Back to work!

So I have been back to work for two days and it hardly feels like I had a two week vacation but not necessarily in a bad way. I have realized lately that although my job is a LOT of work, and I mean a lot of work, I love it. A lot of people think that Kindergarten teachers must be crazy. They are probably right. Usually people say that just as everything in a classroom is falling apart. For example there are generally a few parents lingering outside of my classroom door at the end of the day. This is one of the craziest times of the day, imagine getting 22 children bundled up in coats, hats, boots, gloves, etc. Imagine that only a few of them can zip their coats, they can't get anything else in their over-stuffed back packs, there is always a last minute note to send home, and one of the kids gnerally doesn't know if they are getting picked up or riding the bus and they are crying about it.
So, also at this time the parents outside the door are looking at me with a look of, well, I'm not sure. Sometimes I think it is judgement (too much yelling, too much chaos) and sometimes I think they are feeling pity for me. One parent said to me just before Christmas, I think we should get you a bottle of Jack Daniel's for Christmas. I didn't know how to take it so the next day I asked her. I figured she thought I needed to relax like I am too stressed and I couldn't handle my classroom. She told me that with the job I have I deserve a stiff drink at the end of the day.
I guess sometimes I feel a bit self-concious about people watching me teach. Most people don't understand what it is like to manage 22 children at a time. It is MUCH different than 2 or 3 kids at a time. I know that I am not a mom, that job is much harder than mine, but I just always feel like people are judging me. That is understandable since I spend 6 hours a day with their children. I think I am so sensitive because I take my job so seriously. I love my kids so much and I want to be a nice, calm, caring, put together teacher all the time but admittedly there are times that I raise my voice, have you tried to whisper over 22 five year olds? And there are times that I lose my patience but with that said, I still LOVE my job. I love my kids and I am always trying to improve. I think it is good for me to keep self-evalauating. Any teacher who won't self-evaluate is the one to worry about as far as I'm concerned.
Enough rambling, I hope everyone is getting back into the swing of January. Post holiday time is always a bit sad for me but I have a trip to South Carolina soon to see my SIS! YAY!