Belgium Bound

Dear O'H dear and Lovely Tea Jenny,

Eldest Mini Princess headed off on her school trip to Belgium today. I dropped her and her suitcase off at school, and said goodbye.

I just got round the corner when I saw another mum so I pulled over to say hello.

Other Mum: ‘I’m just grabbing a coffee and then going back to wave them off’

Me; ‘I’m just going to head. I have just said bye to EMP’

Other Mum: ‘Oh, I am going to stay. When my eldest daughter did this trip, ALL of the parents waited to wave them off’

Me (internal voice): ‘FFS. Now I am going to look like a BAD MOTHER if I don’t wait.’

Me (external voice with forced brightness): ‘OK then, I will stay. It will be lovely to see them off.’

Me (internal voice): ‘Even though this is effin b0llocks. They are in S3. They will have already forgotten who their parents are in all of the excitement’

We grabbed coffees and went back to the school. To my horror, there was a total 5 parents (including us) waiting around and I could feel muscles clenching in my derrière.

The kids were all just hanging about the playground. Thankfully, I had Murphy so EMP and all her friends wanted to come over to say hello. I managed to explain that the only reason that I had returned was the fear of looking like a bad parent.

I did, however, to amuse myself, threaten to throw myself in front of the bus wailing ‘I grew you in my tummy. Don’t go. Take me too’.

After 10 mins, they still weren’t on the bus. so I left. I want to encourage her independence not hinder it.

C