Is It Just Me? - Detroit,MI

Sing it, sistah! You are not alone. I love my kids, but I love my alone time too. I got so much done yesterday (first full day). I plan on working out and putzing around the house before they come home today.

Ahhh....the sounds of silence! Love.it.

no it is not just you, I have 3 kids and WOW I love them SO much, I cannot believe that a love so great gets even bigger and stronger everyday, but school YEAH!!!!! I have been a mom who has had to work full time and I love going to work it is my break from baby talk and fighting ( the kids arguing with each other) Calgon does not take me away, so I am right there with ya honey.

I feel the same way. My 2 oldest start back up next week and I CAN"T WAIT!! They are driving me crazy, mostly because my 7 year old has to come to work with me and that is no fun for anyone. But it is not just me because they really are ready to go back to school now.

I love the first day of school even more than I love Christmas.

No, I don't get it either. I never did get it. My oldest is 18, and I could not wait to send her to school, and still look forward to the day of the year that the house is quiet for a few hours a day. Never cried, always celebrated. I think it is more healthy than the other way around.

Burn rubber...

M.

you made me laugh with might burn rubber once i leave.
now i am actually sad for school time approaching. i had a great summer with my kids. i learned pre-planned activities make everybody happy. on the days we stayed indoors and had nothing planned were harder but those days were far and in between.
sounds like you need a break though so i understand

Not everyone has the same reactions or feelings about things...think of what a boring world this would be if we did!!! It sounds like there is a lot of stress at home right now with your stepdaughter coming to live with you, at least temporarily. I helped raise my stepson ( who is now an adult with children and a grandchild of his own) and I know the stress that can accompany a situation like this!!!
I am going to tell you what I kept telling myself as I dealt with the issues that surrounded my stepson...and maybe this will help you view things in a little different light. I kept reminding myself that he was in a difficult situation, being away from his Mom, even though she was NOT the best influence that a little boy could have, she was still his Mom and he loved her. He was also having to adjust to being with a Dad that he didn't know on a daily basis and a stepmom that he didn't know at ALL!!! I tried my very best to look at things from his point of view and see how confusing and unsettling it all must be. (I will admit I didn't manage to do that all of the time, I am only human after all!!!Lol). Your stepdaughter may be "in your face" because she is craving attention, love and reassurance that she is in a stable home that she can count on. Try your best to be calm and loving with her, show her that she is an important member of your household and work on building up a long lasting relationship with her. I can tell you that my stepson ( I don't think of him in those terms, I just think of him as my "son" now!!) feels much closer to me than he does to either of his parents, especially closer to me than he does to his Mom, whom he does not communicate with at all!!).
Don't feel guilty about not being a sobbing, quivering mess about your son going off to school. Some of us are just more emotional than others ( I was one of those who hated to see them leave for school at the end of the summer). I do think you might need to readjust your schedule a little bit, your son is not going to be able to sleep in until 10 every morning once head start begins...so you might want to start easing him towards an earlier bedtime and an earlier wake up hour now!!
Good luck to you...and enjoy that stepdaughter...she may just turn out to be the light of your life!!!
R. Ann

Hi C.----Sorry if this is duplicating other advice, but I don't have much time. I found that I looked forward to me time as well. I've been of the opinion that I am a much better mom when I get away from my kids every once in awhile. I think it's good for them too. Just think about directions for the oxygen masks when you fly. You put yours on first so that you are able to help the kids..because if you pass out, you are no good for anyone!

The other think I would suggest is that you and your son had better start working on a schedule to wake up earlier in preparation for school. That way it won't be such an abrupt change when he does start. Then, you will minimize the aggravation with your BF's daughter.

Good luck...D.

I hear you.. i of course LOVE my children and love having them around, but really love to send them off for a little while to get a little breather room. It's hard for anyone to be surrounded all of the time. I like to say it's nice to get the opportunity to miss them. Makes your time together so much sweeter. So don't feel bad.. I'm sure most moms and dads (wether they will admit it or not) love that little break away from the kids.

I had a hard time sending my oldest off for the first time or the first week or so but once she got used to it and I got used to it, I looked forward to the quiet.. When the second one came around and I was going to put her in daycare (at about 1 year old) it wasn't an issue.. I sent her off with a smile and she went off to play with the other kids with a smile (it helped her that her big sister was there with her).

I adore my son BUT, 12 days and 45 minutes before the bus arrives! It's been a long summer, but a fun one!

I was sitting in the waiting room while my son was in OT the other day and I was talking to one of the many moms sitting there. She looked a bit disheveled, she said I don't know about you, but I'm more than ready for school to start. Three of us, including myself chimed in "So am I" at the same time. We all laughed.

C., I am SO with you on this one. I love my kids (8 yr old triplets), but school will not start soon enough. I am going nuts with the constant drama, fighting and bickering. At least you are not alone. :) Hugs

I could not wait either for my kids to start school. Not that school is a daycare-It was very difficult to juggle being a single working mom, with kids either at day camp (which is very expensive) or at the babysitter’s house. Had to go and get them at lunchtime as day camp closed at 3:00 pm to take them to the babysitters house. Now that they both graduated High School and are in college (one moved out as he is 21) I do not miss a thing about all the morning/evening insanity.

No, it's not just you. Actually, aside from the needing a break from the kid(s) thing, I really enjoy watching my kid be able to move in to his next stage/ year of life and the excitement that holds for him. I'm not in a giant hurry for him to grow up but I do look forward to the time that we can interact as adults.

I talked to my aunt last year. She's the same way.

nope you are not alone I was counting down the days till school started this year for both of mine. It's so nice to have the house quiet for a few hours.

Nope, it's not just you. I love my kids, but I love that they go to school 9 months of the year. I like summer and doing all those fun things with them, I enjoy their vacation times during the school year, but I certainly appreciate that they are gone from this house from 7:30-3:30 the rest of the time. lol.

I used to be one of those "I'm going to miss them when they go to school" moms. I loved being with my children and having them around the house. This year however, I was so ready for them to go back to school. We have year round school so they started at the end of July. I got so tired of my DD telling me she was bored and no one wants to play with her (meaning her siblings) and how she just wanted to go back to school and I only had to listen to it for about a week. I'm so glad she started school about a week after that started. Next year, my younger children will be in year round and my son will go to middle school which is not year round so we'll see how much I like it then.

I'm with you C.. They are such exhausting bundles of love aren't they??!! I dod agree with KansasMum regarding the schedule, if you don't start adjusting now, it's going to be a huge headache getting him up and ready in the mornings.

Enjoy your 'you' time.

C.,

I adore my kids but at my house we are all ready for school to start! Especially me:) I am a SAHM with no help and my husband works long hours. I enjoy having my kids home and doing things with them and the first 6 weeks of summer were great. But I think summer vacation is too long. I have run out of things for them to do that are new and exciting! I also miss my time to myself which I think we all need. I think my kids need to get back in school to get back on a schedule. We are spending too much time together!! But in saying that I think after the first few days of school, I will want them home again LOL!!!

R.

Eventhough I was working for most of my kids lives, when they started pre-school it wasn't that bad for me. I though it was cool that they finaly got some away time from home... but I had a 3 & 4 yr old start at the sometime. So, I knew they had eachother.

Now on the other hand... when my daughter started school last year I did cry & all day I was worried about her. She was alone at a new school, which bothered me till she got home.

This year won't be as bad... I have a kindergardner & 1st grader. Plus the pre-schooler will be going to the new head start which is in the same building as my other 2. Which makes it much nicer cause all 3 are in the same building & eventhough the are in different rooms, I feel like if they really need eachother they can get to eachother. But I won't be alone when they are in school - I have a 2 mo old to take care of. Not to mention - I will be going to school in the evening, so I will have get my homework done when the kids are in school.

With 3 little ones running around and the baby, yes at the end of the day I am ready for bedtime... eventhough I love my kids dearly. And yes, I'm looking forward to a little quiter time. But I'm also excited for my kids... they are all looking forward to being in a school together. It's all they talk about everytime we pass the school building - which is everytime we go somewhere, since the school is only 2 blocks away.

But saying all this - I will still miss my kids & it will take sometime to adjust to the kids not being here. And hubby will most likely tease me about it most of the day - just like he did last year w/ my daughter. But I know the teasing is only out of love - guess that is why we will be celibrating our 17 annivercery here in a few months.

Try to enjoy your time... sometimes a little time away makes you a rested & better mom.

I used to make fun of all the moms who would come out of the school with these tear stained puffy eyes telling me how much they would miss their ankle biters and all that...

I'd be in the car, full make up on, smiling from ear to ear, pushing them out with their full back packs and trepidations and head right to get a mani pedi, then go home and nap...maybe have lunch with a friend...then sleep some more if I wanted. Hell, back to school day was a HOLIDAY at my house.

And as for empty nest...got nuthin. My son went to college and I was like...have fun. My daughter went to live with her dad and for about a year after, I was miserable, but because of the circumstances of how she left then realized hey...I don't have to buy that prom dress, cheerleading uniform, gas money or the car to go with it or worry with any of the other angsty girl teen stuff and well, that is some comfort...

Now my wee one (he's 3) he'll be another story. But don't feel bad about this being some YOU time. Rejoice in it. Make it count. Rejuvinate YOU so that you can be a better mom to THEM.

Sending good thoughts your way!

NO -you are not alone. I love my children with my whole heart and soul, but I cannot spend 24/7 with them without going INSANE! I went back to work full time because I couldn't take it anymore. Sometimes I feel guilty after work because I have a hard time listening to the whining, screaming, yelling, crazy noises, etc. for 3 hours until bedtime! I have fun with my kids and I wouldn't trade them for the entire world. I feel I was blessed with two particularly wonderful little boys, and I reach down to where I feel grateful all the time to remind myself of that because they still drive me crazy ;-) I just met a mom friend of mine yesterday I haven't gotten to see in a while, and she's about to lose it because her kids don't start until after Labor Day!

I think more Mom's are with you on this. It's just that some Moms need to get some attention and put on the show. I guess we're more secure about it than they are. ENJOY the Fall.

Does it counts if it is a 12 year old?
I don't know how I am going to feel when my 2 year old goes to school but if I hear another time "I am bored" I am going to get crazy!
Do you remember the commercial School is out?
Here, have a good laugh
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H41MkG23Jww&feature=se...

C., I swear sometimes I think you and I were separated at birth LOL. My son was also in daycare since birth, so maybe that was why his first day of preschool didn't cause me to burst into uncontrollable sobs. And he was in preschool from October until August 12th. He's been home only three weeks total, but with all the rearranging of scheduling I had to do, entertaining him, helping him keep up with the stuff he learned in pre-k and endless playdates, we've crammed an entire summer vacation into three weeks time.

I love him more than anything, but he and I need a break from ONE ANOTHER! Sounds like you and I are in the same boat with our lil guys. I think my son has just about had it with summer vacay as much as I have. It'll be nice to have the structure that the school year brings.

FYI I may shed the smallest of tears on his first day of kindergarten, but that is only because I'm such a proud momma of the great "big" boy he's turned in to.

No you are so not alone I too can't wait for my kids to get back to school. I am just too unorganized and inconsistent during summer. I for one need the structure that school brings. And my most of my kids can't wait to get back too!!!
T. K