I have always been jealous of stay at home parents. Their school drop off and pick up always seemed stress free. I figured they probably read the pile of notices that came home from school. And I dreamed about all the time they must have during the day to get through their To Do lists.
Boy oh boy was I wrong!
The dream of an easy school drop off and pick up started off well this year. The beautiful weather at the beginning of school encouraged me to walk my kids to and from school each day. It seemed so easy! But then the weather started to change. Warm, sunny weather was replaced with cold, grey mornings that brought rain and even our first snow. So, the kids and I decided to it was time to start driving to school, but so did everyone else. Instead of a simple drop off, the road is now filled with cars, trucks and school buses who are fighting for the best spot. And pick up is even worse! If you don’t arrive early enough, you are forced to park a couple streets over and then journey all the way to the school.
At the start of this school year I realized the volume on paper notices coming home each day was less than in previous years. And I thought this would be great! Less notices combined with more time should mean I could read them all, right? Wrong! Our school has switched over to communicating through digital means while keeping some paper forms. So, I now must check my children’s backpacks as well as my email and several different school approved message apps. Needless to say, I have missed a communication or two this fall.
Remember all that time I thought I would have to get my To Do list done each day? As the roles have shifted at home, I have taken on more of the day to day tasks. This means that my to do list is loaded with everyday tasks like laundry, grocery shopping and taking the kids to appointments. Who knew a trip to the grocery store, Costco and mowing the lawn could take so much time to finish?
As a stay at home dad, I am incredibly fortunate that I get to spend this extra time with my kids. But I must admit after months into my new role, I am no longer jealous of other stay at home parents. Instead, I now understand that the life of a stay at home parent is just as hectic just in a different way.
A Stay At Home Dad 