They Have To Sleep Eventually

It's that time of year again! BACK TO SCHOOL! Just the mere mention of it makes me start to panic. Some of us prepare all year long, slowly accumulating school supplies, backpacks, we even buy last seasons winter clothing in a size up, in anticipation of impending fall weather. (For the record- I am not this mom.) Some of us wait until the last minute and hurriedly gather up whatever left over notebooks and folders are available- "Sorry for the Little Mermaid folders, middle-schooler. That's all they had left". (For the record - I am this mom.) Some of us dread this time of year. It is a HUGE expense for some families. It is an expense that isn't in the budget but needs to be because no one wants to be the parent that sends their kids to school with only half the stuff on the school supply list, ripped shoes, and old worn out clothes. Unfortunately, some of us are that parent. Once upon a time, not that long ago I was that parent. A single mom of three

I'm having some serious mom-anxiety today. We often hear of and talk about the anxiety of being a new parent. And that is admittedly an anxious time for a parent. No doubt. You are expected to keep a tiny little human alive and breathing and eating, all while getting like 43 minutes of sleep a day. No big whoop, right? Right. But let me shine a little light on the anxiety of parenting a big kid. Today our oldest started high school football at a new school in a new city with new coaches and new teammates. Mondays are Dad's day with the five. I work day shift every Monday so of course I felt a pang of guilt for not being around today. As a working-mom this kind of thing makes my anxiety sky rocket. Even though I love my career and my husband is 100% capable of doing all the parenting things, anytime I miss anything that involves the children I start to feel the guilt that our society places upon working-moms far too often.   It also doesn't help that just a