Back to School Night

Interesting.
I started off the night going to the Room Parent Meeting. There were 9 mothers there. I was a little suprised at first by the small turnout, but.. I get it. Nights can be tough.
Well, you know how there's always the very involved parents. I'm not one of them, but I truly do apprecate them. Schools and districts would be no where near as good as they are, nor would staff be held as accountable if it weren't for them. They've always somewhat intimidated me though. I will say, now that I'm older, no so much anymore.
The evening starts off with speaking of the low turnout of volunteers. I'm honestly shocked. There are classrooms with NO volunteers. 25 kids per room, and no one was able? OK, moving on. The veteran moms then ask that moms who volunteered, to keep the grade level parties equal. Last year they had (for example) one third grade class having pizza, a pinata, and balloons, and the room next door had pretzels and apple juice. Well that makes sense and I get it.
Then the warnings start.... Don't expect parents to participate/donate/acknowledge requests. If you get 40% your lucky. hmmm. Keep your reciepts in case you're asked to show your purchases (seriously), be prepared to pay yourself. Well, I am the ETERNAL optimist, and think... I don't believe it.
After the meeting, two of the volunteers (out of 9) were kindergarden moms. They approach and ask if I'm an AM or PM parent. They'd like to collaborate the parties. I can look in my crystal ball and know they're about to be uncomfortable. I reply my son is actually full day. They look a little thoughtful thinking, "Why didn't I know there's full day?" and I continue with, "There's only 5 kids in his class, etc". The lightbulbs have gone off. They quickly gather themselves, and continue with "Oh, well you'd only need to buy for 6, etc" They were very friendly and asked for my email to get together to discuss. I really would be happy to work with them, and could possibly use this alliance to provide additional integration with the other classes. I'm good. Just hope they email me.
I leave there and go to my sons class. I see the teacher outside the door, and begin apologizing for being late. She's just glad I'm there, because I'm the ONLY parent. What? I assure her that another mom is sure to be there, (I knew her from Barcley), and she and her husband did arrive a little later. 2 sets of parents out of 5.... that =, you guessed it 40%. hmmm again.
I don't judge other parents. I mean that sincerely. I don't know their situation. They may be a single mom who can't miss a shift at work. They may have additional children and no support around them for babysitting, I don't know. I was still suprised though. Of all the children, these are the kids who can't tell us what their days consist of. I have no idea what Ben does, or what he enjoys, save for the paper that comes home each day. The information is minimal. I NEED to know.
In the end, Ben's teacher did say she and the staff adore him (of course), he seems to be enjoying himself (I thought so), and the evening was pleasant.
Add to this, Ben has historically been horrible when we left him with a babysitter. My mother, grandmother, his aunt... He screams, cries the entire time we're gone, and there's no comforting him. In Ben's world mom and dad go nowhere without him. Makes for a tough time going anywhere. Last night I told him grandmoms were coming and I was going out. His answer was "No Grandmoms... no grandmoms tonight" (Typical answer whenever I say they're coming).
Well, we got home last night and he was wearing nothing but a smile. Buck naked, but seemed to be enjoying himself. Can I hope for this to be a turning point. Could he finally of realized we'll come back, and those two old ladies aren't going to boil him for dinner... should I make reservations now?