It's called the Hug and GO lane, folks

When I take Amanda to school every day I choose to run the Gauntlet, which means that I don't park my car and walk her to her classroom door. Instead I pull up to the Hug and Go lane where I say goodbye and push her out the door so that I can skedaddle before cars start piling up behind me. For cryin' out loud, the girl's in first grade - she can walk the 20 feet or so on her own!

I have found that there are several breeds of mommies and daddies that use the Hug and Go lane. There are the ones like me...we'll call us the Smart Breed, who literally hug and go. The Smotherers are the ones who can't seem to say enough goodbyes before the poor dear can even open the door to leave. I bet those mommies and daddies even cry a little. Babies. It's their children who can't run away fast enough. Then there are the Lingerers - the ones who watch their child until he has safely assumed his position in line. The Lingerers seem to be unable to let go, and in the meantime clog up the street, undermining the whole purpose of the Hug and Go lane.

Finally there the Impatients - they are the ones who, upon finding themselves behind a Smotherer or a Lingerer, pull around so that they can fulfill the Go part of the equation. The Impatients seem to cause the most amount of distress throughout the Gauntlet. With all the parked cars, the Gauntlet runners, and the Hug and Goers, there is very little room for disruption.

Dropping a kid off at school really isn't that hard. If you choose to run the Gauntlet, be prepared to hug and GO, just as the little yellow signs read. Hug and Go. Say it with me...hug and go...hug. and. go.