My Priorities

Yesterday, among a whole slew of administrative annoyances, another teacher had the nerve to tell me to "get my priorities straight."

Who says that?

And how did I not say the string of profanities I wanted to sling at her immediately afterward?

She had overheard me checking in with Mama H about how PDG was doing.  See, he'd had a fever but no other real symptoms, so I'd called in for back-up in the form of the grandparents to come cuddle him while I went ahead and went to school yesterday morning.

Why?  Apparently my screwed up priorities.

As a teacher I get ten total days of leave. Now this sounds like a lot when you consider we get summers off, but I also know it to be very few when you consider that those include both my own sick days, and those PDG will need.  Plus, I may have mentioned that J-Man and I wouldn't mind being in a situation requiring monthly doctor's appointments for check-ups sometime in the near future.  Even more, who knows what else life throws your way.  Funerals, weddings, car trouble.  Ten days can go fast.

Oh, and why did I go to work, you ask?  Well it's midterms week.  This being my first year back teaching I'm not as super organized as I could/should be, and to be honest, I felt like I'd like to give my students the opportunity to stay on schedule with their speaking midterms, get their study packets with enough time to complete them, and be available for after school studying.  Yeah, my kid comes first, obviously, but I do happen to care about my students too, in a different way.

But perhaps most importantly, Mama and Papa H hadn't seen PDG yet in 2013 and when I mentioned the mere possibility I might need their help, they jumped at the chance.  Mama H confessed that if PDG hadn't had a fever and hadn't needed her after all, she still would've driven down to bring dinner and see how much he's grown these past weeks since Christmas.

So, mujer que no sabe nada, don't tell me to get my priorities straight.  My little PDG spent the day being adored and loved and spoiled and held by his grandparents.  His mama got to leave briefly to spend time doing something else she happens to really enjoy (way more than she did at her old school). His grandparents got to love on their only grandkid in this time zone.  Everyone got to have an amazingly delicious dinner.

And today, when things got more serious and he needed a trip to the doctor and a prescription for antibiotics, I knew exactly where I wanted and needed to be.

Priorities.  Mind your business.  No person, let alone a new mother, needs someone who embodies everything-annoying-about-teachers to tell her about her priorities.

Sheesh.

oh, and while I'm venting, can someone tell the gods of all things mom guilt related that having PDG get a double-ear-infection, one of which described as "whopping" and "massive" within three weeks of starting to wean breastfeeding is so not right.  Cut a girl a break, would ya?

Now, to go cuddle this sweet, little droopy-eyed guy some more.