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Back to School Blues?
Can Mama Get Her Groove Back? By Linda Sharp
It's that time of year again. Around the country, a militia of children armed with new No. 2 pencils, three-prong folders and SpongeBob lunchboxes are preparing to head back to school. And moms everywhere are preparing to reclaim the sanity that went AWOL three months ago and head "Back-To-Life"! Are you ready to embrace your "Me" time? What will you do without the Rugrats both under your feet and on your TV? Most important, are you ready to "get your groove back?" Take our quiz and find out!
A. 4,000 readings of Dr. Seuss' Green Eggs and Ham.B. Trips to the park, playdates, creating lemonade stands with your children in the 100 degree F heat.
C. Systematically crossing off each day on the calendar, as you inch closer to D-day. (You know, Drop the Darned Kids at the Door of the School and Drive Away Day.)
2. It is time to buy school supplies. What is your strategy?
A. Wear comfortable clothing and take a backpack full of survival snacks. Gilligan's three-hour tour is nothing compared to the Bataan Death March you will go on in search of those five spiral notebooks, wide-ruled only. B. Find the 24-hour Wal-Mart and go at 3 in the morning when you don't have to fight 30 other moms for the last purple folder with pockets and prongs.
C. What strategy? I preordered the whole thing from the PTA back in May.
3. On Open House night before school starts, you spy the sign-up sheets for Parent Helpers. What do you do?
A. Sign every volunteer sheet until my pen runs out of ink. Have to be supportive! B. Strike a balance by volunteering one day a week in the class and helping with the spring fundraiser.
C. What sign-up sheets? I didn't see no stinkin' sign-up sheets! Oh, OK, I'll sign up for the Halloween party. (How hard is it to buy three bags of candy?)



