If you happen to be an adult that gets to experience the American phenomenon of the school drop off line, then the title of this post is self explanatory. Oh mother of Moses. I’ve seen memes about this morning debacle, read articles about this and unfortunately, due to our heavy amount of school age offspring vs. a bus/bus driver shortage here in Idaho, more cars are present in the drop off and pick up lines. This isn’t even the reason for my wish of a pop up margarita stand in the school parking lot. Nope. It would be the ill prepared parent or other adult that’s behind the wheel. See below for proof:
Okay, so you might be thinking, “Yes? And why is that so bad?” It is so bad, because Little Red, Little Man and I had been in the same line as these cars before the first bell even rang, watched the clock as two, then four, then seven minutes went by as we saw the crosswalk lights flash three different times. Finally, I flipped a U (it’s legal here if there isn’t traffic coming the other way-checked with a school officer) so Little Red could get out and get to her classroom with about one minute to spare before the tardy bell. The cars off in the distance? They were just barely beginning to move after I’d walked Little Red to the front of the school and back to my car. These vehicles were at a complete standstill because there were parents/guardians in the drop off line that had decided to put their cars in park and go plant a garden with their children why the rest of us waited and got to watch their seedlings sprout. Oy.
The reality for the extreme backup of vehicles, is because the ill prepared driver of said child, once in the drop off lane on school property, puts his/her car in park (these offenders are the same three moms every time-I’ve got their cars memorized with one of the plates also memorized), get out of the car, open the car door for said child, help said child out, put the coat then the backpack on said child, hug said child, walk said child to the sidewalk then gives Snookums (said child) another hug just to be sure Snookums knows he/she is loved. As a friend of mine says, hand to God, this is the truth. Arrival to the drop off line in my car goes like this, “Little Red, unbuckle. Do you have your backpack ready? Daddy or I will be picking you up. I love you, have a good day! Hurry! There are cars waiting! Movie it! Move it! I love you!” As Little Red exits my sweet ride, she responds with a big smile, waves and says, “I love you Mommy!” See how slick that is? As one of my mom friends said, the duties at the drop off line (they’re really nice), need to implement a rule similar to the airport sidewalk departure and arrival lanes; not ready to stop drop and roll, then drive around the loop until you are. Do I hear an amen?! Until these folks get this drop off thing figured out, I’ll be seeing if our PTO can put up a temporary margarita stand. I just may arrive at school with chips and salsa in my car.
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