On August 5, I had to go to my local school district to investigate what was going on regarding my five-year-old’s school enrollment. I submitted all the documentation on time, yet my daughter was not assigned to a teacher or school. That caused great concern. I tried calling the school registration telephone number and could only leave unanswered messages. So, I decided on that day to go to the school district and find out what was happening. I waited for four hours to speak to someone regarding my application. I kept myself busy during my wait. It did not feel like I had waited for four hours.

When it was my turn to speak with a registrar, I gave the person my application number, and she was able to find the application. After reviewing the application and identifying the issue, my daughter was finally enrolled in school. So I thought. On Monday, August 8, I woke up with the biggest smile. It was the first day of kindergarten, and I was so happy that I was going to be free of the five-year-old for a few hours so I could be able to clean. I was ecstatic about pulling out my new swifter duster and dust in the areas I hadn’t been able to get to because I didn’t want her sneezing all over the place (allergy trigger). So yes, like a few of us parents out there during that time of the year, I was excited to see her begin her school career.

We arrived at the school and waited in line. When it was our turn, I said with a smile; I have a new student here. This is (5 year old), and I don’t know her teacher's name yet. Can you help me? The secretary asked me for the student's name, and I gave it to her. She asked for my name, and I gave it to her. And she says, I don’t see her as a student here. But I see that you are. I looked at her and said what? And after an awkward pause, the secretary said wait. Let me get someone else who can help. I am not exaggerating when I tell you I was dying of laughter on the inside.

In my head, I’m trying to understand how something like this could happen to me. And I started laughing deeper because I remember saying it couldn’t get any worse than this the night before. On Monday, I think I can begin excelling from that point. Because wth! I got my first absence, and I’ve been out of public school for two decades. Don’t believe me? Here you go!

I can’t make this ish up! 😂

Yeah, I don’t blame you if you do laugh at this. Because I got a real good laugh at it. When the administrator spoke with me, she verified that I was the one registered as a kindergartner. As I am typing this, I can’t help but laugh because I cannot believe this happened to me. I thought I had a better chance at winning the lottery than being enrolled in kindergarten twice in my life! This is nonsense! That’s all that went on in my head. I kept asking myself what kindergartners can drive themselves to and from school? How is there any way that someone thinks a name like Janetta is modern? I have so many questions. But I knew I couldn’t get any answers until I spoke again with someone at the registration office.

My babies and I arrived at the school board building and again had a long wait. I was there for another three hours, this time with two children. And I felt all three of those hours. My unlimited patience was depleted by 50% when I got to the registration desk. When I told the registrar what was happening, she had me explain twice why I was there. She looked utterly stunned. She took my application number and could see my daughter’s original information, but she saw that the school official had made a mistake. Problem solved.

My daughter is now officially a kindergartner, and I can say without a shadow of a doubt that I was an accidental kindergartner for 72 hours and did not know it. This is going to be a story for the grandkids. I had to share this.