First Week Back: Holding the Bittersweet of New Beginnings

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The first week back to school has a way of catching us off guard, doesn’t it? One minute, the summer days seem endless — slow breakfasts at the table, bare feet in the grass, afternoons spent chasing ice cream vans, evenings that stretch late into the golden light. You lose track of the days, the calendar becomes less important, and there’s a sweetness in the looseness of it all. Then suddenly, we’re hunting for missing shoes, packing lunches, double-checking PE kits, and setting alarms again. The pace shifts overnight, and we’re left blinking, wondering where those long, warm days went.

It’s a week filled with milestones, some small and quiet, others big and life-changing. Maybe your little one is starting school for the very first time, and you’ve been quietly preparing for months — the uniform neatly folded, the first-day photo spot already chosen. Maybe they’re moving up to a new year, and you can hardly believe how much taller and more confident they look compared to last September. Or maybe it’s the last first day before a big leap — starting secondary school, or their final year before leaving home. Each of these moments carries pride and excitement… but also, a deep, unspoken ache.

Because alongside the joy, there’s often a tangle of other feelings. There’s the quiet grief for the easy rhythm of summer — the late starts, the spontaneous picnics, the way you could follow the sunshine rather than the clock. There’s the bittersweet ache of seeing your child take another step into the wider world, needing you a little less in practical ways, yet still needing you just as deeply in others. There’s the pang of less time together, the shrinking of those everyday, side-by-side moments that summer offered so freely. And sometimes, there’s even a little relief in the return to structure, mixed with guilt for feeling it.

The truth is, it’s okay to hold all of it. You can be proud and sad, relieved and nostalgic, excited and overwhelmed — all at once. Our hearts are big enough to carry more than one feeling at the same time, and this week is a masterclass in that kind of emotional juggling.

If this week has felt heavier than you expected, you’re not alone. The shift back into routine can be jarring for everyone — parents, children, and even pets who’ve gotten used to having company all day. It takes time to adjust to earlier mornings, after-school tiredness, new classroom environments, and the sudden absence of those long, unhurried afternoons. It’s normal to feel unsteady at first.

So be gentle with yourself. You don’t have to have everything running smoothly right away. Let the laundry pile up a little. Accept that cereal for dinner or a takeaway night might be exactly what’s needed. Give yourself permission to slow down in other ways — whether that’s by carving out an extra 10 minutes for a quiet coffee after drop-off, taking an evening walk to clear your head, or curling up with a book instead of tackling another load of washing.

And if you’re missing the closeness of summer, find small, intentional ways to weave connection back into these school-year days. It might be a shared snack at the kitchen table where everyone shares the best and hardest parts of their day. It could be lighting a candle at dinner and keeping that mealtime screen-free. Maybe it’s leaving a handwritten note in their lunchbox or pocket, just to remind them you’re thinking of them. These tiny anchors help you stay tethered to each other, even as your schedules pull you in different directions.

The first week back is a reminder that parenthood is, in so many ways, a long series of hellos and goodbyes. We watch our children step forward, and while part of us celebrates, another part quietly grieves what’s being left behind. The key is to make space to notice these moments — to honour the joy, acknowledge the grief, and give yourself permission to linger in the messy middle where both live side by side.

So here’s to the new season ahead. Here’s to finding our footing in the new rhythm, and to holding on to the small, grounding moments that keep us connected. And here’s to all the parents — standing at the school gate, waving at the bus stop, or watching from the kitchen window — who are feeling that mix of pride and tenderness this week. You’re not alone in it.