my small, colossal mistake

Hoo boy.

So.

Patrick was supposed to start kindergarten next week, at the same school that Gus has been going to for the past two years.

This is a special school, a really good school; there was a lottery process in order for Patrick to be admitted. Spots at this school are highly coveted, and the waiting list is long.

Because Patrick has a sibling at this school, we got first dibs on open spots, and we received Patrick’s acceptance letter back in January.

And with Patrick’s acceptance letter, there was a letter I had to send back to the board of education, stating that we accepted his acceptance, and that he did plan to attend the school.

Yesterday, Gus got his “welcome back to school” letter and Patrick did not, and to make a long story (involving me driving around Nashville inquiring, explaining, pleading and crying in front of metro administrators all morning) short, it appears that metro never received my acceptance of his acceptance and therefore gave Patrick’s spot to someone else.

Did I turn in the acceptance-of-acceptance letter?

I’m sure I did.

Of course I did.

Didn’t I?

It was seven and a half months ago.

Would I have been so stupid as to trust it to the post office? Wouldn’t I have hand delivered something that important?

And if I hand delivered it, would I not have saved a receipt?

I have no receipt.

I did everything else. I gathered his official documents and registered him for kindergarten at the school office. I cheerfully reminded other mothers to register their children, which now seems like an especially cruel irony. I registered him for aftercare. I even ordered all of his school supplies, which, I was just informed, were delivered to his school today.

Or I guess it’s not his school.     

We are looking into other options for Patrick, and in the end, I know whatever happens will be fine. I know there are far worse things in life. I know that we are blessed and fortunate in every way and that this is a very minor setback in the grand scheme of things. I know all of that. 

But I’m just so damn sad that I did this to Patrick. That I put our family in this situation. That I am so pathetically inept at managing the tasks of daily living that I could screw up something this big—by notdoing something so small. Or not doing it carefully enough.

We love this school. It's our school. 

I've been racking my brains all day, cursing my incompetence and repeatedly kicking my own psychic nutsack, but I paused for a second when Larry sent me this. 

Lemonade. 

I gave my boys a lemon. And today they made lemonade.

Not to mention $14.07.

Which we may just need.

Thank you, my sweet boys. All three of you.