I saw an Instagram Reel of the coolest thing: a morning dance party for moms only in Chicago. It is called the The Drop Off and was at 10am on the first day of school in Chicago. “For the 2nd year in a row, join us on the first day of school to celebrate all your hard work this summer,” the invite reads. “Kids are back in school and Mamas are still OUTSIDE!”
Y’all this is genius! Seriously, how much do moms do over the summer? How much of the emotional labor of finding camps, scheduling the various camp schedules, carpooling because camps are in inconvenient places and inconvenient times. The level of exhaustion one has for planning summer vacation schedules is enough to need at least a week off of everything else when the kids are back in school.
There is nothing like some kind of monumental celebration like a back-to-school drop off dance party just for moms to pat yourself on the back?!
But seriously, though. You rocked it.
Also, now that school is back in the swing of things, how are you all feeling? How was your summer? How is it going back to school? Do you feel relief at being into a routine again? Do you feel like you need another vacation all alone in the middle of a cabin in the woods?
For my part, back to school has been alright. I love being back in a routine. It’s been a transition for my second grader as he reports there are fewer games. But also, I told him, it’s only been four days. Nonetheless, evenings have been rough. So I’m doubly enjoying the days where I can work interrupted and also just sit on my couch and drink a coffee and stare into space for a few minutes uninterrupted.
I should also note that the reason that this is being posted a week late is because that back-to-school transition is no joke for us working parents as well. I feel like I pushed aside a lot of deadlines that suddenly came up last week and this post fell through the cracks.
Can anyone else relate?
So this post is going to be one of those casual missives to you all. A check-in, if you will. Would love to hear how you are adjusting in the comments. Let us know how back to school is going for you.
And all…well done mom. You kicked summer scheduling’s butt and you deserve a mimosa!
Dance party sounds great! But maybe first enjoy the quiet ;) To stare, to write...
Mine are now in HS and college, so things feel really different than when I first saw this video, which is apparently now 10 years old (!) but it's still one of my favorites - moms gone wild at Target on the first day of school.
https://youtu.be/OKD2kzXSX-k?si=N8NBIlQVFfdz9AHV
All of this! I want a dance party AND I want a week alone in the woods. Cheering for all the other mother-writers who are both missing their back to school kiddos in this season AND enormously grateful for the gift of more space and time.