Heaven

Ah, the first day of school. It rates with Christmas on my favorite day scale. I know it sounds like I don't like my kids. That isn't the case, but after a summer of the constant tension of having them around, I can't wait to get rid of them.

Yesterday I went out for a two hour breakfast with a friend then came home and sat in a stupor of euphoria for an hour before it was time to pick them up. This year is extra-special because Thing is now in school full day. I can actually hear myself think. Today I'm catching up on laundry and trying to get over the shock of being in a quiet house. I'm celebrating by cranking up the stereo and listening to the New Wave channel on XM radio.

But it is too easy to fall into a habit of doing nothing. I'm hoping I can appreciate the time I have now and use it wisely. However, I think that can wait until Monday.

One Day More!

Did you see the musical "Les Miserables?" Remember the "One Day More!" scene where the people are euphoric for the next day? The song is a stirring anthem that pulses through your veins making you want to jump up on the stage with them and march around with a big flag. I feel like that right now. The joy of a new beginning fills my soul, the promise of brand new day free from tyranny beckons.

Yes, tomorrow is the first day of school!

Today promises to be busy. There are mountains of laundry to do and menus to plan. But I can assure you, I will skip, sashay, dance down the aisles of the grocery store today. I will smile as I'm folding clothes. The sun is shining just a little bit brighter in my world today.

So, anything you are looking forward to?

BTW, anyone have a good link for free web graphics. I'm really freakin' tired of these flip flops but it isn't really time for fall graphics yet. I need a change.

Breakdowns

I think the number of emotional breakdowns I've had since the beginning of September is now in the double digits. The latest was Saturday when the contractor said we wouldn't be done until close to Halloween. The reason for the change is a change we made. Anyway, instead of three weeks, I've got another six weeks of turmoil. I keep telling myself how nice it is going to be, but it is small consolation right now.

I should be more consistent this week. I've got so many things coming up, but most of them are after school and the like. First, I'll address the RSS issue. I'm not sure what is going on. I know some feed readers are able to read the feed but many others can't for this blog. I tried to repair it yesterday and had no luck, so I will have to try again. Sorry for the inconvenience. The feed option is turned on but there is a code problem in the html I haven't figured out. I'll keep trying.
So on to the other stuff. Thing started kindergarten. Here she is coloring her self-portrait. She colored the hair yellow and green since her has a green tint from the chlorine. She is in the afternoon class which has been great. The teacher is really good with the kids. It was a little rough going at first since she is so young. I'm pretty sure she is the youngest in her class. In our district they must turn 5 by December 2 in order to be eligible to register. Her birthday is November 19, so she is cutting it close. However, after a couple of weeks, she seems to be doing well. The teacher says she is a blast to have in class.

What is most odd for me is having all this time with nothing to do. I would love it if I were home, but I really have no place to go. I've done all the window shopping I can take for the moment. I've been camping out at hubby's office (I'm here now) and I should be writing, but I'm a bit scattered. But I have 6 more weeks of dealing with this, so I better settle down. I have some ideas for books I want to write not to mention the books I've already started. I have essentially nearly four hours a day when I could do nothing but write. You think that would be movtivation enough. If only I could get over these breakdowns.

Things Get Complicated

One of the biggest stresses I've had this summer has to do with the fall.

We have open enrollment in our school district. It means we can enroll our children in a school other than our home school...as long as there is room. We have to apply for an intradistrict transfer every year and so far it hasn't been a problem.

This year is different.

Each elementary school in the district is different. They are structured differently and have different philosophies when it comes to education. My kids go to the earthy-crunchy granola eatin' school as I like to say. It is multi-age, meaning the classes are blended with grades. All upper grades are 4-5-6 classes while the primary grades are blended in different combinations. It is very family oriented and parent participation is encouraged. As important as academics are, the school focuses on arts and music as well as social awareness. Anyway, it is unique in the area and my kids are doing really well there.

Apparently, everyone else in town wants there kids there as well and the school has been flooded with intradistrict transfers. They cannot grant all of them and are now cutting kids. My son is safe, he will be in 6th grade and they are not overrun. The problem is at the primary level. I think Thing will be okay for kindergarten but the hardest hit grade is the third grade which is Diva's grade. Yes, after going from kindergarten through second at the same school AND having two siblings at the school, she could get kicked out. And, to make it more stressful, the minute I submitted my intradistrict transfer, I gave up my spot in my home school. My home school is actually across town from me (my part of the city was incorporated long after the boundaries were drawn so they just threw us in) and so she'd have to go to a totally different school and there are only two open. Neither one is acceptable: there are reasons they aren't full.

Now I saw the writing on the walls plus I got inside info last spring, so I made sure I volunteered for tons of stuff. We've contributed financially to the school over the last 6 years we've been there. I'm hoping its enough to tip the scale in my daughter's favor. But here it is August 10th and school starts Sept. 5th and we still don't know. So what will I do if we don't get into the school? Well, there are a couple of private schools around, neither of them are really that great. But one dark option comes to mind. Something so black it is the Thing That Can't Be Named. I'll say it once but just once, I fear the backlash such a thing could do to me. Homeschool.

They Don't Tell You This in "What To Expect When You're Expecting"

I am the first to believe my kids are misbehaving. I have no blinders on when it comes to their behavior because I know what they are capable of. My mindset comes from the fact that I see too many parents who think their kids can do no wrong. They assume their children are angels and will not see or hear anything bad about their kids.

I've always been clear: if there is a problem with my kid, tell me. I'll listen, I want to know. I am more than likely going to believe you. I'm not unfair, but I know my kids aren't perfect and I want them to be likeable and pleasant, so if there is a problem, I want to fix it.

I blogged about a situation back in January about my daughter having problems with another girl and the mother's involvement. While I let the situation go, my manner towards the mother has been rather cool. I don't talk to her beyond a polite greeting. Anyway, damned if this situation hasn't popped up again. Diva never tells me when bad things happen. For her, its like water off a duck's back. She doesn't hold things against people and she has a strong enough ego that the actions of others don't really bother her. However, I do here about things from other mothers whose kids do talk. Apparently the little girl who hosted the pre-Christmas slumber party has been a brat and causing all sorts of drama and my daughter has been the focus of it. The teacher mentioned it to me and has assured me the little girl will be in a different class from the other girls. She and others assure me Diva is the victim in this one.

One of the other little girls hosted a spring break slumber party the other night. When I dropped off Diva, I talked to the mom. The other little girl didn't RSVP (which annoyed the hostess since she planned the party based on the RSVP's) but showed up anyway. When she mentioned this to the mother, the mom said well, since my kid wasn't there, it shouldn't be a problem. When hostess mom said that my daughter would be there, the mom proceeded to tell the hostess how our daughters were sworn enemies and there was going to be problems. Hostess mom, who gets a big high five here, tells her that if there is a problem, she will call her so she can come and pick up her daughter. The other mom was a bit taken aback by that. Hostess mom knows the score and wasn't real thrilled. Diva is one of her daughter's favorite friends and she says Diva is the one child who never says anything bad about anyone else. Anyway, the party went fine, the girls had a good time and there were no problems, no fights and the girls all behaved perfectly.

So here's my dilemna. I feel like the other mother is fomenting trouble. My first inclination is to go on the offensive and have a "chat" with her. I despise this idea that she is spreading trouble for my kid and I'm pissed. My maternal instincts are offended. My rational side says to let it go. We have less than two months left of school. All the other parents who deal with me and my kid (including the teacher) know the score and who is really causing the trouble. To say something to her would be more for my benefit, getting my irritation off my chest. I'm not at my best when I'm emotional.

I really find it hard to believe there is so much drama in elementary school and that parents feel the need to cause more. I expected this kind of stuff in jr. high and high school.

I'm Just a Girl Who Can't Say No

I try to do my part. I volunteer where I can but I wasn't doing as much as I wanted. Now that Thing is getting older and will be going to school next year, I've felt a little freer to participate. Before Christmas, my obligations were pretty nil so I felt confident I could take on more projects. It's not like my writing was going anywhere...sigh.

So I took on the duty of Cookie Manager for Diva's Brownie troop. It isn't too bad right now, but I know it is going to get chaotic once cookies get delivered. I was prepared for that. What I didn't realize at the time was that my writing was actually going to go somewhere. On top of that, my kitchen contractor said he could do my kitchen in mid-February. Yikes.

Now baseball season is coming up. This is hubby's thing, I just show up and watch the games. Well, the man he had planned on having as an assistant coach has decided his kids aren't going to play. So hubby informs me I'm going to be out there coaching (I've coached softball and soccer, so this isn't new to me). Also, there are a ton of girls signed up this year and he would like to get about half the team as girls, therefore he wants a female adult out there at all times. This is a huge time consumer. There are two practices a week before the season starts then two games a week and a practice when the season begins. I'm not pleased, but, I would rather do that then see my dh try to run practice alone. Luckily, I like and understand baseball.

My kids' principal called me up the other day and asked me to sit on a new committee. The school is going to lease computers for Apple and they need to find ways of earning the funds. So he asked me to be on the group finding ways of funding this leasing thing. While I doubt this will take a huge amount of time, it will put my name out there in the volunteer pool and I can imagine I will have a "job" every year until my kids leave the school.

Things are going to slide, definitely. I think it will be the house. But I did make it clear to hubby that writing will have to take priority. Most of these things are staggered when they get over. Cookies will be over when baseball gets into full swing. My contractor assures me I will have a new kitchen before the end of March. So I should be okay.

Are you a person who can't say no?

Part two of the Diva situation

I talked to Diva's teacher yesterday and got a totally different picture of what happened. Apparently, my daughter and her friend came up to the teacher the other day and told her they would be nice to this other little girl but they weren't going to be her friend. I guess the little girl's mother told her that my daughter and her friend were brats and that they she shouldn't play with them anymore. Teacher was shocked. When she saw me outside talking to the mom, she assumed I'd heard the comments. My guess is mom wanted to head me off at the pass before Diva said something. Diva didn't say anything to me about it, I guess it didn't bother her that much. But I talked to her teacher. I'm concerned that I have a budding Evil Sorority sister on my hands, but her teacher assures me that isn't the case. She said the other girl is the one with some real social issues and has brought drama to everything. There is a core group of three girls my daughter belongs to that insulates itself from the drama. Other girls come and go but this group is tight. She doesn't think I have anything to worry about although she is pretty upset that this mother decided to bring this up now, I guess it stirred up a hornet's nest in the classroom.

This other mom has problems. Like all of us, she's made some mistakes, unfortunately, hers had more lasting consequences. She's in a miserable situation and she's emotionally fragile. I'm not upset and I'm going to let it go. I'm not much into drama myself (amazing since that's what I write).