I have never looked forward to Family Night more than this one. I have never appreciated it as much or been so grateful that our town has one. My family needs a break. We need time to sit down, uninterrupted, and just be a family.
This year is our first at H.B. Whitehorne. The transition from elementary school to middle school has not been an easy one for my son, and by extension, our family. Going from a school that was only a few blocks away to one that takes about 20 minutes to walk to is a big change. Going from one teacher and one classroom to multiple teachers and classroom is confusing. Dealing with new faces, especially for someone who is a bit shy, is a challenge. Early morning music three to four days a week and more homework and tests are stressful. There is less time for the “fun” things and play time.
It’s a part of life. Children grow up and with that there are more challenges. As a mom, I know that I feel that I am always running here and there. I know that I have it “easy” as compared to those families with multiple children in different grades (and schools). And my son isn’t even involved in many extracurricular activities that can take up evenings and weekends.
At this point in time, I feel like our family is stressed to the max. So this Family Night is a much needed break. Billed as a “no homework” night is not completely true as there is still nightly reading to do and long term projects to work on. (Family Night actually works well; with no homework we can focus on upcoming projects that require my son’s full attention.)
I am grateful to the Verona Municipal Alliance Committee (VMAC) for creating this program. We all need some time to be together as a family with no distractions. Our world is full of too many stresses. We need to be together without the daily stresses and distraction. We need the time to focus on each other. What a blessing it is to have even just one night where we can just be.
Some planned unplanned time is just what MY family needs.
VMAC’s Family Night is Thursday, October 15. It has arranged for the school calendar to be cleared of meetings, practices and homework. It has also arranged for local restaurants to offer discounts tor Verona families who don’t want to cook at home. You can find the coupons here.
