My children are great! When mom's down for the count, they step up to the plate... and over to the computer. And they can take care of themselves all day.... while playing with their friends on Minecraft.
In between building structures and warring against bad guys, they tell me "Mom, you better go to the doctor.", "Mom, are you ok?", "Do you need anything?" I really am proud. I see self-sufficiency, compassion, and even that question moms love to hear: "what can I do for you, mom?"
They've not seen mom in so much pain, there are tears in her eyes. (None of them were at any of my childbirths, and Aaron - the only one who came into the world drug free - doesn't remember a thing).
We moms jest that when we fall sick or wake up with a bad back, it is our body's way of telling us to slow down - that we need a rest.
Why would this rest need to take place the day before school starts? I had the whole summer to rest, and my body decides that Meet Your Teacher is the perfect day to stop working.
And, when I say stop working, I really mean stop working. Sciatic pain that feels like a metal bear trap - you know the ones with all those sharp teeth? - is clenching my leg. And, unlike other bouts of sciatica, there is no release from the trap. There is no position that brings relief from the pain. It won't stop.
I told David it is worse than when I gave birth to Aaron. He says there is a magic potion given to mothers after childbirth so that they do not remember how painful it was. I tell him I remember, and this is worse. Aaron's birth lasted six minutes from the time we arrived on the labor and delivery floor in the hospital. Sciatica is lasting much longer, making it unbearable.
And, there's no take home prize.
In the mist of pain, I took Ilan to middle school orientation where we hopped from class to class, mimicking the rhythm of his schedule. I can't believe the passion and creativity and dedication to students that these teachers have. The highlights? The Civil War re-enactment. The 12-foot catapult that shoots pumpkins into the air. And the pre-engineering class where they are told to let the girls enter the classroom first and select a seat on the couches first.
The next day, we go to visit our teachers at our beloved Sandpiper Elementary. I am amazed but not shocked that the new teachers fit in perfectly to the specially unique distinction that our Sandpiper teachers have. It's as though they've always been here.
I'm one of the PTO representatives, and we are there early to welcome our new kindergarten students - several of whom were at my house the week prior for a kindergarten playdate. We also stay late to welcome the new families who have older children, and I don't know how I made it. But, I did. Because it's Sandpiper.
And, then David arrived home - late Wednesday night - so he could see his children off on their first day of school.
We managed day one together. He went off to middle school with Ilan and then came back to help the rest get off to school. He loaded my car with the Boo Hoo Breakfast goodies (that I picked up from Einstein's at 5:30am) and helped me set up.
Thankfully (?), even Ellie shooed us away from waiting with her until the bell rang. Independent. (Embarrassed already?) Whatever - I'm going to celebrate it.
It allowed me to go to the Boo Hoo Breakfast and get ready for our new and kindergarten parents to join us. What a great event (!) for new families! By the end, I was done and gratefully accepted help to put everything away. That was it for me - the rest of the day I was in bed.
Second day of school - I woke early to get ready before I had to wake my children. I walked to the shower and crumbled in pain. In walks my hero who put me back in bed and took over for the morning - filling lunch boxes, serving breakfast, dealing with clothing crises, and prodding children into the shower.
Ilan leaves for the bus, and I get up to check things out. There sits the bagel David made for Ilan's lunch. David is now on a work phone call for the next hour, so I grab Isaac and head to middle school (my apologies to Ilan who never saw me, but his friends did - and I was not the picture of motherhood you want your middle school friends to see). Isaac kept asking me why I was squeezing his hand so hard.
Lunch delivered, home we went. David delivered the other children to school and then took me to "get fixed". I spent the rest of the day in bed, sleeping for most of it. Thank you, my hero. I could not have made it through this day without you.... What's that I smell? Oh, yeah. He's also making Shabbat dinner and the cholent for tomorrow.
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