Yes of course back to school offers some much-needed relief.
No more checking in on them during work hours to make sure they haven’t spent the entire day in their pyjamas and on their iPads.
And ensuring their morning is more productive than eating three bowls of cereal on the couch while watching Teen Titans.
Many working parents would agree that school holidays can be a struggle.
However, back to school routines can be just as arduous.
Especially when your children live in two homes.
Here’s just one example I prepared earlier.
One week before school starts, I try getting the girls back into a normal routine.
Which means an early and consistent bedtime.
An almost impossible task thanks to daylight savings.
Don’t get me wrong, I love the extra daylight during the weekends, but when you’re trying to get your child to sleep at 8pm and the sun’s still shining, you’ve got no hope.
Getting them organised is yet another nightmare.
So I asked the girls in advance whether they had all their uniforms, shoes, books and bags ready to go.
To which they replied ‘‘Yes, mum’’.
The night before their first day back, I pack the girls’ school lunches and items for their after-school activities — all the while feeling pretty proud of my parenting and organisational skills.
But come the next morning and it’s another story.
One of them has left her shoes at her dad’s while the other can’t find her dress.
Their rooms look like a bomb has gone off inside because they’ve managed to pull everything out of their cupboards and wardrobes in their desperate search for lost clothes and the perfect scrunchie.
The bathroom is even worse.
Toothpaste is smeared along the mirror (why that happens I will never understand), dirty clothes and towels are scattered across the floor, hordes of hair ties, hairbrushes and hair are on the vanity and the red-hot hair straightener burns me because it hasn’t been turned off.
Dare I enter the kitchen and I am greeted by dishes in the sink, cereal flakes across the floor, spilt milk and half eaten bowls of porridge — much to the delight of our cat.
Then as we race out the door, late of course, and jump in the car, there’s one more forgotten item that’s been left inside the house.
By the time I’ve searched through my gigantic bag for the house keys, said child has run in and grabbed said item and we pull out of the driveway, we’ve missed the school bus.
Which means I have to drive over the bridge to drop them at school.
The only thing I’ve got going for me at this point is the fact the border has been re-opened.
Because if I had to sit in traffic for another half-an-hour after that morning debacle, I’m not sure if I would have made it to work alive.
Stumbling into work (late of course), I breathe a sigh of relief as I sit down at my desk.
Until, one by one, each of my colleagues walk past my office cheerfully declaring: ‘‘I bet you’re happy the girls are back at school?’’
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