When you have children of elementary age, there is always that one dreaded week of the entire year. Can you guess what it is? I am sure you can probably think what it is. Have you guessed it yet? No, not yet.

For me, it is that moment when you open your child’s folder and find a piece of RED paper. That red paper can only mean one thing: RED RIBBON WEEK.

Here you go for those of you who are lucky enough not to know what this week is. Red Ribbon Week is the week the school talks about being drug-free and saying no to drugs. That is great. It is such a great message, and I agree with that wholeheartedly. It is what comes with the week that I dread.

Every day for one week, the kids wear something silly to school. Most of the time, it isn’t too bad, like silly hat day or silly sock day. Those are easy. They throw on something before they run out the door. I can even get down with the day they wear their pajamas to school. There is one thing that is ALWAYS on the list that I cringe at. It is the Crazy Hair Day.

Oh, how I hate this day. I know I have a choice not to have my kids participate in it, but unfortunately, the kids love Crazy Hair Day. I am sure some of you out there love this day. I, however, do not because I am horrible at it. I have a hard time doing hair on a regular day, so you can imagine how hard it is for me on a crazy hair day.

Here is how it always works out for me. I, of course, can never come up with an idea on my own. I looked up some ideas on Pinterest. If you have not looked up crazy hair day ideas, you need to see this. It is incredible what some people can do. There are so many that are so talented. I don’t, however, fall under this category. I have to scroll through so many ideas to get to one that I can maybe somewhat do. This takes me a while to find one. Once I have found one I think I can handle, I repeatedly look at the picture or video to ensure I know how to fix it.

On Crazy Hair Day, we have to get up early. I have to have time to redo anything that doesn’t work out. Things usually start OK, but I am praying the whole time that it will work out. I can tell you right now that my track record on it working out is that it has never worked out. It is always a nailed-it picture. It never looks exactly like the picture. Sometimes, you can see what I was trying to do. The children are such good sports. They always say they love it, but I know it doesn’t look as good as expected.

Once I had finished their hair, I rushed them out the door. I have to sit for a while and take a breather!! The whole process for me is exhausting. I am so glad once that day is over. It is like a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders. It sounds so silly that it is such a stressful day, but it is the same every year.

I know this day will only last a few more years, but I can honestly say that I cannot wait until I don’t have to do it anymore. How about you? Do you love this day, or do you dread it like me?