Life with Ladybug: Lessons from a no good, very bad school year

By Shannon Magsam, Ladybug’s mama

To all the mamas out there whose kids didn’t get into any classes with their besties this school year, I was there.

To all the mamas out there whose kid already says there’s a teacher who “hates” her this school year, I feel ya.

I was right there with you last year when my sixth-grader walked into school knowing her three closest friends would all be in the same classes together, but she wouldn’t be with them. And I was there when my girl felt like one particular teacher just didn’t like her in the least.

And you know what?

It was a hard year, one filled with apprehensions, stomach aches many school mornings and lots of late-night pep talks.

You know what else?

It was a year of growth, a year for my girl to find out she was more resilient than she realized, a time to branch out and find extra friends, and learn new coping skills – and several weeks after the school year ended – a time for statements like this:

“I still don’t think Teacher X liked me, but I think I may have learned the most from her.”

And:

“If I had been in class with my best friends, I wouldn’t have become friends with X and X and X.”

You can imagine that this mama’s throat got a little tight when she said those things.

I told her I was proud of how she’d handled the school year.

But you can bet I held my breath this summer when my daughter got a text from a friend saying that teacher postcards had started arriving in mailboxes around town.

This was it. The day she would find out if she would be in a designated “pack” with – or without – her besties for seventh grade. Ladybug jumped up and ran to the mailbox.

We did a happy dance together when she read the postcard and realized she would be in the same pack with her peeps. Then we jumped up and down.

Jump, jump, jump. Smile, smile, smile.

It’s seventh grade and I’m no fool. Seventh grade will no doubt bring its stereotypical bumps and bruises, but it’s easier to weather a storm when you’re with a friend. Or three.

I’m glad my kid learned she can be resilient. But I’m also glad that this year when she walks down the seventh grade hallways she’ll enjoy the cushion of a few wing-girls.

Shannon Magsam is mama to Ladybug (a salty/sweet tween girl obsessed with superheroes and unicorns), wife to newspaperman/entrepreneur John, and is the co-founder of nwaMotherlode.com.