Well! That was one hell of a week.
We had a great holiday, really we did. Everyone was healthy and happy. We didn’t travel, so we were able to maintain the familiar schedule, but we also did lots of fun, special things and had lots of fun, loving visits with family and friends. The kids had a great time — they were calm, contented and collected.
Then, school started on Monday.
I’m not sure if school exhausts them, or stresses them out, or possibly gives them daily injections of HYPER, but Jesus, the older two have had a tough week. Every day it’s been a roller coaster of moods from boing-boing hyperactive to complete hysteria and back again. One or the other was either crying, slamming the door to their room, or shoving and kicking the other one at any given moment.
Next week can only get better, right? I’ll have to look back in my blog — I don’t remember September being this terrible.
Recently Sir Monkeypants and I were having a conversation about how some activist groups are making noise about eliminating the long summer break, and having four breaks per year of 2-3 weeks each. I think this past week has made me a firm NO on that idea. I can only live through a week like this once a year, I think.
It doesn’t help that I am completely swamped with PTA stuff, on top of my usual referee duties around here. I’m running an art program for the school where parent volunteers present a famous (or not so famous) work of art to a primary class, and teach them how to analyze and appreciate it. To tell the truth I am doing a lot more in this position than the bare minimum. I decided on my own to create an online library of all the art that the program owns, which is hundreds and hundreds of prints that I had to document and photograph, and I also updated the volunteer handbook which was way out of date. Now I have to give a training session to the volunteers next week, so I’m busy making slides and practicing my speech and burning CDs of the resources they need.
I’ll be very happy when next week is over and we can get back to the usual routine around here. I miss my blog!
TurtleHead 
Wow that sounds like quite the project. Your school will be very lucky that you did all that work for them.
My boys transitioned into school/daycare okay this week. Better than I thought they would. But today when I told M that this was Friday and tomorrow was holiday (we always refer to weekends as holidays, and M refers to daycare as school) he said to me “No more school forever Mommy?” with a hopeful sound in his voice that broke my heart.
Chantal — It’s so sad when they don’t want to go! You know they are going to have a great time there, but still… Last year Gal Smiley was in preschool and the Captain was in JK and I don’t remember the transition back being so tough. Maybe it’s that I’m the one who is too tired to deal with it!
JEM had a difficult week back too, and she’s 14! Her commute takes 2-3 times longer than usual because of the bus strike, and with 3 term projects due this week she didn’t get much sleep. Even with exams coming up I expect the next couple of weeks will be better. Fingers crossed.
The beginning of our week was just like that too, and Monday evening was the worst I can remember. I’ve never seen Calder get hysterical before, but he was that night, and for absolutely no good reason.
Here’s hoping that week two is better!