Middle School Anxiety

This is Aiden’s last year of elementary school. Next year he will be entering Middle School and I’m scared shitless. I know that he’s smart. He has always made good grades and his conduct is impeccable. But is he ready for middle school????
How can he survive middle school when he can’t remember when his projects are due? He has his good moments, but sometimes I just shake my head. Those final 2 weeks before report cards come out are like a race to the finish. Trying to get him to finish strong is like pulling the sword from the rock when you’re not King Arthur. He bought a planner at the beginning of the school year to help him stay organized, but it’s nearly empty. Currently he has 2 teachers and he still gets lost in his assignments. Now you expect him to fully function with 6 teachers. Oh NAWL!
Then it’s his whole grooming habits, or the lack thereof. How can he remember to put on deodorant so the won’t be “that kid”? I still have to remind him to put lotion on his elbows EVERY morning. He will walk around with his lips looking like sandpaper for hours and not be bothered by it. I have been brutally honest with Aiden and told him that he looks like he’s homeless. I have had a sit-down conversation about image, portrayal and representation. That conversation never left the room. It died there. We got him to a point where he would iron his clothes, but that died too.
Plus, middle school kids can be so damn evil. They talk about each other, maliciously. They discuss things that NO child should know about. What if the kids try to bully him? Will he punch the kid so hard that he quits his bullying career? Or will he tell the teacher? Or worse case scenario, do nothing?
OH LAWD!
And just a couple of weeks ago he mentioned getting a girlfriend. A GIRLFRIEND! OH SWEET, BABY JESUS TAKE THE WHEEL!

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