The first three days of school...

I can't give an update on the first "week" of school because school started on a Wed. so they only went 3 days last week which at first I thought was ridiculous but now after going through the 3 whirlwind days...I am extremely grateful :o)

So my very anally organized self bought Phoebe's school supplies in June. Cross that off the list...Done! Well, we return home from our cruise the Thursday evening before the week of school starting. The following Friday morning I get a call from Phoebe's principal telling me that the 3rd grade needed another teacher so they were moving Phoebe's 1st grade teacher to the 3rd grade. Seriously...are you kidding me? You all couldn't figure that out any sooner? So I told Phoebe & of course she was freaking out because she didn't know this other teacher & had no idea who was in her class. Then of course...as my luck would have it...this teacher didn't have the same supply list as the first teacher...which I received in the mail on the Saturday before school started...which left me buying more school supplies on Sunday...along with every other Tom, Duke, & Harry in the tri-state. Needless to say, I was not a happy camper.

Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention that the Special Education Co op calls the Wednesday before the Friday morning we were to leave for our cruise & schedules an evaluation for Shakira on Thursday afternoon. Great! Not like I didn't have anything to do Thursday afternoon...getting ready to leave for a week & to pack for a week for my kids as well who were staying with friends. God did remind me that I had prayed that she would be evaluated before we left on our cruise. Note to self...next time you pray a prayer like that...you want to be more specific :o)
Anyway, during this evaluation they decided that Shakira would start in the Special Needs class that I wanted her to but they wanted her to start out as part time not full time since she had never had any kind of schooling before & didn't want to overwhelm her. Okay...surprised by the curve ball but totally understood.

Okay...so now she would go half days instead of full days...which translated into my head, no lunch at school because half days ended at 11:00am. When we returned home from the cruise I was expecting info. in the mail regarding what I needed to know about Shakira's class regarding supplies, drop off in the morning etc. but nothing was there. So I thought, okay, it will come Saturday. Nope, not Saturday. So Monday morning...two days before school starts...I go to the school & request info. from the office. They referred me to Shakira's teacher because they (meaning the office) are fairly clueless about how things are run in the Special Education classes. They jotted down a note to have her teacher call me. I thought okay, this could be interesting if they forget to relay the message to her. But God being the gracious God is his, had mercy on my poor anal retentive soul. Shakira's teacher was walking in the school as I was walking out. I asked her all the questions that I could think of. Great! I got the info. I need to have Shakira prepared for Wed. No, wait a minute, I don't either. She wants Shakira to be picked up later because they eat lunch at 11 & it would be less interruption as well as good for them to work with Shakira's eating skills...so now I have to go buy her a lunch box. Good grief! I have to go back to the store again! Unfortunately, that wasn't the last time I had to go back to the store for supplies but I'll stop boring you with the trivial details. Suffice to say that I was quite tired of running to the store for the seemingly never ending list of school supplies for one daughter in first grade, one in kindergarten, & one in pre school. School never use to be this complicated...what in the world happened???

Okay...now that I'm done with that tangent I'll actually tell you about their first three days of school :o) The first day went as expected. I woke up at 4:30am, got the kids up at 6:30am, had eveyone scrubbed, clothed, fed, teeth brushed, & ready to go at 7:30...plenty of time for our 7:50 departure time. 7:35...Shakira poops in her pull up. Cleaned her up...getting ready to load everyone up at 7:45...when I smell poopy from the little man. "Caleb, did you poop?" "Yep!" he said, in a very loud voice. Great...change him very quickly & head out the door at 7:50am. Get to school & get everyone out of the van...lift up the trunk to pull out Caleb's stroller because all of us have to go trapsing through the school to drop off Shakira because for some strange reason no one can seem to explain or understand, she does not qualify to ride the Special Needs bus yet but she's not ready for the regular bus...no stroller in the trunk...form a link that stretched across half of the parking lot & headed inside the building after dodging cars, fast walking parents & students, heavy doors that swing in your face. Then we have to wait in line in the office to find out that we don't have to sign in today but that I will have to every day after that to drop her off & pick her up. Phoebe takes off while the getting is good. The rest of the entourage goes down the kindergarten hallway & we were greeted by Shakira's teacher who tells us what the normal morning routine is. Shakira is very excited about going to school. She waves to me & says, "Bye Bye...Go, Go!" Great...we're out of here :o) Returned at 11:30 to pick her up. The teacher & assistants thinks Shakira is a funny, sweetheart. Great...first day went well for her. Thank you Jesus!

So fast forward to the afternoon & picture me along with Caleb & Samara in the double stroller, & Shakira jumping next to me, waiting for the bus to drop off Phoebe...a block from our house. We wait, & wait, & wait. Finally another parent waiting with me calls the school to find out what's taking so long. They are suppose to be the first drop off...and we only live 5 minutes max away. The teachers & buses were running late, the bus should be there any minute. A minute later the bus shows up. Off comes 3 children...none of them Phoebe. The other parent is "calmly discussing" times of picking up & letting off with the bus driver while I ask his daughter if Phoebe was on the bus & she said, "No." I totally freaked out...(normal reaction in my mind to this situation) & interrupt the conversation & ask the bus driver, "Where is my daughter" to which she responds, "Who is your daughter?" (New bus driver this year) As soon as I said her name, she comes slowly...and I mean slowly...walking toward the front of the bus. Very relieved she was on the bus & okay...then of course very quickly told her never to scare me like that again! As we walked home, she happily told me about her "awesome" day of first grade.

Phoebe's second day went well but you could tell she was dragging when she got off the bus. The third day was her first day of homework which consited of 12 spelling words & one sentence. Shakira's second day was more interesting than her first because she decided to do some "testing" the limits with her teacher & assistants. She took off her glasses, her socks & shoes, fell out of her chair, & threw stuff on the floor but they still checked her as cooperatiave although they wrote "a little more energetic than yesterday" next to it. Then she switched gears again the following day & showed them...and me...what she can really do: trace some lines appropriately, wrote her name & I could read it, did some coloring...more than just chicken scratch, & cut out some shapes & glued them onto paper. I couldn't believe it! I was very happy...and so was Papa!

Tomorrow Samara goes to meet her pre school teacher & to see her class room. Tuesday she will start half day pre school in the afternoons & little man will start morning Kid's Day Out once a week on Wednesday. So this week will be another transition week & maybe...just maybe...by the end of this week we'll be in some sort of "normal" rythm & routine :o)