School has been back in for several weeks now, and already I’m feeling my sanity start to return. It sounds mean, and I’m riddled with mom guilt even uttering these words, but some things in life are just easier when kids go back to school!
Here are a few mundane items and simple pleasures I’m enjoying while the kids get back into their school year routines:
- I run errands by myself again.
I’ve forgotten how absolutely freeing it is to go to the grocery store or pharmacy without my kids’ nagging relentlessly or having to bribe them. - Doctor and dental appointments.
You guys, I know. But sometimes there’s no one available to babysit and you’ve got to go. (Nintendo DS’s saved the day!) I’m sorry – it’s just so much easier without my little angels in tow. - When I “have to” go to Target.
And I sniff all the fall candles, sip my fall flavored hot beverage, and browse the cosmetics for as long as I want. The best part about shopping when the kids are in school? I don’t have to go down the toy aisle and spent less than five minutes in that “Dollar Spot” section. - I go to the bathroom alone.
ALONE! Completely uninterrupted. No rush. This is LIVING. I close the door, and it REMAINS closed. Unbelievable. I forgot what this was like! - Chores.
Cleaning the house with kids underfoot is a bit like chewing gum after you’ve eaten an Oreo. At least you know once it’s clean it’ll remain that way. Well, at least until the kids get home from school.
The really twisted part of all this is how much I miss them during the day when they are at school. Their laughs and their smiles. I wonder how their days are going and if they’re making new friends. I wonder what new things they’re learning from their teachers (yay!), as well as their peers (yikes!). I pray. A lot. And then I deal with after school car line – which is another story for another day.
What are you enjoying about your daily routine with the children back in school? See you in the check-out line with your pumpkin spice and your yoga pants!
