This is what it looked like outside all day.
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next stop, juvie hall
26 AugKiddo was/is having some adjustment issues at school. To put it bluntly, she’s punching kids. Yes, punching. She’s gotten in trouble two days in a row for channeling Rocky Balboa. Fabulous. For the record and in my kid’s defense, she has attended day care from 8 weeks to 5 years old, and we’ve never had this issue. I’m shocked I tell you.
Each day the kiddies get a behavior assessment based on a color scale, with green meaning they were sweet angels, red meaning they are juvie hall bound, with degrees of other colors in between. The first two days we got green. Woohoo! Then the next day, a yellow mark with a note from the teacher saying that my kiddo had punched a “friend”. We had the obligatory talk with her about using her words instead of her fists, yada yada. Tears and remorse followed with the promise for a better day tomorrow.
The next day…another yellow with another note from teacher in a much more stern tone…my child had punched another kid and knows that next time it happens she will be demoted to RED. A more serious talk occurred as did more serious tears and elevated remorse and some “I don’t want to talk about it mommy”. The next day…stomach virus. Goodbye perfect attendance. It was really all we had left since the good behavior medal had already slipped by us.
Enter today, Monday…I dropped her off and that experience was a bit rocky, although at least we weren’t late this time, so I didn’t think her day got off to the greatest of beginnings. Sigh. Bad mommy. However, today….drum roll please….GREEN!!! Whew. Can we get two greens in a row by getting another one tomorrow??? Stay tuned folks. Its gonna be a nail biter.
Kindergarten is stressing me out.
i should be sleeping
21 AugIts after midnight and I should be sleeping. But its a full blue moon and my brain is whirling. Today was busy and somewhat annoying but it ended better than it began I guess. I started off weepy and weird and missing a friend and worrying about some very serious family health issues. I’m still all of those things but I don’t have control over much of anything it seems.
Workouts are still happening, I just haven’t been posting about them. And this is not one of those “if it didn’t go on the blog, it didn’t happen” kind of things. I’ve gotten in a couple of great rides on the bike, a couple of runs, and a couple of gym times. I’m loving the Trekster. I just need to get some bike shorts because my butt y’all…sore. The Accountant has taken nicely to it as well and has taken it out on the road for a couple of 12 milers. So far, I’ve stuck to the neighborhood and the greenways and those are good enough for me for now. I’m also taking the motorcycle out on weekends to practice and not lose my mad biker chick skilz. I’m sticking to the neighborhood streets so far and getting some good practice in on turns and clutch control. Being on it is such a great feeling.
Kiddo is doing ok with the school thing but it is such a hard adjustment. She is so very exhausted at the end of the day and is practically begging to go to bed. Ok, that’s a slight exaggeration but not by much; its a huge change for all of us. The Accountant has been taking her to school in the morning this week and I’m picking her up from her after school program. I will admit that I like having my mornings to myself and enjoying a quiet house and the freedom to walk the dog or work out in the AM. The solo commute is still strange but nice. I think I might be a hermit at heart. The fundraising crap is already annoying me though. Two already that we are supposed to be doing. Can’t they just charge me a “public school users fee” at the beginning of the year and just be done with it?
If you are into praying, my family could use some big ones right now. Otherwise, good vibes and positive thoughts are appreciated.
I have the itch to plan a trip. #random
To bed for me.
Kindergarten: And So It Begins
19 AugOk I’m back y’all. And if you aren’t my parents and don’t want to read about my kid’s kindergarten adventures, move right along now.
Here are the highlights…
The most excited kid I have ever seen busted into our bedroom at 6:00 am all dressed, with backpack on. Ready to go! As spazzy as if it were Christmas morning. She’ll get over that pretty quickly I’m guessing.
No tears on the first day. Seriously. We are a family with hearts o’ steel I tell ya. We walked her in and she was a bit shy but the teacher was all smiles and perkiness and we were outta there in less than 2 minutes. Ack. I did ok during the day but just kept wondering what she was doing at that moment, if she was having fun, finding her way, did she get lunch, etc etc. Finally, time to go pick her up and hear about all the big girl adventures! Or something.
Enter a bit of a hiccup with the first afternoon pick up…to explain…I come from a TINY school…one building, K-12, 200 students TOTAL. Kiddo’s school is one building for the Elementary and there are 5 or 6 different kindergarten classes alone. Totally different world. The Elementary, Middle school and High school are all on the same campus which means 50 million different driveways and car rider lines and doors and places for me to get confused. But I managed to find the correct car rider line on her first day and was all like “oh yeah, new momma has GOT THIS yo!”…I’ve been sitting there for about 15 minutes congratulating myself and picturing the heartfelt afternoon reunion and bonding over stories of new friends and the fabulous cafeteria lunch she had, when I get a phone call from her after school program. (Yeah yeah, my kid is one of those poor souls whose parents work for a living and don’t have family in town so she has to go to an after school program. Sue us.) Said program wasn’t supposed to pick up the kindergarteners until Friday, but my kid was somehow put on the bus and was making her way across town. Enter mommy coronary.
I managed not to squeal my tires as I pull out of the beloved car rider line (did I mention it was the correct line?) and race to where my precious offspring is being taken. I’m imagining tears and panic and five year old hysteria. I actually beat the bus to the place and not so patiently wait for my poor lost child to run sobbing into my arms. Haha. So naive am I. The bus pulls up, kiddo comes be-bopping off it hand in hand with some deviant 1st grader, says “hi mommy” and proceeds to walk past me and into the building. WHAT???!!! I try to explain that this whole bus thing was a mistake today and her program doesn’t start that day. She is NOT a happy kindergartner. Kid didn’t want to go home!
Even though I was stabbed in my tender maternal heart, I’m glad that she is so independent and just fearless enough to enjoy new things and not be incapacitated by shyness. But still, geez.
Since then, she’s been two more full days and we are rockin’ this school thing. Sort of. I made her late for her 2nd day because I got caught in the wrong drop off line and had to go all the way around the entire campus. Yada yada yada. Momma needs to get with the program, I know. Day 3 was easier because the always prompt and non directionally challenged Accountant dropped her off and I picked her up at the after school place, which I can do because it’s just one building with one parking lot and one entrance. As it should be.
So far the only negative is that kid is wiped out at the end of the day and that makes her grumpy. Did you know kids no longer get naps in kindergarten? We, as a nation, have obviously gone to hell in a hand basket with this horrible decision. Today I found her cuddled up in a teacher’s lap and was informed that she had just tearfully told the teacher, “I think I want my mommy”. Ack. Tired tired girl. It is definitely mental overload for her. And me too. We have like 20 pounds of papers in folders with deadlines and dates and fundraising crap (hey, wanna buy some wrapping paper?), and agendas and parent alerts and ohmahgoodness this is NOT good for someone as disorganized as I am. But we’ll get it down soon I think.
Oh, some randomness…her school is in the top 5% for standardized test scores in the state. Not that I put much stock in those lame tests but I’d rather her school be on that side of the scale than the other. And she has been reciting the Pledge of Allegiance over and over again and has been obsessed with “good manners” (maybe we aren’t going to hell in a hand basket after all). Additional randomness…tonight she and I were in bed and she says, “Its time for cuddles”, so she gets the covers all arranged, snuggles up against me and says, “Now THIS is what I call love”…Good gracious me! ❤
Beginning of day vs. End of day….
Next stop? Harvard.
various thoughts at 3 am
14 Aug- Emotional rollercoaster today. It’s not something I can explain here. Its just…all the things. Bleh. Life is weird.
- As mentioned in the title, it’s an ungodly hour and momma is up pacing, nervous as a cat. #1stdayofkindgergarten
- Last day of daycare today for kiddo. Teary pickup. Last long commute home with her. Not so teary, for me anyway as kiddo was in a mood. Probably nervous like momma. It was a big day for her.
- Today (Wednesday) is my Friday and it will be abbreviated. Not complaining there.
- I feel like I am losing control of my exercise and eating. Again. My time management and organizational skills are nil and I’ve been preoccupied, by design. I’m all over the place. I’m so sick of starting and stopping and starting over a million zillion times. Why can’t I be consistent with anything? Frustrated with myself.
- I got to take The Trekster out for an abbreviated spin after work. It was short and unsatisfying because, five year old who wants mommy like humans want air. But, I could at least tell that I made a great choice and am going to love this bike for a long time.
Trek FX 7.4…in mah driveway
Better stock photo
organize me
12 AugParent orientation went well after the initial scramble to get kiddo settled in next door and her supplies all gathered up (because waiting until the last minute is one of the things I do best). Her teacher is young and bubbly and the school itself is super nice. We have a huge packet of information and I feel like there are lots of things I need to remember to do, when to go here, where to drop her off, pick her up, lunch money, check her folder for news and notes, snack days, stars of the week, when to wear sneakers for gym, etc etc. I think I’m gonna have to step up my organizational skills…meaning, I need to get some of those.
I managed a 1.4 mile walk with the dog in the rain tonight. Gym time and running have slacked off over the past week or so. Must not lose control of that. The bike is still in the back of the car since I had no time tonight to ride it. Boo. Tomorrow though.
Bedtime now. Peas ‘n carrots.
quick rant
12 AugReally? The county school system just left us a message letting us know about the PreK program that we could enroll kiddo in if we wanted to hold off on kindergarten another year. Hello, it is two days before and you are going to tell me about this NOW? No way. Kiddo is primed and excited and I’m not holding her out a year but thanks for the oh so timely heads up on the option. Geez.
