It’s the time for the year again when the summer holidays are over and kids are going back to school..There are always mixed emotions associated with it.. some kids are nervous while some are excited  – to move up to a new class, new school supplies, a new teacher, and some new friends too! This is what the kids feel.. but it gets complicated when it comes to us, moms..

How the mother’s feel can totally vary on the situation…. I have 2 more cousins living here in Doha, and all 3 of us are feeling totally different these days…

I’ll talk about myself first… For me, this school year is very exciting because my youngest one started Pre-school at the same school as his older siblings. It feels like an achievement to me…..I gave birth to these kids.. made them independent enough to be able to go to the BIG school.. capable to feed themselves and able to go to the bathroom on their own too! (Yaayyyy , we are done with diapers!).  The fact that they now go to the same school is much easier for our school runs too! It took 8 long years but we finally reached this milestone… All 3 kids in school (MashaAllah)!

8 years away from my career but I finally did it, and frankly, I am so glad I made the choice of being at home with them. I was there for each one of them.. and I am filled with a feeling of satisfaction. (I am in NO- WAY  judging any working mothers at all.. choices are based on circumstances and everyone’s circumstances are different. *Salute* to all the working mums who manage and balance their work and personal life seamlessly.) 

All three of them at school for me means ,free mornings to do something for myself…nothing fancy but to be able to take loooong showers without little tiny knocks on the door or papers sliding in through the bathroom door, showing me some artwork (that was extremely urgent for me to see right then :D).. and that feels great! (YIPPEE!!). So the first day of school, me and my husband went to drop them off to school.. and after dropping them , went to our favorite breakfast place to celebrate this milestone! There were no tears involved.. only a few tears of joy!

As for my younger cousin, its her first child’s, first day of Nursery (play school) this school year.. and she is feeling totally opposite of how I feel.. She is very very anxious and emotional…. Letting go of your child for the first time, leaving her for the first time in someone else’s care is indeed very difficult.. The mother is not used to it.. the kid is not used it.. and the separation anxiety is at its peak.. It is a BIG milestone for the kid and the parents, both! I remember how I felt when I left my first child in the nursery – for the very  first time.. and how letting go never got easy , even at the time of my second and third child..

And lastly my elder cousin, her first child has left for Grad School this year and she is going through a totally different emotion.. Empty Nest Syndrome.. (the feeling of loneliness when the kids start leaving their home to study and settle on their own… ).The feeling of “nothing to do anymore” takes over.. what to do now.. there are no projects.. no study groups.. no friends hanging out around your home.. It’s a HUGE milestone, yet a very difficult one for the parents (specially the mother). She nurtures and supports the kids throughout their childhood, school life and teenage.. and one day have to let them fly on their own ….

Three different mothers, three different stages, three different emotions.. but the same love for their kids..

No matter what stage your kid is.. first day of Pre-School or first day of Grad School…. It’s always difficult for the mothers .. because they will worry about their kids, no matter how old they are! Thats a built in feature, in their anatomy!

I love this quote, which truly explains how ANY parent feels.. Sums it up so perfectly!

“Making the decision to have a child – it is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body. “― Elizabeth Stone

All my love and best wishes to all the kids and their mums for an amazing year ahead!

And mums be strong cause…

You are the wind beneath their wings!