The power of communication

Communication between anyone is important. It's important between parents and children. It's important between husband and wife or any couple. It's important between friends and family members. But one thing that can be forgotten is it's also important between parents and teachers.

If you all have read the last few posts of mine you'll know that Lucas was going through some bullying at school. It was devastating to us to find that out. This is young preschool children after all, and there isn't a whole lot of options. It already happened so we had to take it from there.
We went up to the school office, talked again with the teachers, and were invited into the classroom. Before we were told that this child cannot control his body and that's why he was doing things. Lucas was punched in the back and stomach. I don't take a pat answer like a child can't control himself punching other children. So we accepted the offer and decided to observe the class.
What I found out was, it's not that this boy can't control his body, but that nobody is showing him HOW. The teachers are helping him, and I still don't think it's right that he hit my son. I made sure that it is not to happen again and if it does I want notified immediately.
This little boy desperately wants to be my sons friend, he even gave him a giant hug when we got there. He just doesn't know HOW. It's obvious nobody has taught him to deal with his emotions. I come to find out the hitting incident as well as the other incidents took place when Lucas was apparently playing with other children and this boy wanted to play also. When he felt as if he was being ignored and nobody listened to him he lashed out because he wasn't sure what words to use.
I of course am not going to let my son be hit on no matter what, but now I'm glad I have the whole story because the boy wasn't doing it to be malicious but to get my son's attention. Even though it's the wrong way to get attention the teachers have been helping him use words to express himself.
I also had a talk with Lucas about maybe trying to include him more and paying more attention to him. Lucas thought because of the things this boy has done that he didn't like him, but since Lucas has shown him kindness and included him there have been no more incidents. I'm so pleased with how things worked out, and I'm so pleased that they are now like best friends. It has taught me a huge lesson in communication. Had the teachers have let me sit in on the class sooner to observe and explained in more detail the circumstances I never would've had to have went through the main office, but I don't regret it anyway because I will always do whatever I have to do to keep my son safe. And I really do think after seeing things first hand the teachers are doing an excellent job with the students!

This Saturday we are planning a trip to Conner Prairie. It is a historical museum a few towns away. We have had the tickets forever, but have not had the chance to use them yet. We actually won the tickets in a school raffle back in May! They expire in 2 weeks and since Saturday is suppose to be the only nice day this week we are going to be using it wisely. haha.

This week has been exhausting so I'm eager for the weekend to come. Hubby has worked overtime all week to cover for vacations. The vacations were suppose to be all covered, but I should have guessed I wouldn't get that lucky. Needless to say that whenever he is gone like this is when it always seems like everything goes wrong. The leak in our ceiling has still not been fixed or dealt with unfortunately and still leaks. This week we are suppose to get rain so I dread to see it then. The attic is obviously holding water and since we are on the top floor we get the brunt of the roof rot area. What other luck could we have after all? I shouldn't be surprised.
Then our thermostat broke! It was 100 degrees in our apartment and when they sent someone up to fix it all he did was unhook all the wires! So now we've been without heat the last few days! I have went up to the office and called relentlessly to get it taken care of, but still nothing has been done. It's highly frustrating.
The kids have been extremely rowdy since Josh has worked everyday. There must be some meeting they attend while I'm sleeping where they are instructed to be at their best worst behavior when alone with mommy. So thankfully tomorrow is Friday and daddy is off this weekend! My sigh of relief can probably be heard all over the world at this point.

This weekend is also our local library book sale! I'm so excited about it I can't even tell you. I have an entire shelf full of TBR (to be read) books on my bookshelf, but it doesn't matter, I can always make room for more. I love books, and the prices at our local book sale are more than affordable. The most common price is $1 and most are even under that. Since we are a family of readers it always goes like this:
We all walk in together and then hubby splits in his direction checking the genres he so loves. I take the kiddos over to the children's section where they browse, play puzzles, etc.
Then hubby comes over with his selection and sits with the kiddos while I go in search of my finds.
Confession: I always take longer than hubby. I just get lost in all the aisles, looking through all the books, cds, movies, etc. It's usually not until I hear one of the kids being rowdy or the kids and hubby come in search for me that I return. I just can't help myself! ;)

I just wanted to make sure to give you guys an update on everything, especially the bullying situation. And thank you for those who sent encouraging and uplifting emails on the situation. I love getting mail from my readers.
Don't think I've forgotten about any of you either, I haven't got to do much blog reading this week due to everything going on/wrong. But tonight I plan on fixing that. Since the kids decided to get up 2 hours early today they are going to go to bed 1-2 hours early. It seems like if they don't get 10-12 hours of sleep they are even more difficult when they wake up so I try to keep them on that schedule.

Anyway I best be off, I need to make Lucas's school lunch, get him in his uniform and out of his play clothes, go to the bank, drop him off at school, and then me and Levi are off to run some errands (one of them being the library).
Thanks for stopping by, and I can't wait to hopefully visit you all later on throughout the day. :) See you soon!

Sincerely,
Tori

Bittersweet...

Last week was my son's first week of preschool. He goes 4 days a week, and it took everything I had not to bawl like a baby.
I have mixed feelings about school starting back up.

On the one hand we get back to our normal routines and schedules which makes things run so much smoother. It seems like everyone and everything runs smoother during the school year because we all adjust to our schedules a lot better. Maybe it's because as humans we secretly crave routines and schedules...who knows.

It's bittersweet to watch our children grow up isn't it? Lucas is already 4 and in preschool, Levi is almost 2 years old and he is so independent already. What happened to those little babies fresh out of our belly's who needed us to help them with their every need? I am so proud of how much they have learned, and I love watching them grow up into the good little gentleman they are fast becoming. At the same time though I just want to swaddle them in blankets again, hold them close, and rock them. LOL
Maybe I'm crazy, but it is so hard to let go.
On the first day of school last week I fully expected Lucas to beg me to stay, not leave him, etc. The complete opposite happened. I could tell he was a little nervous because he kept twisting the back of his shirt, but as soon as the other kids asked if he would like to join them in reading he left me in the dust. He barely had enough time for me to give him a kiss and hug. I walked out of there holding back my tears like a big baby while my little boy played so nicely with all the others and barely gave me a goodbye glance. LOL
But part of life. I'm sure I will go through this every single year.

I have a lot planned this week. I have a few book reviews coming up, one part of a blog tour which you won't want to miss. It's a blog tour for Band of Sisters by Cathy Gohlke. She will be answering some questions, and there will be much info about the book. Not to mention that this is one fantastic book.

The tour date is schedule for Mommy's Musings September 13th which is this coming Thursday. I hope to see you here then!

Tonight hubby is going to play with the kids and give me an hour to myself. I'm eager for a hot bath, good reading, and then to join them before bedtime. The boys love the game whack-a-mole. It's so fun for their age group, and I'll admit it has us in hysterics most every time we play it. It's funny us all trying to remember our sounds and whack the mole. haha. If you have youngsters I think they would really enjoy it. Here's a look at the game:

You can find it at walmart or almost any department store. It lights up and each player listens for their distinct sound and has to whack that mole that lights up while playing their sound. Lots of fun for the whole family, and easy enough for young ones.

Anyway, I have a roast that's almost done, and I need to make some cornbread to go with it. I'm hoping for an early night tonight since tomorrow is going to be busy. We have shopping to do for school uniforms (it has been hard trying to find them in his size and he still needs more), errands to run, a birthday party to attend, and so much more. Hope you are all enjoying your weekend!

Sincerely,
Tori

SCHOOL SUCCESS!

Oh my, the relief is pouring out of me! LOL. I'm so giddy I could just squeal.

Finally...FINALLY...my son has been placed in preschool. I decided to make another call to the woman in charge of school placement at the main school office. Finally she answered her phone, and we began the same old dance.
She kept telling me there was no record of my son in the school database, and that the only record they have is of him attending speech therapy classes which he will continue this year.
I told her again that in addition to his speech classes he is suppose to attend preschool this year as well, and how we even got a paper to prove he had been accepted.
Then she kept telling me about how they would need to assemble a meeting to find out what was going on, how it could take some time, etc.
I told her, again, I would like to explain the whole process of how we enrolled him in case that would give her a better idea of our situation. I calmly told her that this was very important to us, and I want to make sure I'm doing everything I can to make sure things are understood and taken care of.
(I will admit the whole time I said this I was trying not to grind my teeth together, that's how frustrated I was becoming)


To my surprise she allowed me to explain the process.
I told her how we went to the school enrollment at the end of the year, they tested Lucas in the preschool rooms (colors, shapes, numbers, letters, etc), reviewed his speech therapy progress, and how we filled out numerous amounts of paperwork (seriously how many forms do you have to have to write your address on and such). Then how the nurse made more copies of his shot record, and everything checked fine.
Then I proceeded to tell her how a couple weeks after enrollment we received a congratulatory paper saying our child had been accepted into preschool and to await further information on his placement, etc. The paper said if there was any delay in his placement to contact the main school office.

She listened and finally asked if she could put me hold.

After awhile of being on hold she comes back on the line with a sigh. I'm hoping it's a sigh of relief so I hold my breath praying.

"We found the problem. Your son has been placed in Title 1 preschool which is not in this office. Thus explaining why we have no record of him" she said.

I'm relieved he has been placed, but still my frustration is lingering. Why couldn't someone have told me this before? Why has it taken this long?

"Well can I talk to someone from that office? I haven't received any paperwork at all" I said.

Happily she transferred me. I am betting that during this process she was probably jumping up and down on the other line happy to be rid of this situation that was frustrating us both.

I'm transferred and in a better mood since Lucas has at least been placed in preschool. I talk to the new lady in charge who pulled up his records immediately and was very understanding at the situation. Isn't it great how when someone is polite, understanding, and pleasant it can just brighten everything?

She said the paperwork had been delayed for all students, and that all of preschool will be delayed this year in our town. The school he will be attending is suppose to stay the same, but they aren't 100% on that due to district changes. But she assured we would get our paperwork very soon.

She said he was placed in Title 1 preschool so he can continue with his general education classes as well as his speech therapy classes normally without it interrupting class. He will go to pre-k classes 3 times a week instead of 4 since he will have speech class 1 day a week. This way he can proceed normally with the other children and still attend regular pre-k classes. Then I was delightfully informed that if he continues so well in his speech progress and maintains a high learning ability he has the opportunity to be skipped ahead a grade if need be to keep him challenged. There were apparently some notes in his report that he was breezing through work for his age level so additional worksheets may be sent home to keep him a bit more challenged until that time comes. Right now I just want him to enjoy being around his peers, loving school, and just being a kid. Time just goes so quickly. In the future if he wants to move up a grade we will discuss it then, but right now I just want him to take his time and enjoy.

So now me and hubby are more than relieved. Everything is finally taken care of, and while it was a frustrating experience and they had us all mixed up we finally know what's going on now.

So now I'm awaiting paperwork on school placement, open house, etc. Which she assured me we would have by the end of next week, and if not I am more than welcome to come to the Title 1 office (which ironically is located in the main office but in a separate wing). I'm eager to get the class list and go shopping for school supplies although I am relieved that we have a bit more time to do so. I am relieved also that preschool is starting late in our town because we move in just 12 days so that gives us a bit more wiggle room on our schedules and stress levels. haha!

Well, I had better get back to my never-ending household chores. I have laundry to do, and I'm pretty sure a tornado must have swept through my living room while I typed this up as there are numerous toys strewn all about everywhere. Time to get that straightened and the toys put back in the boys room. LOL

Hope everyone has a great day!

Sincerely,
Tori

How can a school be so un-organized!?

Oh my! Let me just start by saying my son is only in preschool and I am already getting fed up with the public school system. So if you don't feel like reading a crazy woman's ranting and raving blog post don't read any further than this. LOL

You still with me? Thank you for taking the time to listen to my ranting, here's a cup of coffee. We could probably both use a bit of caffeine right now. haha.

I am trying to keep my calm and give the school system some time, but I am finding my patience is running very VERY thin.

Here's what we are dealing with:

Last year my son went to preschool speech therapy once a week every week for the whole school year. I home-schooled him the rest of the time. But he showed such a huge interest in public school and just blossomed so when asked if we wanted him to attend preschool 4 days a week (half days of course) this year we decided to go ahead with it. He had met so many friends, and he really wanted to go back. We went to the school to sign him up on the sign up date, filled out all the paperwork, they made copies of shot records, proof of address, etc. Lucas was tested on his letters, numbers, etc.

After about 2 hours of this we were done and were told we would receive a letter in the mail to let us know what school he will be going to.

We waited...and waited...and waited some more. Finally we get a paper saying our son had been accepted into preschool and we should receive yet another paper informing us what school he will attend with the open house date so we can meet his teacher, see his class, other classmates, etc.

So we wait some more...even more...and longer still, but...as you probably guessed, nothing comes.

Being the constant worrier that I am something kept telling me something was wrong. School starts in a few weeks and we should have surely heard something by now!

Hubby kept telling me to give it some more time that I was stressing over nothing.

Meanwhile the school sales are booming at Walmart, Target, etc and prices are getting lower and lower. 

I am the type of person who takes advantage of sales and I try to buy in bulk. Crayons are for sure going to get broken during school, markers are going to run out of ink, colored pencils and pencils are going to break, notebooks will be used up, etc. Not to mention backpacks, uniforms, etc are on sale too which are things he will need. I want to buy stuff up while it's super cheap and be set for the year. Why go back later on and pay full price if you don't have to? All the school lists are posted at the department stores, but since I don't know what school he is going to how am I going to know what the supply list will require? They are all dramatically different in brands they require, amounts of this and that, etc. Some want crayola crayons, some want Roseart, etc,.  Grr..

Frustration mounts...

Finally I have enough. I gather up the kiddos and the hubby and we head out the door to the main school office that handles all the schools in our town. And do you know what we are told?

There is no record of Lucas being set up in preschool! He is still set up for once a week in his speech class. OMGosh! I want to scream, but I calmly explain that we filled out all the paperwork and received an acceptance letter. They consult the computer and say again there are no records. We go home, come back with the acceptance letter to show them, and they look totally confused and again say there is no record.

I stand there in silence for a minute waiting on her to continue but she just stares at me. Very patiently while gritting my teeth I ask:

"Then where did all of his forms go with his very personal information, all his shot records, etc?"

The woman looks at her computer again, says she will look into it and give us a call. We give her our phone number feeling defeated in so many ways, and mighty frustrated.

This was a week ago. 

I have been back to the school office twice, called over a handful of times and left messages. I'm trying not to be a nag about it, but my goodness! School is in 3 weeks! I want to know how in the world they could mess up my son's records like this! I'm not too impressed with the school system thus far. I'm hoping that I hear something by Tuesday or I will be going back to the school office and if that does no good I will be calling or visiting the superintendence's office. I'm not trying to be Cruella De'ville here, but I do not want to have a crushed kid on my hands. He has been looking forward to meeting new friends, going to class, etc. He loves school, and he is very eager to help pick out school supplies he will need also.

So I guess all I can do until then is pray and be patient, but I can't help but be mightily frustrated at the same time. I know it's all going to work out somehow though so I'm trying not to stress. This is something that just jumped out at me while I was looking for helpful bible verses.

Colossians 3:12-13 

Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. (NLT)

Summer Germs & Back to School

I feel like I'm coming down with something so this is the way I spent my morning::

Cold glass of orange juice.
Anytime I feel like I'm getting sick I always turn to orange juice. A friend of mine actually takes one vitamin C capsule a day and she swears by it. I do have to admit that she gets sick very rarely, but I really don't like taking anything. haha
I'm the same with my kids, and they only have medicine if they absolutely need it.
I guess I'm a bit paranoid because in today's world you never know what will be recalled.
But hoping I start feeling better soon. I've just been really tired, some chills off and on, and a stuffy nose. Bad timing at that because the outside temps FINALLY became bearable!

I'm still awaiting on school paperwork to arrive. It has been really frustrating to us lately.
We had an apointment set to sign our son up for preschool. It was a bunch of paperwork but very simple. Everything was quick and easy, and I'll be taking him to and from school so no transportation is needed. A couple preschool teachers asked if he would like to go to the playroom and play with the other kids. I of course followed to check it out, but I knew the ladies from the previous year so all was good. I'm just overprotective.
I get all the paperwork done, they make copies of shot records, etc. He had speech therapy already so he had done some tests and they noted all improvements he had made.
Then they say I have to wait on the paperwork to arrive and they can't tell me what school he will be placed in. They say we can go get Lucas and then just keep checking the mailbox.
We get Lucas and leave and then we wait...
Then yesterday we get a paper saying he has been accepted into preschool based on his current skills. (I didn't even know you had to have any skills to get into preschool) The paper even had a report on how well he interacted with other children his age although he was a bit shy at first. Showed high artistic ability, and reading skills. The paper says to await further instruction on what school he will be attending!
I didn't even know they had to "accept" him into preschool and why can't they just tell me what school already? Not to mention I didn't know that my son playing with other students would be a "test" of sorts.
This is one of the reasons I really do not like public school, but Lucas really wants to go. He made so many friends in his speech class last year and he just blossomed. So I guess we will see how it goes and as he gets older if he decides he wants homeschooling we will go back to that.
But not knowing WHAT school he will be attending is really getting to me and totally throwing behind school shopping.
I can go ahead and buy the uniforms since we know the dress code, but what about all the stuff he will need for class? I like to prepare I guess, and school shopping is extremely hard in my small town. We have a Walmart which is a blessing, but the closer it gets to school time the more madness ensues. Walmart becomes a battle ground and parents are arguing over everything from backpacks to pencil boxes. Last year a couple moms were literally bickering at each other over who would get the last pack of 24 count Crayola crayons and who would be stuck with the 24 pack of Roseart crayons. There were no pencil boxes left and Walmart said they weren't to get a shipment in until that following week. Yikes, school was starting in a couple days!
Last year Lucas went one half day a week and I home-schooled him the rest of the time. He did require supplies for his both at school and our home class but this year will require much more. He will go four half days a week so I can only imagine the list when we get it. haha.
So anyway enough complaining...

How do you handle back to school? Are you an early shopper or do you like to wait until the last minute when the best deals come out?