Kindergarten ends tomorrow. I can't believe it went by so fast and that I passed with flying colors... despite my somewhat pathetic start. (Oh yeah, my daughter did great too!)
I am looking forward to sleeping past 6:30am and having the freedom to run errands past 2pm. I won't have to make PB&J's with my eyes half open, rush around looking for socks and shoes, get gas in my pajamas. I've never been a morning person and this school thing has been hard! But there were some unexpected great things about kindergarten as well....
Last year at this time I was suffering from kindergarten depression. If anyone mentioned kindergarten or I even thought about kindergarten the tears started flowing. I'm sure people thought I was a freak! I cried when I ordered the backpack and lunch bag. I cried during drop-off and pick-up. I pretty much cried from May to October. And before all the crying even started I was on a mission to find the "perfect" school for my precious, never-been-to-any-kind-of-school child. I was convinced that the school we were zoned for couldn't possibly meet my expectations, although I wasn't even clear about what they were. I visited private schools, a new alternative school, considered homeschooling, and researched the other public schools in a 50 mile radius. Nothing felt right. I finally stopped fighting it, gave into the fact that kindergarten was going to happen, and went with the school 2 minutes from our house, where we were supposed to go.
I was disappointed when I found out I couldn't help out in class on a regular basis like some of my friends had done (in other schools and states.) I wanted to be on the "inside," see what was going on, spy on my child. I waited for a written invitation to get involved but it got lost in the mail, so I crashed the party.... subtly, and accidentally. I hit the "moms in the know" jackpot!
Actually, my daughter helped me do this. She unknowingly became the Kindergarten Mom Matchmaker. With her 5 year old intuition she sought out and bonded with the one girl in her class who had the perfect mom for me....it was a match made in crafting heaven! She began talking about this new friend the first week of school. I remember thinking..."I sure hope her parents aren't weirdos!" It sounded like this friendship was getting serious and I didn't want to have to deal with the "freaky" mom at play dates.
We met on the first day of dance class. It was like a scene from a movie... Our girls saw each other across the crowded room of tutus and tap shoes. My daughter squealed with delight as she realized they were going to be in the same dance class too! I said a prayer..."Please let her mom be normal"...as we walked over to them. And then I saw it... the awesomely cool fabric necklace she was wearing.... she was fashionable and cool! The only thing that would make this moment better was if she made it herself. SHE DID!! God had answered my prayers, I heard angels singing and everything was in slow motion, just like in the movies.... my daughter's new kindergarten friend had a COOL AND CRAFTY mom!! I tried to stay cool and calm and hoped she didn't think I was the freaky mom, but I probably seemed like a stalker. I wanted to exchange numbers right then and there, set up a play date, I couldn't let her get away, but instead I went back to my side of the room. Is this what guys feel like when they like a girl and get all weird? I think I was experiencing my first mom crush...
I happened to run into her on a rainy day in the office when I was picking up my daughter early. She was talking to other moms who seemed like they knew things...veterans... they could probably sense that I was a newbie but this was no time to be shy. I knew I had to wriggle my way in, act like one of the cool kids. My plan worked. I met several other awesome moms who all have older kids so they knew the answers to all my questions and they held my hand and walked me through this year, step by step. I'm sure I would've gotten through it on my own, but it would not have been pretty!
All of that crying, worrying, doubting, and generally freaking out was for nothing! Things always turn out for the best. Not only did I make some new friends, I got lots of new craft ideas from my cool-crafty-mom-friend!! And I thought kindergarten was just about learning to read and write.....
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