“Who’s excited for ‘getting rid of the kids’ day!!! Love you really girls xx,” read a Facebook message from one over-the-holidays mum earlier that morning.
She was quick to get a lot of ‘likes’ from fellow over-it stay-at-home parents who had, no doubt, also posted their own pleasure in retrieving their sanity.
As a working mum, this year was a little different for me. I hadn’t been driven round the bend from squabbling, bored children and had, instead, suffered mother’s guilt, dropping the kids off at a school holiday programme each day. The guilt was needless - they had a ball and the two weeks I did have off was quality family time.
Despite the fact I was feeling a little regretful that the holidays were over and some of the plans I’d had, involving spending more one-on-one time with the kids, never eventuated, the excitement was contagious.
It was like Christmas within those school gates. Kids were buzzing round, reconnecting with long lost pals whom they hadn’t seen for six weeks. There were new class rooms to explore, teachers to meet, stories to exchange and Miss Six wanted to show off her pierced ears to her friends.
I left Master Eight fast-pacing it across the grounds to catch up with a mate he’d spotted, and went to settle the twins into their room, promising to be back to come into his class. It didn’t take long for any shyness to thaw out. Soon they were playing ‘spot the friend’ through their new class room window, before they could no longer contain their excitement and took off outside.
I took my leave and went back to Master Eight’s class, where he wasn’t anywhere to be found. Never mind, I introduced myself to his teacher before going on a search which incorporated the circumference of the school.
It was reunions all round for both parents and children. While searching for Master Eight, the twins saw me and sped over with their accumulating posse. Then Miss Six spied her BFF making her way across the field and hid behind my legs. After all that talk about finally seeing her and showing off her earrings and she was too shy to acknowledge her!
Just then Master Eight, having reunited with his gang, was spotted hiding behind a playground structure. It turns out they’d been following me during my search and having a great laugh at my confusion.
I dragged him back to his new room to show me before offering a clearly disinterested Master Eight a goodbye kiss and cuddle. They ran away and, now a surplus to requirements, I left the raucous behind.
Content that my lot were happy behind me and thinking about the peace and quiet and about-to-be spotless house ahead, I found myself exchanging grins with the parents waltzing in with their skipping school children. In fact, such was the contagiousness of the mood, we just stopped short of a high-five.
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