I remember back in the day when I’d watch TV shows and the buzz word of the moment was “soccer mom”. You know that mom that would drive around everywhere in their SUV’s taking one kid to soccer and the other to ballet, then she would bake cookies and attend a PTA meeting while bouncing the youngest on the hip. I was always like: HA! That will never be me!
Today I dropped Kai off to school then ran to a friend’s house to make 1000 pieces of fudge for the upcoming food fair. Then, I ran back home, bounced Oren for a few minutes on one hip while I wrote an email one-handed summarizing the latest food fair budget I have for our group. Then, I ran back to Kai’s school to give a (rather rousing) presentation all about Canada where I made all 16 kids wear beaver tails that I expertly crafted the night before.
When I received a text in the evening asking how my “soccer mom day” went I was all like: HA! Not me…wait….waaaaait.
Yep. I’m that mom.
The funny thing is I don't even remember how I got roped in! The one thing I’ve noticed at international schools here is that it’s so easy to get dragged into the community - even if you’re kicking and screaming, trying your hardest to resist. The school becomes so much of your life that you just can’t help but be involved. And it often starts out small: a morning welcome coffee, a play date, chatting with moms in the park, and then all of a sudden BAM you’re coordinating the winter pageant and stressing over how many pairs of wings you need for the snow angels.
Suddenly I realize that I’m on 3 different committees as well as class representative! Getting involved at your child’s school is like getting a tattoo - once you get one you just keep getting another and another until you don't even remember that first one so you get another and another and then all of a sudden you have 5 butterfly tattoos in various places that you weren't even sure was a good idea the first time! Now replace butterfly tattoos with bake sales.
Don’t get me wrong, being involved in Kai’s school has allowed me to become part of a community you just don't get to witness from the outside. Being part of an amazing, well-meaning group of women, often way more experienced in the city than you are is a really great thing! Not only does this group of women care deeply for their kids’ education but also for the international school’s community as a whole and you really start to understand how much they’re relied upon to enrich the school’s environment with various events each term.
So sure, I’m a soccer mom and I’m not gonna hate the term, I’m gonna embrace it! Someone get me some kind of sash because I wanna wear it around proudly. Just don’t ask me to make 1000 pieces of fudge again. Because although I smelled awesome, I just know the kids are gonna grab it at the food fair, stuff it in their face, and run away ungratefully. *sigh*
xoNiki
