managing little kids on their way out the door. I’m the one who at some point in the chaos, freaks out on them with: “Why can’t you just put on your shoes?!? Ahhhhh!” or “You have been in here 10 minutes, your teeth are not brushed. What in the WORLD are you doing in here?!? (She had been singing to herself in the mirror & practicing faces while she says certain phrases. Of course she is, right? Girls! I did the same thing when I was little. My poor mama).
So, at the thought of completing about 10 pages of subtraction at the kitchen table before getting to school, here’s what I decided to do: JUST PLOW THROUGH. That’s what we did. We just plowed through the work at the table while her little brother was running through the house like a monkey let loose from the zoo. It was getting closer & closer to 8 & I understood that 1 of 2 things was going to happen:
1) We were not going to finish the homework
2) We were going to be late
As a mom, what would you choose? I wasn’t sure what the best decision was. Also, I don’t know what your kid’s school is like, but when you take your child late to school at my daughter’s school, they ask you, “Why is she late?” Then you get to feel like the world’s worst mom & say something like, “I’m a mess. I don’t have it all together. I can hardly manage these 2 in the morning. Somebody HELP!!” Ok, that’s not really what I say, but that’s what I mean at that moment. What I really say is something like, “Hard getting these 2 out the door.” Then I smile at the office lady with a smile that begs for GRACE & understanding. This is hard, right? Am i the only one? The WORST one? Sometimes it feels like that &, in those moments, I could really use a hug, some grace & some understanding.
Even if It is just hard for me & I’m the worst one, I love these kids so much & I try really hard to make the best choices for them. I care about the school & it rules. I know I am THAT mom, but I’m also this mom:
