Since When Did I Become a Scheduler?

Prime Ministers need schedulers. Presidents need schedulers. Madonna needs a scheduler. And, apparently, so do children over the age of 3.

It’s not enough to determne that swim lessons are desirable (and see Influencing Young Minds for what that may entail). You have to decide what day suits our schedule (or days as classes are once a week, twice a week or in summer five times a week). This has to take into account work schedules (mine and Husbands), our Nanny’s schedule (she is more than willing to take kids to swimming but the end time can’t be starting 10 minutes before we get home from work and she is off shift) and take into account we only have one vehicle. Then, the really tricky bit is finding classes for both kids that:

a) are at the same time at the same pool.

b) are back to back

c) are at different times but will not require the other child having to be dragged to the rainforest climate of the pool deck for 10 lessons (which would be 20 trips to the brink of insanity “I am so hot!!! I’m dying of thirst? Can I get a treat from the machine? Isn’t it over yet?”).

Once we’ve negotiated this matrix of variables, the classes have to be available. More than once I have studiously cross-referenced the swim schedules (I find the Income Tax Act easier to follow) for 3 different pools and come to find that Friday is the only time that will suit only to find that J is 8th on the waiting list for a class of 4 students.

And then multiply this complexity by the number of kids (2) and by the number of activities which all happen in differing lengths: all-year activities (music, gymnastics), half year variety (soccer) and 8 weeks (swimming, skating, dance, art).

It’s hard to commit to an all-year activity because that will forestall any swimming, skating or ball hockey on that night. And make finding a free after-school slot for play dates more difficult. And the shorter activities have to be signed up for about 5 times a year. And I need to wait for the schedules from 2 cities (and the books don’t come out at the same time) plus all the private activities.

And once we (which is to say I as it has become my obsession) get activities arranged for a time period, say from New Year to spring break, I can breathe a sigh of relief. Only to find I exhaled too long and missed the deadline for registering and now S won’t be in ballet in April (see From Tomboy to Princess for the importance of that) and the kids can’t take swim lessons together. It was March and I was already sketching in summer activities when we have the usual array of activities plus camps, family vacations and vacation bible school to schedule.

Our kids are actually in relatively few activities, which makes choosing them all the more difficult. If they are only in one or two things after school, the planets must align for the timing, the length and quality of the activity to be perfect.

I wonder if Madonna is in need of help. I think her schedule would be a piece of cake.