We live in a very competitive school district and getting picked to chaperone a field trip is like winning the lottery. Apparently every parent under the sun wants one of the very few spots available and the teacher has to do a drawing to see which lucky child gets their mom or dad to accompany them. For Wednesday's field trip, Jeff got picked as the sole chaperone for Ian's entire 4th grade class. And I got picked as one of five chaperones needed for Sam's 1st grade class on Thursday.
Here's a secret few people know and my kids may never know --I can't think of anything worse than going on a field trip. And yet, every year, every field trip I will fill out the form and hope that I can make either Ian or Samantha's day by going. My kids want me to get picked. However, I can only hope that my spot goes to someone else. This is why I have 3 part-time jobs with flexibility so that I can do these things. Believe me, I put on a good game face. Not one of the teachers or the class knows that I was wishing I was somewhere far, far away.
Jeff is a rockstar! Plain and simple. He wanted to go on Ian's field trip to Jamestown and Yorktown. He knew going into it, it would be a very long day (6:15am to 6:15pm). I believe he was more excited than the kids. Everyone around him warned Jeff what he was signing up for -- apparently it's been called the "bus ride from hell". Knowing Jeff and his level of discomfort with loud noises, no escape route and the ridiculous number of children to adult ratio, I was very concerned about his mental state. I wasn't worried about Ian in the least. It was only Jeff that had my anxiety up high. He did great! And he had a wonderful day. Jeff would text me throughout the day and each time it was another joke about what was going on. For example, "We arrived! We've only lost 3 kids so far. Good thing we've got plenty of spares." It was texts like this every few hours or so that made me know he was doing well. If Jeff can make a joke, he is feeling ok.
I got to go to The Udvar-Hazy Museum by Dulles Airport on the field trip I chaperoned. I was given 5 girls (including Samantha) to be in charge of. It wasn't too bad. I have to say the girls were great and very well behaved. I think Sam's teacher likes me and intentionally put together a fun group for me to have. The field trip went from 9:00am to 12:50pm. We got a late start and didn't arrive to the museum about 45 minutes later than planned. Before I knew it, we were back at the elementary school. The time really flew by. I can't believe I am saying this, but I could've used another hour or so to show the girls more of the planes.
I actually thought everything was wonderful; no kid thew up on the bus this time. It wasn't stiffing hot, we weren't stuck in traffic and the bus didn't lurch back and forth repeatedly. It wasn't until I was back in my own car headed to Wegman's that I realized I had a killer headache. Ah, yes! There it is, the reason I don't like field trips. All I wanted was to sit in a dark, empty/noiseless room and decompress. I think I take my chaperoning responsibilities very intensely and can't relax or breathe normal the whole time I've got other people's kids under my watch. It is stressful! It's different when I am out with Sam and Ian's friends and I am responsible for them. I know those kids and I know what to expect. But when it is someone I don't know and I don't know the parent, I am going to watch these particular kids even more closely. Believe me, if you trust me with your kid, they will be looked after really well. But, we will still have fun!
I am hoping that we are done with field trips for the rest of the school year. I love that my kids get to experience them, I just don't want to experience them too!
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