Do I look like a bank? :-) April 30, 2008

I know there are people in various parts of the world going hungry tonight due to the fact that food prices are soaring in impoverished parts of the world. I am trying to keep things in perspective but this school is getting rididculous.

Its the end of the year and so our schedules are filling up fast with activities and parties and field trips. I can handle all of that because I came to terms with the fact that I cannot be in 3 places at one time and so I take turns with each girl. But it seems like every day there is another note with another request for funds….retirement gift for Vice Principal, money for end of year party, money for kindergarten graduation, Spring pictures, the list goes on…and that does not include end of year gifts for the teachers for loving our kids all year. And they aren’t asking for small amounts either. Between the 3 requests I had today, we will shell out close to 95 bucks! YIKES! I would like to note that is for only one of my children.

I know that giving the money will not cause my children to go hungry and it won’t cause us to be late on the rent, but really. This is getting out of hand. And its not that I mind giving…I appreciate the parents who organize various activities. I appreciate the teachers who have worked hard all year. I want my children to learn that there are times for work and times for play. It just seems to me that there is no recognition of the fact that some families may have a hard time paying this. There are some families that may have to choose between gas for their car and a field trip for their kids. And no one wants their kids to feel left out, so what is a parent to do? The requests just keep coming….

((sigh))

Q & A April 16, 2008

Question: What do you do when your 20 month old hangs on you ALL day like a chimpanzee, won’t eat, vomits all over her car seat and fusses about EVERYTHING!?!?

Answer:  You call a supportive friend and when hubby gets home you take a v….e….r……y long time at Target and running various other errands.  You take so long that she is in bed by the time you get back home.

Question: What do you do when your 20 month old hangs on you ALL day like a chimpanzee, won’t eat, vomits all over her car seat and fusses about EVERYTHING for 2 days in a row?

Answer:  I’m not sure. I’ll let you know when I catch up on laundry and regain my sanity….but something tells me the answer involves ice cream, tequila or both.

OK….maybe not… April 14, 2008

So the “bliss” was short lived….Saturday night Izzy woke up with the worst upset tummy…there was such a mess everywhere, Jason and I had a hard time figuring out which end it came out of.  You would think that 3 well educated adults could figure that out rather easily!  HA!  And the whole time we were cleaning up, my dh was acting like he was going to die if he touched any of the mess.  I mean really…this is the man who had to go to a waste water treatment plant as part of a college class! We had to do a couple of clean ups, but then we were all able to get some sleep. We got up yesterday morning and Izzy wouldn’t eat all day. She did vomit a few times in the morning hours, but after that she just slept and laid around….which is VERY out of character…this is the kid who hates her car seat and loves to play outside.  In the afternoon, she ate a couple of saltines and some plain cheese ravioli for dinner.  This morning she had spit up in her crib a little and had a little more diarrhea, but it looks like things are getting better.  What is going on? No fever…was it something she ate?  Maybe a stomach bug?  Like any good parent, we aren’t sure…we’ll keep an eye on her.

Well, I had an appointment for her this morning (Monday) because of a constant runny nose and cough.  Pediatrician thinks there might be some seasonal allergies.  The allergist decided to test her..it was awful…they laid her on her belly and held her still while I talked to her…they were about 2/3 of the way through when she decided she had enough and wanted to get up….so we had to physically hold her down for the rest of the test. When we were done, she was so upset she fell asleep in my arms.  Results…there are some minor allergies to pigweed, yellow pine and mold.  There are also reactions to shellfish, chicken and oranges. We have to keep her off of those foods for a month and then go back for follow up testing. The allergist thinks the food reactions may be false positives, but because you never know when a kid is going to have a MAJOR reaction we have to keep her free of those foods until we take her back.

Which may explain the upset tummy Sat night and yesterday….our dinner on Sat night included shrimp. She didn’t eat any of the actual shrimp but it was all cooked together.  Not sure about that one yet.  Nothing serious, we don’t know for sure of the allergies…I’m trying to remind myself that this is manageable. May make life a little more challenging since I have been collecting chicken recipes for the last few months, but we can deal with it.

On a fun note though..yesterday Jason and I were watching the DVD from Calvert about their curriculum.  Katey sat down and started watching with us. She asked to watch the information on what all the grade levels learn.  She said it was going to be cool if that’s what she gets to do next year for home school!  Its comforting to know she thinks of home school as a positive change.

Bliss… April 13, 2008

Yesterday when we went to the airport to pick up DH, we saw several families greeting each other…you could tell the men in uniform had been gone for more than a few days. There were huge smiles everywhere and lots of hugs all around. The girls and I were waiting in the van at the curb, watching this and waiting for “Daddy” to get his luggage and come out to us.  The girls and I discussed how happy we were for those families that were back together…. ’cause we know what its like to miss someone you love that much….how it leaves a big, giant, gaping hole in your world that NOTHING else can fill…not even large amounts of retail therapy.    I started to think about my frustration with the current administration (both civilian and military), but then I decided to focus on the positive for just a bit.

Today was a great day for us. I was able to “sleep in” until about 7:30, but I laid there in bed awake until a little after 8…got up, ate some breakfast, ran on the treadmill, ate lunch, Jackie and Katey went outside while Izzy napped, I  planted a garden (just a few tomato, cucumber and a lone green bean plant), washed the dog and then we had dinner.  Nice, calm, relaxing, no where to be.  As a matter of fact, the only person who left the house was Jason who took Izzy to the commissary for a few things. I know the girls brushed their teeth but I don’t think they even combed their hair….why bother…bicycle helmets will just mess it up anyway.  What a nice break from all of the hustle and bustle of the week.

Nothing like a little panic…. April 7, 2008

Ahhh…the beauty of paying a great deal of money every month for my children to attend a private school.  Don’t get me wrong, I can understand paying a great deal of money for private school if the public schools in your area are either unsafe or just not up to par.  Obviously, we have done it for the past 2 years.  But sometimes you just have to scratch your head and wonder if you are really getting your money’s worth. I do it every where else…I buy the cheaper paper towels but if they don’t do the job as well as the pricey ones, I switch back.  The same thing with shoes. I HATE to pay a fortune for kids’ shoes….but with the feet on my kids, it is just a waste of money to go to Target, buy a pair of shoes and then fight with the girls to get them to wear them.  So, I go to the fancy shoe store in town and make sure we get those narrow shoes to start with. 

For the most part, we have really enjoyed being at St Bob’s School these past 2 years.*   The K4 teachers did an amazing job getting Katey acclimated to full time school.  The 2nd grade teachers did a great job getting Jackie caught up in all of the important places….like phonograms.  The principal and staff is well organized, professional and friendly. Most of the parents are great and will chat and talk with someone who has not lived in XYZ Town their entire life.  But there comes a time when there are things that make you go “hmmm”.

This started for me when there was a meeting for parents whose kids will start in the “big school” (first grade” next year.  When the First Grade teachers outlined what would be expected of the kids, the Kindergarten teachers were surprised. I’m sure I don’t have to tell anyone why that is SO wrong. Then last week there was another one…

At the end of Spring Break I was talking to a neighbor who has her son in Kindergarten at the local public school.  We were talking about what the kids are doing in school.  Well, mainly I was. I was surprised that Katey’s class had not started any addition when I know they get tested on their addition math facts in First Grade.  Of course, we have done some work at home, but there’s only 8 weeks left of school. Shouldn’t the teachers be preparing the kids to start First Grade? When I told my neighbor they had not started ANY addition, she was shocked…her little boy is adding double digits.  Hmmmm

Well, last Monday I was excited to see the workbook pages come home that Katey’s class had finally started addition.  Yeah!  I like the way the teachers were presenting the ideas and concepts associated with addition and then….the subtraction workbook pages came home on Wednesday….Hmmm….I was in the car pool line on Wednesday and saw the subtraction paperwork.  I thought I had just seen the addition papers start coming home, but I won’t swear to anything these days my brain is in such constant chaos.  I got home and checked the school paper pile, and sure enough it was the addition chapter pages. Hmmm

Addition and Subtraction in the same week? Within 3 days of each other?  And then it hit me…they are cramming for the Standardized Testing that starts on April 8th.  These teachers, at this expensive private school, are cramming for the standardized tests for my KINDERGARTENER!  Is it just me or is there something really wrong with that picture?  I don’t think I’m getting my money’s worth.

* Name changed so no one can sue me for defamation.