I am a stay-at-home mom to two boys, aged 10 and 14.  Once school started, I kept hearing people say "thank goodness the kids are back in school, right?"  Much to their surprise, my answer was "Actually I enjoyed having them home in the summer and we got to do a lot of cool stuff together."  They were completely shocked that I would rather have my kids around that have so much free time while they're in school!

Now that my boys are getting older, I know I only have a limited amount of time before they're off to college and out of the house.  I don't understand the mindset of having kids if you just want them gone.  My boys do well in school and I'm very proud of them, but that doesn't mean I don't miss them when they're in school.  I was pressured by my family to enroll them in preschool because I was told they were not going to have any social skills and would have a difficult time making friends if they stayed home until kindergarten.  I simply didn't listen to my family, and they were with me all that time.  They're actually more confident and secure than the kids who were in either daycare or preschool.  I'm glad to have listened to you long enough to have had confidence in the choice I made back then.  

I will always be listening!

Joni