Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Chauffeur

That old adage about how life just gets busier the older kids get is true.

At least, it’s true for me. I remember hearing it when Alyssa was an infant and I was in the throes of sleep-deprivation, desperate for a shower and wondering if I’d ever change out of my stained, stinky pajamas and I couldn’t imagine such a thing.

But it’s true. For me. I’ve learned, though, that it’s a different kind of busy.

These days I have to leave work right at 4:30 on Mondays and Wednesdays so I can be at the school at 5:00 to pick Alyssa up from a study session her teacher is hosting to prepare the class for the standardized testing they’ll be doing in a few weeks.

Thursdays are still gymnastic days. Saturdays are the day we go to the library for our weekly stash of books.

Showers and baths have to be fit in too and as one of the girls gets older and verges on being very much a preteen, she needs to shower a bit more often than she did even six months ago. Please note I’m not naming names here.

More often than not, I feel a bit like a chauffeur, which, eh, I can take. I don’t get much in the way of wages but the fringe benefits are pretty awesome.

I’ve read a few times that because of this busyness in the life of older children, it’s actually more important to have a parent at home during the preteen and teen years than during the infant and preschool years. I can understand that logic a little better these days too.

Having Tom working from home gives us freedom that I know my friends who have both parents working outside the home don’t have. He’s there for delays and school closings. He’s only four miles from the school should either of the girls need something or need to come home. He’s there when we get home from all the running we are doing these days, with the heat turned up, the dinner (sometimes) ready and a sympathetic ear when I need to complain about something.

Yes, the busyness is different, the sleep is a little better and the girls just keep getting bigger. I’m ever so grateful for that last one.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Oh yes I agree life does get busier as the kids get older.