Not long ago I wrote a blog post about how my daughter didn’t ride a school bus and that I would rather take her to school and pick her up in my car instead. I was a post all about me admitting that I’m a helicopter parent. Much to my surprise, the comments were pretty positive, so I can maybe see how they are going to go now that I’ve changed my mind. Don’t get me wrong, I still hover over my kids as much as the next helicopter parent, whether it’s at the playground or around the house, but one thing has changed, my daughter now rides the school bus to school.
Do I still think buses are unsafe? Kind of.
So what’s changed? A few things…
1. My daughter’s new school has an hour earlier start than her old school. It’s not as easy for me to get all three kids up, dressed, fed, bundled up, buckled in and driven off to school as it use to be.
2. The bus stop. I always felt that bus stops were places that creepy pedophiles drove past picking up vulnerable kids. The bus stop for our daughter is literally at the end of our driveway. She doesn’t even have to leave our property to wait for the bus!
3. I’ve always heard nightmare stories about kids having to be on the bus for over an hour each day, luckily that’s not the case for us. She spends less than 10 minutes on bus each way.
4. A new friend of our daughters rides the same bus and they both really wanted that time to spend together too.
What’s the verdict? I couldn’t be happier. No waking, bundling and loading all three kids up just to take her to school. No waking up the littlest from her afternoon nap in order to pick my daughter up from school. Instead, I open the front door, walk with my daughter to the end of the driveway and give her hug and send her off. At the end of the day, I wait with my other kids by the window and let her in the front door. It’s as easy as that.
Am I being selfish or lazy because it’s easier for me to let her get on the bus than to take her to school? Probably.
But, if I’ve learned one thing from being a parent, it’s that you have to be flexible. If something isn’t working you have to be willing to look at a situation and make a change.
So, for now, we’ve got a bus rider on our hands, but don’t worry, I’m keeping my helicopter parked nearby… just in case.
-Pete