New School Schedules, an Update

The first half of the school year has come to an end. We’ve made it through the first semester of this school year with adjusted times in Jefferson Parish, and I’d like to submit an update to my June post. I was so completely overwhelmed as a working mom (in a pandemic) at the time and how the new schedule was going to affect my kids, our schedule, our commute, my work life, and balancing my other children’s schedules. It was a lot, to say the least.

Just over 6 months later, I can honestly say we made it work. You always find a way. We followed through with our plans to try to do as much prep as we can the night before. We start our days earlier and end our days earlier. We set out whatever items, folders, projects, and snack bags we need for the next school day the night before and have the uniforms laid out and ready to go. Our mornings are pretty tight, but we make it happen.

And most importantly, we asked for help. Sometimes it’s okay to say, “I just can’t do it all.” Since I couldn’t be in two places at once (at home with the boys who start school later) and commuting the girls to school, I hired a babysitter for a few days a month when I needed the help. She helps to commute my two girls to their school which is on her way in the morning. It works splendidly, and I’m so thankful for her help on those days. My parents have also stepped in when I needed them. To them, I’ll be forever indebted for their helping hands and open home. I’ve had friends offer to pick up or drop off my children or keep them for a few hours while I wrap up a meeting or get to where I need to be. I ask for help, and I take the help. I am very grateful for those people around me and have learned to just accept the offerings and say YES!

I adjusted my work routine slightly to get up earlier, start work earlier many days (and catch up after my kids go to bed if needed). I am able to get to their aftercare earlier than I used to because of this rearrangement. I won’t say it’s ideal but it’s better than the alternative.

The moral of the story is that, as parents, we are faced with all types of challenges that frustrate us, enrage us, irritate us, and plain out ruin our perfectly scheduled plans. But as Ross Geller so eloquently screeched many years ago “Pivot! Pivot!” And we’ll pivot ourselves and our family right into 2021.

Rachel Harris Ledet
A New Orleans native and entrepreneurial mom, Rachel maintains a daily balance of running her own marketing firm, 30|90 Marketing, managing her kids’ schedules, and maintaining an active extracurricular life including teaching dance, volunteering, and instructing a digital marketing class at UNO. Rachel lives in Mandeville with her best friend and husband Lenny, daughters Addison and Amelia, stepson Luke, and new baby Tucker. With a growing family and a million balls in the air, Rachel keeps things light by continuously learning, spending time with amazing friends, blogging, finding any route to a concert or outdoor festival, and planning her next getaway with her husband. A sense of humor can get you through almost anything, so she tends to surround herself with fabulous and very funny people.

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