As we saw on the Morning News, university students started school on Tuesday and younger students follow for the rest of the week. Soon all kids will be forced to acknowledge the end of another summer and the beginning of another school year. After the show, Eva changed some of my long-held notions about the first day of school.
DEREK: I always thought that back-to-school time was the happiest day of my mom’s year. A “get the heck outta my house” kind of thing. You’re telling me this is not necessarily the case.
EVA: No. I know tons of moms, including myself, who are kind of bittersweet about it. I’m excited obviously that the kids are going back to school in a new grade, but not excited about them leaving the house again.
I would have thought that the fact they’re out of your hair from this hour to this hour five days a week would be a weight off your shoulders.
Absolutely. If they’re not around you don’t have to worry about them and deal with all of their needs and whatever else. But at the same time you have kids because they’re kind of fun.
I was not fun.
You don’t think so?
They encourage you to do things you don’t normally do. If you don’t have them around, you’re going to do completely different things. And when they’re with you, they want to do some playful things. Especially if they’re young.
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Will you get more chance to do things for yourself with the kids in school?
Oh absolutely. I probably have a list of people that I haven’t had lunch dates with in a very long time who I will do that with now that I have a little bit of free time.
Because you have between when you get off work and 3 — whatever the time is — you have that time more free than it used to be.
Exactly. I finish here at noon or so and I will definitely have a few hours to either nap or go work out or do something with some friends. But when they’re at home, you definitely want to spend that time with them. So now I’ll have that time for myself.
What was it like not being there to see Julia go to school Wednesday morning?
It’s tough. This was the first year that I wasn’t seeing her off to school. She’s starting Grade 4. And it really sucks because it’s a big day for them. You think back on your first day of school and there was probably a bit of anxiety whether you were excited to see your friends or not. It’s kind of a bittersweet time for them, so you want to be there holding their hand or at least physically being there to encourage them to go.
Wednesday morning my husband turned on the TV when we happened to be talking about her going back to school and the water works started. She started crying. So I felt even worse (laughs…but in a caring way). But I’ll be there to pick her up after school.
Do you have anything planned for when Lukas goes back to school, be it the morning of or the night before?
Wednesday because I knew I wasn’t going to be there for Julia, I found an old picture of her when she was little and wrote a little note saying ‘Oh my little girl is so big. Have a great day at school in Grade 4,’ and then left the camera on the kitchen table so Jeff would remember to take a picture of her as she went. I would always take a picture on their first day of school. And for Lukas I’ll be there on Friday. I’ll be able to go there with him.
You mentioned being anxious or stressed out about going back to school. I knew I didn’t want to go back to school — summer vacation was way better. But I was never stressed about it.
For Julia, knowing that there are new expectations in Grade 4, not knowing what those expectations are … in her particular case, she’s going upstairs with the big kids …
Ohhhh boy.
She gets a locker this year. So it’s going to feel and be a lot different. Once the first few days are over, they’re all fine. But it’s just the first few days of getting into that classroom and figuring out ‘who’s changed over two months?’ and ‘how have they changed over two months?’ and ‘are we still okay?’ Once they are reassured that everyone is still okay, it settles down.
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Mr. Morrison: (writes ‘mammary glands’ on the chalkboard) Now, who knows what mammary glands are?
25 fourth graders: (share a confused look)
Mr. Morrison: (cupping hands at chest height) BOOBIES!!!
25 fourth graders: (feeling their life changing) Wow.
Good luck with that Julia!
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