Anyone who knows me, knows that excited, overjoyed and thrilled were not adjectives used to describe how I was feeling about my return to work this year. I had been out of the game for 2 years and in that time, the game had changed and I was not in it. I was not even in the dressing room! Whilst I was away in my little bubble of baby bliss, a whole new curriculum came in. I had seen the curriculum, I had helped make folders for the curriculum, but due to an impatient little bubba and an incompetent little cervix, I never actually got to teach the new curriculum before going on leave. So my confidence in returning to the classroom was not high.
And I was sad. Another chapter had closed in my life- that of being a full time stay at home mum. Its quite possibly the last time I will ever be that. I hadn't reached the stage of getting bored with it, or needing the stimulation that working provides. I was happy in my little nest with my beautiful chick. But such is the fickle world of education, that I either had to return, or face the very real possibility of another transfer. I had only been at my school for a year before falling pregnant, so the thought of transferring again left me in a cold sweat. I mean I had only just fully remembered my photocopier password!! So return it was.
I know that I have been very blessed to be able to have the time off with my children that I have had. Three years with Elijah and two with Joe (now don't be getting all up in my face with claims of favouritism towards my firstborn- I simply had more leave accrued, and leave rules changed in the meantime ; ). My heart aches for those mummas whose work does not allow them to stay home for as long as they want to and it makes me grateful that I could.
So 2014 saw me return to teaching part time. 2 days a week. Allan was able to take leave 2 days a week for the whole year to stay home with Joe which has meant he wasn't going into daycare before any of us were ready (his boss is Uh-mazing!) . I know lots of kids go into care a lot younger than Joe, but I want him to be able to communicate before he goes, so he can tell me if he is happy or scared or tired or he just needs a day off. Elijah was three when he went and he handled it beautifully. Its a good age.
Everything has fallen into place. I never thought I would be saying it, but I LOVE my job. I have amazing teaching partners and it makes work fun. I teach two grade one classes in a double teaching space, One class one day, the other the next. So its crazy and busy and oh so noisy. I am responsible for geography which is hilarious. If you know me well, you know I could not give a direction to save my life and my concept of North and South are limited to being able to accurately place them on a compass. I am slowly getting used to the new curriculum and working out that its not as scary as I had imagined. In fact, the biggest challenge is fitting it all in and making it more interesting so the kids don't sleep through the whole thing!
I love that I get to stretch my brain and spend time with some pretty cool 6 year olds, and I love that I get to spend time with pretty amazing adults. Changing roles for 2 days a week with Allan has also been great for perspective. We walk in each others shoes and realise that both jobs have their challenges and their triumphs. I love that Joe gets one on one time with daddy, and he does too.
Best of all though, I still get time to be a mum. I get to do the lunches and the school drop offs, and I get lots of time to hang out with my main little man. I am making a concerted effort to not get too weighed down with the cleaning and the chores. I have seen just how fast time goes with Elijah. I don't want to waste the precious time I have left before Joe goes to school. So we walk and we go to the park, we explore, we cook, we play and we have fun. It really is the best of both worlds. And I am grateful
