alcohol | Tea or Wine

A recent article in The Daily Telegraph talked about how mums on the school run are now so stressed that they are turning to a glass of wine rather than a cup of tea to calm down. I read this with some amusement, whilst I’ve not (yet) cracked open a bottle at 9.30am, I can completely relate to the level of stress that the school run causes.

I’m a mere novice, I’ve only been on the school run for 7 weeks since my eldest daughter started school in September. However during that time I’ve often felt like I was going to burst a blood vessel. Here’s 5 reasons why I dread the school run:

1) The Battle – My daughter hasn’t exactly taken to school like a duck to water. She reminds me every morning that she’d rather stay at home. When it’s almost time to leave the house, she tries every trick in the book to avoid going. She runs upstairs and hides, she takes her shoes and clothes off, she refuses to get off the toilet, she cries and she throws a strop. And all the time the clock is ticking…..

2) Late – No matter how early I get up or how early we start the routine, the daily battle and drama in getting to school means we are always running late. If I’m out the door and in the car at 8.20am I’m winning. If it’s just 10 minutes later we’ve had it.

3) Heart Break – Every morning on the school run my heart breaks a little more as my daughter sobs her way into the class room. The “How Could You” look she gives me as I turn to leave just kills me and the emotional upset stays with me long into the afternoon.

4) The Toddler – In addition to the battle with my 4 year old, I have to drag my feisty 2 year old in and out of the car 4 times a day. To be fair, she’s normally very good at getting ready on time, but at the school end she refuses to get in the buggy. So I often find myself trying to stop her running out into the road whilst coaxing and cajoling my eldest daughter to “keep walking.” The afternoon pick up can be fine if the toddler has had a sleep. If she hasn’t, it soon becomes a tired, argumentative, emotional mess.

5) Parking – Just to be clear, I never envisaged or wanted to use the car on the school run. Our local school is less than a 10 minute walk away and we were shocked not to get a place there (but that’s another story). So whilst I don’t like it, I’m getting on with the driving, but I still find parking an issue, especially if we are late. In 7 weeks I’ve only had 1 nasty note left on my car about parking but after the emotional trauma of the morning, it was enough to tip me over the edge.

It’s easy to see how parents are more stressed on the school run, the emotional, organisational and logistical trauma is enough to get the blood pressure rising all before 9am. I’m hoping things will get easier for us as the weeks go on, in the meantime, give me a cuppa and a biscuit to calm down, I’ll save the wine for when the kids are in bed and I can enjoy a glass or three in peace!

Do you suffer from school run stress? Have you resorted to or thought about wine in the morning? I’d love to hear how everyone else is getting on.