Back to school!

Anyone who knows me, knows I love my children. I really really do. But it’s that time of year again where I am pleading with the school to maybe start a week earlier… Pretty please? My children do not go back to school until next week and I am going to celebrate the day they do with actually getting the house deep cleaned while they are gone. Don’t get me wrong, the house is clean, for the most part. There’s just something about being able to clean with no one underfoot while blasting music and dancing away.

As the first day of school approaches, I find myself becoming excited and a little sad/worried at the same time. For the first time ever, my kids will be in three different schools. I’m worried for my soon to be high schooler, who will be by themselves in a brand new environment. I recall being a freshman in high school and it was terrifying and new and just not what I expected at all. Granted it’s been …. 18 years since I was a freshman in high school. (Wow, I feel old now.) Things have changed soooo much since then though. I find myself wondering if he’ll be made fun of for not having the newest clothes, for wearing certain brands, for having longer hair, for any small perceived imperfection to his personality or looks. Let’s face it though, kids are cruel in high school and that fact is what largely made me hate high school.

I was not the popular kid and was not a part of the “in” crowd. I did however, make lifelong friends, and I hope my teen makes some friendships that last a lifetime too. With the invention of social media, it has become easier than ever to catch back up with old high school friends though, so he at least has that going for him. Unfortunately with social media comes the “overshare generation” where kids will post about every little thing that they do, as if someone really needs to know that you ate a bagel for breakfast. Relationships are now plastered all over Facebook with the inclusion of the occasional breakup thrown in too. Everyone knows what everyone else is doing and that brings stress and the feeling that you “need” to present this perfect picture to the world. It’s a scary place to be sometimes.