waiting at the school gate

[invisibleme]

I loathe it.

Because I'm not......

super-popular Mum
alpha Mum
busybody Mum
chatty Mum
scary Mum
powerful Mum
opinionated Mum
know-it-all Mum
young glam Mum

No, I'm nearly-invisible Mum, with little small talk, and no wish to throw my (not-inconsiderable) weight around. Has anyone got any tips for surviving the regular ordeal of the school gate, with all its invisible (but still undeniable) currents of expectations/pecking-order/power struggle/unspoken mutual judgementalism? Or am I just being paranoid......

Oh these threads make me so sad. I say hello to everyone I meet on the way to and from school (village life :)). Just because I say hello doesn't mean I want to take over your life or cast judgement on you. The fact I am at school and I am a wonan means that during the school run I am defined as "mum". But that isn't just who I am. This is being over thought. There are 240 kids at my DCs school. Not all (or even most) parents of these children are horrible cliquey bitches and I'm sure it is the same the world over. Start smiling at people and you might be surprised at the response you get.

woman! not wonan

I have met some lovely friends at the school gate, but it takes a while to get to know people - the first year my DD was at school it was a lot of painful small talk, the second year it got better, and now I have friends I wouldn't be without.

Not all mums at the gate are my cup of tea, but we are all nice to each other.