First, an apology: My blog has been a place I only visit lately when desperately needing to vent. Reading the last few entries, things seem rather depressing. My blog is very much the therapeutic leather couch upon which I work out all my troubles. Sorry if it has been less than uplifting.
Secondly, my blog is very much a record of my mortal existence. I hope to one day soon put together one of those beautifully designed hardback versions of my blog in print for my posterity to ponder in amazement. I hope that it is a true encyclopedia of my life offering wisdom, laughter, and just enough insanity to make it fun. Many important/interesting events have gone undocumented, including birthdays, a creative valentine's day scavenger hunt, visits to the temple site, and much more. However, this last week needs to be discussed so that someday my kids will know that I tried to be a great mom.
Our school district chose to give us a Monday and Tuesday off following a Friday's teacher workday as Spring Break this year. James was allowed a week off school for a Spring break that began that same Monday. I felt it was more valuable for my kids to enjoy those days with their dad than it was for them to attend class those days. We visited the zoo in St. Louis on Wednesday. The boys bonded over movie nights, staying up late sharing bowls of popcorn. A short hike through a nature reserve was an important part of the week as well. The time spent riding bikes, going to the theater, shopping, and baking together was invaluable. The week was delightfully full of quality family time.
My boys returned to school yesterday to find a sea of worksheets at their desks. They each had more worksheets than a kid could do in a day. Daniel's teacher expects it all done right away. Tonight, instead of enjoying the beautiful weather, I tried to entertain my toddler while assisting the other two with their overwhelming loads of busy work. Oh, how I wish the school could see that my children's time with us was so much more valuable than a few word problems and some practice rhyming. Could we just drop the worksheets and move on? If their work was part of a unit, I would understand. If any of it was a precursor or stepping stone for something they would work on next, I would understand. But this was just busy work. An insane amount of busy work.
To top it all off, the school tried to insure families would not take additional time off by holding class pictures during the second half of the week. Daniel was quite troubled when he learned that he missed it. I told him that when we see that yearbook and his presence missing from the class picture, we'll remember that we were too busy having fun, having togetherness, and having a life to be doing worksheets at school that day.
I love my dear friend Lisa who put it all into proper perspective for me. She said, "Never let school get in the way of a good education." Thanks, Lisa.
My kids may never thank me for keeping them out of school and creating this backlog of worksheets, but I hope they will someday appreciate that their mom thought that time spent together as a family trumps all. I want them to remember that despite the opposition, we choose to be together, and oh what a joy it is to be together!
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