Schools, Sports, and Trying to Hold it Together
eptember is in its waning days. October is not far. The children are in school and at work and the entire family is back in the routine of buses and books. Our miserable little darlings have even dusted off the tried and true complaints and grievances, complete with the reasons why school is a waste of time and totally unnecessary.
Work, Work, Work
Our family is not only dealing with school, but also with two children going to work. One on them, God bless her, is working retail. I've been there and done that. It's fun to trade stories when I pick her up after her shift. Slugger is working at an ice cream shop. This drive is a little longer and gives us time to discuss the night at work and whatever else is happening in his life. He seems to like it so far. Like all jobs that deal with customer service, some days are better than others.
The Oppressed and the boy aren't working yet. The Oppressed has taken an interest in babysitting. The Boy? Well, unless there's a good paying job that involves Minecraft, I think he's happy to just go from school to his friend's house to his bedroom for some sleep and then restart the routine the next morning. Wife has been busy as usual. Work took her to Pennsylvania. She flew into Philadelphia. I get excited for her when she travels. We've been to Philadelphia before and Wife loves food and checking out local restaurants. The Oppressed and I love taking in Independence Hall and the other historical offerings in the City of Brotherly Love. One night she took a picture of the beer menu at the publick house of the evening. I offered my opinion when it came to what she should get.
Wife taking care of business in two different states. I'm making sure everyone is still alive when she gets back. It was a fun week, especially when we have four children in four different schools. Wife happened to be away during "Back to School Week". That fun-filled time where parents get to meet the teachers and find out what exactly happens when the Miracles of Christ are doing "nothing" all day.
Middle School
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| Middle School. Where The Oppressed is forced to work against her will. |
My first visit was for The Oppressed at middle school. Last year was a busy one for our youngest daughter. She immersed herself in drama club, band, and student council. Teachers were excited to meet one of the parents of one of their best students. I had a great visit last year. Her history teacher was also a musician, so we got to talk about history and his band. It was a great time that ended with me being dragged away because we had other people to see, and so did the teacher.
This year, as I went from room to room, I was again greeted by enthusiastic teachers who told me how happy they were with my daughter's work. I also met the other parents who were interested in learning what happened during those magical hours when our children aren't home. I took home syllabi for my wife and I to look over and know more about this part of Academia. If we had any questions, we were certain our daughter would fill us in.
High School
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| Stop #2 of the week. |
I also got a little taste of what it was like to go from classroom to classroom. There were student ambassadors who were able to guide some of us to the right room. It was tough, but we all managed. I got to find out the projects people were working on, including a boat that is propelled by heat from a candle. Robert Fulton would be proud.
One of the best parts about the night was running into friends, who were also excited to find out what their children were doing all day, every day. There's not enough time to connect with people. Why not do it at school? Speaking of time to do things, Lovie needed to be picked up after hanging out with friends on campus.
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| The place where Slugger works his magic. |
Elementary School
Our last school visit of the week was for The Boy. The Elementary School session was on the same night as his Parkour class, which called for a little dividing and conquering between Wife and me. I went to the school. Wife and The Boy went to Parkour. We were both glad he found a physical activity he likes. He's not a sports kid and we don't want to raise a couch potato. Another parent and I looked at the desks. Honestly, my kid's desk could have looked a lot worse.
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| Where The Boy holds it down with his crew. Everyone here knows us by now. |
There wasn't much else to report from this school. We know the teacher from The Oppressed being in this school before. We've been going to this school for eight years, so we're well-versed in the protocol when a child gets sick. We know what time the school opens and, since The Boy takes the bus, we don't have to worry about making it on time for the morning bell or afternoon dismissal.
Unfortunately for me, the music teacher wasn't around. I have some ideas I would like to share with him, ideas The Boy isn't exactly keen on, and he didn't hide his relief when he found out I wasn't able to talk to the teacher.
It was another fun-filled, exciting week of running around and making different obligations. I got to hear about Wife's trip and the fun she had at the end of her days. The Boy told me he wants to play an instrument, so I signed him up and we will soon have two trombone players in the house. Parkour adds another element of juggling that I'll be acquainting myself with. What's another destination to make between four kids?
"Weave a Web of Witchcraft", written by Jean M. Roberts and narrated by me, is now available on Audible. Get your copy here.
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