Except.
Keira starts kindergarten next fall, and I definitely want her at whatever school I'm at. Right now, though, my school is a good 40-minute drive from The Bears' Den, and kindergarten is half-day...which means that on my days "off," I'd still have to make that drive twice a day to take Keira to and from my school. (There's really nothing Ellie and I could do to entertain ourselves near my school for 4 hours until Keira got out of school again.) That's a lot of money to spend on gas, and a lot of driving time!
Speaking of money? We're not doing so hot in that department lately. We were fine until my student loan kicked in and Keira started preschool this fall, but since then, we're eating away at savings and busting out credit cards more and more often. With that being the case, and knowing a handful of people we could really help financially if I basically doubled my salary next school year, I've started wondering about Option 2: should I go back full-time instead? I'd wanted to avoid doing the daycare thing and stick with my cushy part-time gig until the girls are both in school all day, but the idea of not stressing about money anymore doesn't sound half-bad. And as much as I've loved working with and learning from my partners, I do sometimes long to walk into my own classroom again and have everything exactly where I left it (albeit probably in a heaping pile of random stuff, as I'm sure my partners would attest!), and to be able to plan units, arrange the schedule, or redecorate the room on a whim without having to consult with anyone else.
But then I start thinking about putting Ellie in daycare, or arranging Bear's and my schedules to avoid daycare but then hardly ever seeing each other, and the whole "going back full-time" idea doesn't sound quite as appealing. Then again, there are worse things than hectic schedules and daycare, and being able to help out our loved ones (AND ourselves) financially might very well be worth that in the long run.
Enter Option 3: There's a teacher at a nearby school who may be interested in sharing a contract with me next year. Keira could go to that school with me, and dropping her off and picking her up on my days off would be no problem. Bear's and my schedule would be like it is now: he stays home two weekdays, I stay home two weekdays, and Grandma babysits on the extra day. It certainly wouldn't make our finances any less tight, or allow us any extra money to help anyone else, though, and there's no guarantee my new partner and I would get along (if she even decides for sure to team up with me in the first place). Picture Chandler's roommate Eddie from "Friends." What if she's the female version of that? I'd never know until it's too late!
So, we deliberate. Next school year seems a million years away, but I have only a few weeks to figure all of this out and let my current partner know whether I'm up for renewing our contract together. What to do?
If only it were this simple:
Ohhh Crystal!! That is a lot to go over and consider! Have you heard back at all about option #3? I was really hoping that would work out for you! You could also decide to just apply at Todd for a full time spot if the other doesn't work...then at least you would be closer to home and less time driving...I know it will work out for you in the end! Hugs! =0)
ReplyDeleteoooo...this is so tough! Whatever you decide though, I'm sure will be the best because you've put a lot of thought into it and I wish you the best of luck!
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