We've been in school for a month and it seems like I'm already getting farther and farther behind. With my after-school time taken up with New Teacher meetings, administrator meetings, and technology trainings, my time to work on projects and activities or meet with individual teachers is non-existent. When I get home, I jump back on my computer and continue working, only to hear the justified whine of my daughter, "Mom, when are we going to go to the park? When are you going to have time for me, Mom?" It's a knife in my heart, that's for sure! I'm so wrapped up in all the work things I "have" to get done, that I've been neglecting my own family, my own daughter. My resolve to only do school work after she went to bed---well, it went out the window after the first few days of school. The weekends have been spent cramming a few minutes of work in here and there-----ok, more like a couple of hours here and there.
This week I heard a great quote from a fellow teacher when we were discussing my time management difficulties, "My heart tells me YES, my schedule tells me No." I have such a hard time telling teachers that I'm not able to help them, meet with them, research something for them etc... but now I have a great come-back without the guilt. Classroom teachers have a much more difficult and stressful job then I have, and I want to ensure that I am doing everything I can to help them, in any way possible. Yet, I also have to realize that I do the best I can every day, and even with that, there are some things I just cannot do.
When will I make time for my daughter? From the time I pick her up until she goes to bed---at least most days (I have to be realistic)!
