Chaperone Envy

Ever since the boys started school at Reese, every one of their teachers have stopped me in the staff room at the beginning of the school year and said, "Let me know what field trip you want to go on, and I will make sure there is room for you."  I seriously tried not to laugh in their face because the absolute last thing I am interested in doing is taking a day off from work and chaperoning a field trip for one of the boys.  Judge me.  Talk about me behind my back.  Make comments to whomever you want to about my lack of involvement.  I HATE field trips and the thought of watching out for other kids who did not come from my classroom set of rules is not my idea of a fun day.  I know, mother of the year---again, I could care less.

Until yesterday.

Matthew has basically been talking about the fifth grade Alcatraz field trip since the first grade.  And because Rich LOVES field trips, all Matt has talked about is spending the day with Rich in San Francisco and doing the whole Alcatraz thing.  Rich has equally been just as excited.  He shows it in other ways, like printing out coupons for some of the parents he knows that are also on the field trip.  (And yes, you just read that and yes it happened, and yes the other parents were thrilled.  Why me?)  All in all, it was going to be a great day and I was excited for both of them because I know this day so well, and I was so excited that they were going to finally enjoy it.

I have said it before, I have a love/hate relationship with this field trip.  A parent asked me yesterday how I was doing, as he was boarding the bus behind 30 students at 6:10am, and I said ask me when we have pulled back up to the curb at the end of a safe trip.  He laughed and said, "Yeah, I don't envy you."  I never want a field trip to be over as soon as it starts like I do this one.

Yesterday, watching Matt and Rich get on the bus, I was worried that I wasn't going to see them because we were on a different time schedule due to the different classes.  Kim, my teaching partner and Matt's teacher, told Rich he could ride on the bus with me if he wanted and he laughed in her face.  When she told me this later I said...I would have kicked him off of my bus because he was already complaining about the route we were taking and that our bus drivers didn't know how to drive.  If I had had to sit next to him and listen to it instead of read it on multiple texts, I would have hurt him. 

When we finally arrived, I was able to snap a picture of them before they got on their boat.  Because we have two separate groups, we would be going on two separate boats and I would be about a half an hour behind them.

Here they are right before getting on the boat.

 

 

When I finally got over to Alcatraz and got my class situated, I was on a hunt to try and find Rich and Matt.  I wanted to walk with them a little bit and see where they were in the tour, talk to them about what they were learning, and show them the cool stuff  I had learned about.  When I finally found them, they had no time for me.  They were in their own little world and asking them to pause for a picture was like passing a bill through Congress.

 

 

They look sweet and smiling, but the eye roll I got from both of them right before was rude. 

 

 

 

Okay...could not have had more perfect weather!  Gorgeous!



 

 

As I was walking around playing teacher and photographer, I get a text from Rich and Matt to meet them in the bookstore ASAP.  Matt wanted to buy a book and get it autographed by the author.  Who knew the author was a former "resident"???  I was super excited because I have never been there when a former inmate has been there and I thought it was a cool experience for him.

 

Here he is.  #1259

I am totally okay with this and thought it was a neat opportunity.  Some parents did not find it appropriate.  Second chances are only for a select few apparently. 

 

The dagger in my heart was when I was still on the island, waiting for my class to be done with their tour, and I get a text from Rich and Matt who are dining at Fog Harbor at Pier 39.  

 

Their view from their lunch table.

Look at that background.  Screams field trip, doesn't it?

 

Not only was I not able to spend the day with them and experience Alcatraz with them, they threw a nice grown up lunch in my face as I was munching on granola bars that I has stuck in my backpack at 5:15am!  To quote Matt, "This didn't even feel like a field trip. This was like the best day with dad and we got to have this nice fancy lunch by ourselves."  Cue tears from the "I never want to be a chaperone" mom.