When Did I Become That Mom?

I just spent my entire evening slaving away in the kitchen making cookies for Zach’s Valentine’s Day party at school tomorrow. Okay, so I bought the pre-made dough and icing in a can, but I still had to roll the dough out, cut out the heart shaped cookies, bake them, wait for them to cool, ice them, and then add sprinkles. It was supposed to be a group project, but my “group” tuckered out on me shortly after we started. He prefers to just eat the cookies, not decorate them.

I never really pictured myself as the type of mom who would get into this sort of thing. Sure I care about Zach’s school and I love the kids in his class, but never did I see myself as the homeroom type of mom. You know, the type of mom who wants to be there for every little party or volunteers at the drop of a hat to bring snacks or anything else they might need. I’m not really sure where this person came from.

I also made my first formal complaint about a teacher today. I felt bad doing it, but I felt something needed to be said. Zach’s regular teacher has been out sick all week and I’m not very thrilled with the care that he is getting from the subs. He came home with a big scratch under his eye that no one could explain yesterday. Plus, judging from the looks of his underwear the last couple of days, he’s not getting the assistance that he needs in the restroom. He may be potty trained, but you can’t really expect a 2 1/2 year old kid to be able to get themselves clean after going to the bathroom.

The school director was very understanding about my complaints, but I still felt bad doing it. Zach really does get good care at his school for the most part, but these were two things that I just couldn’t let slide by this time. I don’t want to be known as a bitchy parent, but I also want to make sure Zach is getting the supervision that he needs when I’m not with him. I’m certainly paying enough money out each week to expect nothing but the best care.

It is really funny sometimes how becoming a parent changes you. I’ve always had a hard time standing up for myself, but when it comes to my kid I have no problem saying exactly what is on my mind.