I'm actually not all that into Halloween. I like candy as much as the next person, but I'm just not that interested in Halloween. Which does nothing to explain how we (all four of us) have FIVE (5) Halloween parties/events to attend, not including trick-or-treating. Sigh.
Snot abounds. Coughing abounds. We (Sweet) are headed back to the doctor for the FOURTH time this month. She barfed at school this morning, which is not unusual for her if she has a lot of snot draining down into her tummy (sorry for the grossness there). Nurse's office called me to come get her. I knew she didn't have a tummy bug (it was only 30 minutes after school started and she had been fine). I arrived, and her teacher appears with her. "I don't think she's really sick. Would you be ok with her staying?" I concurred. I heart Sweet's teacher. So far, no other news (1:22 pm).
So, what's happening at your abodes this week, pixies? We will have around 500 trick-or-treaters, if history proves predictable. Mr E is in charge of obtaining candy. So far he has recycled a bunch of leftover from candy from other parties for us to hand out. Perhaps after all these years, my frugal ways are rubbing off on him.
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AW: My parents raised me right. Which I know because
W: I was confronted with a dilemma and I chose the path that is less pleasant but provides better sleep.
Go, Liz!
Yay for Sweet's teacher! But, um, seriously? FIVE halloween parties?
Oy of the SIL situation. Letters, research, calls aplenty, calls galore. SIL's facility perked right up at the letter faxed by my sweetie last night, and actually called *him* for the first time. And I got several leads developed on placement, and some great info along the way. "This might take months," one person said, "but they can't just throw her out," and he proceeded to give some practical tips.
But the big AW of the moment is that we might actually get a place soonish!!! By pure chance, a place that might be perfect (except for being 1.5 hour away) has an opening right now -- and my beloved will be in the area tomorrow and check it out. KNOCK WOOD, no jinxies.
Knocking wood, crossing appendages kathy.
(((Liz)))) doing the right thing isn't always the easy thing, is it?
esperanza, I'm not much into Halloween either. Five parties??
500 trick or treaters??!!?? Wow. That's a lot of candy.
AW: I received approval for a study leave event in April! I will be traveling overseas for the first time. So excited!
Go, SUE! xoxo
I totally missed the 500 trick or treaters thing. That's just insane! We're usually lucky to get 5 (there were 3 running years of zero), but two houses on our block decorated this year, so we might get a few this year.
My chocolate stash keeps disappearing right here in the house, so I keep buying more. But I'm pretty sure I have enough hidden for just in case.
Yes, trick or treating is alive and well out here in the country. It's nuts.
Good for you, Liz! Proud to know you.
Hooray for study leave, Sue!
And fingers crossed for SiL, kathy a. A more suitable place would be a good thing indeed.
Liz, you are awesome!
Yay, Sue!!! Congrats!
(((kathy a.))) fingers crossed
wow--500 trick or treaters sounds exhausting!!
Happy week everyone!
--Neighbor Lady
Here's how the t-o-t'ing works: I sit in the driveway and hand out candy while Mr E takes the Baboos. When he gets back, he takes over. I just bring him more candy from inside periodically. It is way, way too much for me.
We get bunches of T-o-trs too. But not 500. No where near.
I am feeling better and better about holding the high ground. Thank you folks!
YAY Sue!!!
W: so people who open their big mouths at chunky meetings get invited to be on the committee to make changes. Sigh.
AW: after Sweet's 4th appointment in as many weeks at the pediatrician, he has thrown every medication that he can at this allergy business. Three new Rx's yesterday. I could tell some slight improvement this morning. She tolerated both the nasal spray and the chewable tablet, once I told her it would help get rid of her snot. I think she'd be willing to do almost anything. (W) Anything except blow her nose, of course.
Nose snot star chart? Glad the meds seem to be helping. xoxo
In a way, that's great, Esperanza! Except I guess that means lots of chunky meetings with exactly these persons, no?
Well, yes. Change from within, huh?
Re: nose blowing: she's never really figured out how to do it. I'm taking hints.
Nose blowing: block one nostril, and blow as hard as possible with mouth closed -- like, try to slay the dragon with the blow. Try again. Then do the other side.
Breathing steam or maybe saline nose spray/drops might loosen things up. The goal is to shoot it out the nose instead of having it run down her throat. It takes practice. Efforts more frequently than she thinks of might help. xoxo
I know it sounds really gross, but...
Draw a birthday candle on the tissue, and tell her to blow the candle out with her nose.
Or even try it without the tissue. In the shower maybe.
Truly it's remarkable how far boogers can fly if you just hard out the nose with no tissue to catch it.
I really think it's a muscle coordination thing, same thing that made talking so slow and walking so slow for her. It's not that she *won't* blow her nose, it's that she really doesn't know how to make air come out her nose only. She's not very good at blowing period--I usually have to help her with birthday cake candles, for instance. Oh well. This too shall pass.
...just BLOW hard out the nose...
If her mouth is firmly shut, it has to come out the nose - so maybe that's the thing to concentrate on? I suggested closing one nostril because that concentrates the air. Big breath before!
Liz for mullet, for the boogers fly comment.
Now I'm laughing, anyway.
8^D
MS is with his mom at the doctor's getting pretty pretty pictures taken of her insides. They've been there since 0815 this morning. She keeps getting called back for "just one more pic"
She's 85, and her digestive tract resembles a ball of yarn after a kitten has gotten to it.
Liz, I don't like the sound of that "one more picture." The last thing you want to be at the doctor's is "interesting." Hope she's ok.
What Esperanza said. xoxo
Liz would be so proud! My friend's daughter wrote me the sweetest snail-mail card for donating a bit to her fundraiser. :)
Yay for handwritten snail mail thank yous!!
Thank you all for the good wishes for my MIL. MS is back home and reports that the doctor said "There's probably an obstruction but we can't see it clearly because the contrast can't get past something in the part of the tract we want to look at."
Which I think would confirm the presence of an obstruction, no?
Anyhoooo, they're probably going to do a wee bit of surgery, which may help things. Or as my MIL says, "couldn't make it worse."
My thought is, even if they had to take parts out, she'd be in better shape.
((( Liz, MS, MIL ))) Yep, sounds obstruction-ish. Sending love and good karma. Do you know when they'll do the surgery? xoxo
Um, to the person with a Dr Google medical degree, that would seem to be the definition of an obstruction. Hugs to MiL and MS, and you, Liz.
That "blow hard out of one nostril only" thing? We call that the 'snot rocket' round these parts. :)
I have partaken of said snot rocket several times today. It's part and parcel of the crud that I am laid low with today. I am missing way too much work lately, but just can't get muster up enough energy right now to care.
Missing my daughter, but I have the sad feeling that the end of an era has been reached. She'll never live under my roof again. Feeling sad. Hope I'm wrong, and hope this will all pass and it's just the cold meds making me maudlin.
KLee, we're calling it Kindergarten Cough (you know, like kennel cough). I assume that's what you have too. Hope you're better soon.
Oh, KLee. You have to quit that right now! Not the snot rocket, that will do. But the maudlin "she's gone" thing. SHE IS NOT GONE!
You are right on end of an era. But remember that song, the cat came back? They come back. I have a 25 year old living at home to prove it. We're still negotiating terms of the all-adult family life, and I know she wants desperately to find her own place, and that will happen soon. It is different after they leave. It is different all along the next path, and the one after that. But it's ok. xoxo
The "Boogers Can Fly" discussion is the perfect start to my day. (Poor Sweet, though)
KLee - I nearly spit out my coffee with the snot rocket talk. Lol! Sorry you're feeling ick. What kathy said about your daughter - she still knows where home is.
(((Liz))) I hope the obstruction is taken care of asap.
AW: The construction of our main floor accessible washroom at the church is well underway. This week they are moving plumbing around.
W: Which means we have no loo. I have been running to the coffee shop to use their facilities, but then I feel obliged to buy another coffee. Vicious circle, yes?
Is it wrong of me to laugh at Sue's coffee-potty predicament? It wouldn't be so funny without the Canadian "loo" I think. But hooray for accessibility!
W: horrible, terrible, no good, very bad, meltdown-filled experience at kindergarten fall festival last night. I should have made us stay home. Tired and sick and big parties are a bad combo.
AW: Sweet's teacher was concerned about her this morning (have I mentioned how much I love her teacher?) AND shared that Sweet has already advanced a reading level (Level A, for those who, unlike me, know what I"m talking about). Only about half the class could read on Level A, so I'm pretty proud of her.
~snort~ But yay for finally achieving accessibility!
My husband liked the place he saw, but hasn't made a decision yet. (I don't think he has yet had the experience of losing a possible place because someone else was able to decide faster.)
YAY Sweet! That is really great news about her reading! Sorry about the festival meltdown.
AW: Another nice breakfast with my local colleague, who also works at home. We're taking the tour of local breakfast places, and plan to keep doing it every couple weeks.
AW: The Big Teaching Hospital people once again came through with some useful info. I'm really favoring the place my beloved saw yesterday.
I'd like to note the ongoing efforts of our own DOORBELL QUEEN in getting out the vote!!!! Participating matters. It matters a lot. This year's big election has a lot of down-ticket items, and those affect all of us in our communities, and all of us for the state and national items also.
Just local to me, there's a big school board race, and for-profit charter school people are sinking a ton of money in, hoping to get charter school advocates elected. My district is very mixed -- poor communities, wealthier ones, kids who need a lot all along the spectrums -- and there's reason to be concerned about these for-profit charters siphoning off the kids with more involved parents, to the detriment of all. (Because yes, limited funds.) Just a local example. Go read up before your election. xoxo
Yaaaaaay for the doorbell queen!!!!
Hooray doorbell queen Liz! (I voted yesterday, and my polling place actually had a steady stream of traffic!).
More Sweet bragging: (background: I got some new books at the library for the Baboos today, and we usually sit down and binge read them all in one sitting). Me: "Whew. I just read 8 books, and you read 2 earlier." The math question occurred to me, but I decided not to ask it because: tired. A minute later, Sweet: "That makes 10 books." Math! On her own initiative! Even better than me asking the question!
woot, sweet!
shhh (whisper) -- i think maybe this new place is going to happen for SIL.
Yay voting!!!! Yay reading!!! Yay math!!! Yay ((((shhhhhh)))))
Ask your friends if they've voted, when they're voting. And, tell 'em who you are voting for.
Oh, man. Daughter gave me a cold, and my brain is clear as mud right now.
Ugh. Li'l E tipped over a dining room chair and hurt her ankle. She can't put much weight on her left foot. I just talked with a nurse on Healthline, and she told me (because there's no bruising or swelling) to observe/distract her for a couple of hours (with painkillers) and then take her to ER, if she's still limping heavily. Blaaaaargh. I feel like the most negligent mom (and like the most nervous new mom, at the same time?). I'm dreading the idea of a toddler with a broken or sprained ankle.
Oh, QWP! The good news is that most of the time, these kinds of accidents really turn out to not be much of anything. Little kids bounce back very well, which is good because they ALL do clumsy things! If you do end up in the ER, take along some entertainment. xoxo
Aw QWP, it happens. Sweet had a sprained ankle one time, virtually no swelling or bruising. She was good as new in a few days.
Esperanza, you have no idea what a relief it is to hear that Sweet was better from her sprain in days. I only know adult sprains, which take weeks to heal, and I've been freaking out about HOW I'm going to deal with her, if it's sprained. I can manage a few days.
AW: Mr. Q got other teachers to cover for him this afternoon, and he came home at lunch. My MIL is coming to help tomorrow. And E is napping!!! I'm praying that she's feeling better after her nap, because if she's limping, we have to go to the ER for an xray.
I second the "take entertainment" suggestion, and amend it to say preferably electronic--the more distracting the better.
If I recall correctly, Sweet figured out quickly to stay off of her ankle and just crawled for a few days. I'm sure it was no longer than a week. Her ankles are weak anyway, because she has club feet, so the sprain was maybe easier to diagnose. Our pedi did it in the office, without xray.
A thought after Neighbor Boy's recent ER visit. If there is a choice in your area, choose a place with a pediatric ER separate from the main one.
Hope it is not necessary.
:)Neighbor Lady
NL! You doing OK?
Yes, a ped ER is always better, if you have one. We always went to the children's hospital, except the one time my son had a big bike accident and needed a load of stitches and the big ER was closer.
Hanging in there-- I have been having a better balance of life and work, but have also been letting things slide, and those things are starting to hit the fan. Ah well. I think I am still burnt out from last year.
Maybe next year I'll get the "just right" balance--not too intense and not too much a slacker!
haha
--NL
Annual reminder: cheap candy day is Saturday! If you work in an office, the candy jar is 95% guaranteed to make you friends.
Aw QWP, I'm so sorry. I hope E is feeling much better and that you don't have to visit the ER. How nice that Mr. Q could come home early!
*waves* Hi NL! I'm working on the balance thing too. Ongoing project for me.
W: burn on my finger from the hot glue gun
AW: MM's costume is mostly finished
Yay, costume! Boo, burn.
People at my house are still talking about the world series. Loudly. And also they are talking about building the exactly perfect tube amp. If only the truck needed immediate surgery in the garage, it would be a trifecta.
*son's truck. Son is just famous for automotive trouble.
We made it through the day! Mr. Q came home at lunch (and other teachers covered for him this afternoon). We convinced E to nap, and then after her nap, when she still couldn't walk, took her to the ER close to here. We only have two hospitals in the city right now, and so we took her to the smaller hospital, because its ER is less busy, and they have a lot of pediatricians. We were in and out of there in an hour! We got a bed immediately, and saw both a family medicine doctor and then some sort orthopedic specialist or something. E improved so much over that hour that they decided that she didn't need an x-ray (and, considering the fact that she's already has a head x-ray and a CT, they didn't want to subject her to even more radiation). Rest and ibuprofen for the next couple of days, and if she gets worse, we'll go to our GP. She's still not walking much, but they said she should be back to normal soon.
AW: such wonderful quality of care! And I really can't take for granted the fact that this whole day cost us nothing. The nurses even gave E a popsicle! She loved the ER. (And those nice doctors reassured me that we came to the right place: the specialist said, "We take limping kids really seriously.")
W: I'm now a limp dishrag. I'm just done. I'm not used to carrying her everywhere anymore, and she doesn't want to walk.
Yay and hugs QWP!! I think this calls for breaking into the Halloween candy
(((QWP))) glad the day is done-- handled beautifully.
Hope E is on the mend quickly!
:) NL
QWP pace yourself! Stroller? Wagon? (yes, even in the house). Sweet's locomotion while in the Giant Purple Cast was to scoot on her rear--you might demonstrate to Lil E? Carrying her everywhere will wear you right out. Hoping you all slept well. And SO glad you had a good ER experience. It sounds like science fiction to me!
Hope she feels better soon! She will probably get bored with her lack of locomotion. But meanwhile, Esperanza's right about pacing yourself!
We got the admissions packet for SIL's new place!!! Yay, except there are 31 separate documents to be filled out. Thirty.One.
This kind of thing makes us the Cranky Couple. Everything will need photocopying, so I like to use paper clips until that is done. My husband HATES paperclips, probably because he NEVER does the photocopying. As you can see, we plainly limit our arguments to the big stuff....
AW: Scratch the 500 trick or treaters. Mr. E needs to be in Big City to be with a person having surgery. As it goes around here.
W: that means I have to take the Baboos trick-or-treating. I'm thinking three houses should be plenty
Further W: While we were gone, my dad fixed the outside light above our garage door (not on the porch, but close to the front door). It isn't controlled by a switch, but is directly wired in. He put in a photo cell light, so it comes on when it gets dark. So it comes on when it gets dark and says "come on over TOT'ers!" yet there will be no candy. And I can't turn it off. Thinking of putting a bowl of the yucky candy on the front porch and duct tape over the door bell.
Yay QWP!! I'm so glad the ER trip was a good one.
(((esperanza))) Duct tape - it has an endless number of uses. Including covering the door bell. Whatever works, right?
kathy - 31 documents???? Aaagh! I personally love paper clips, but not the plain metal ones. I prefer the pretty coloured ones because they are more substantial and...well, pretty.
AW: Yesterday's head pain is gone this morning.
W: I'm overscheduled until Monday. I'm actually looking forward to taking the car in on Monday to have the winter tires put on - it will be a chance to sit in one place for awhile and read a book while I'm waiting.
Oy, Esperanza! Just doing a few houses sounds good enough to me. A bowl near the porch sounds fine, and the duct tape. Maybe a sign at the bowl saying "please take one," and a sign by the doorbell saying please don't ring, we have no more candy?
Sue, busy busy busy! You don't apparently have a choice about snow tires, so that is a guilt-free restful appointment.
I do have pretty paper clips. Well, if I have to print and sort all these documents (which I do out of pure love), he can just suck it up. I'll separate into "need to read" and "need to sign" piles.
WE HAVE RAIN! Which is really great because of the drought!!! Daughter just called from The City, though, and said her bus line is shut down because this major street is all closed off for the World Series parade, which I warned her about.
Esperanza -- you can also just screw out the light bulb when you are tired of visitors. Dad's upgrade to automatic "on" is fine for regular nights, but the problem is not insurmountable despite the lack of an "off" switch. ;)
MM is out and about toting with friends. He is dressed as a Japanese cherry tree.
cool!
I guess since I've been complaining about the 31 documents all day, I should actually print them, no?
I enjoy trick-or-treaters, but must admit a soft spot for teenagers who still go out and have a sense of humor. Gave a few of them most of the rest of our stash once the evening was winding down.
Made me happy.
--Neighbor Lady
Yes.
If y'all wanna see a cherry tree in full bloom in October, wander on over to my mystery mommy blog thingy.
TOTing accomplished. Only one misguided soul rang our doorbell. Another Halloween done.
Pixies, I just realized I was hosting this party. Awards will not happen tomorrow. I have pottery class and then am off to A Wedding Event (yes, it needs capitals) in a town 2 hours away. And...I'm preaching on Sunday. So any cramming tomorrow night will need to involve my sermon :) Keep on whining.
I'm ready -- wearing a cape and a glow-in-dark ghost earring, and it actually is dark here now, and we are stocked with the goodies. There is a small ikebana pumpkin arrangement on the porch; there is a little orange light out front. It could not be quieter on my street.
Dear Parents of My Kindergartners:
Your child is not always the angel you think he/she is. Often, a child's behavior at home and at school are different. Of course, some of your kids act like asshats both at school AND at home. By letting your child rule your household at five and six years old, you are doing them no favors. Instead, you are teaching them that they can get their way if they just scream loud enough (or long enough) and that insufferable behavior is acceptable. Instead of coming into the school or classroom like a rampaging wildebeest because your child has had a negative behavior chart for the past week in a row, come sit in on the class. Or, better yet, come sneak in and observe your child so they don't know you are there. You'd be surprised at what you see.
Just today, (and this is only ONE day, but is typical of my class lately), we have had: EIGHT meltdowns by various children because: we don't want to do the assignment; so-and-so is looking at me; I was peeking at the girls going to the bathroom, so I got in trouble; etc. We have had four incidents (of the same child) hitting or kicking someone else because we got into trouble, so we are taking it out on someone else; too many kids to count randomly crawling on the floor, in and under tables, chasing each other; one child who spits on others and their belongings; and one expletive-laden rant from a parent because she had to show a picture ID to pick up her son.
Just today, I was kicked, hit, called a "fatass" and mean, had to drag a child because he absolutely REFUSED to walk down the hall, was spit on, and had a milk carton thrown at me. And this was just TODAY.
Treating your children as if they never do wrong is setting them up for further trouble later in school and in life. By fighting EVERY piddly little battle for them, you are teaching them to focus on the nitpicky bullshit and then gloss over the important stuff. Not to mention that they will expect you to do all of the work and never learn to stand on their own, or how to fight their own battles.
And, by allowing them to act like wild hellions in kindergarten, you are creating a monster that will be suspended before they ever get out of grade school, probably multiple times. And, you will have no one to blame but yourself when you allow it to happen. Don't come crying to me, because I won't feel sorry for you. That monster is of your own making.
Sincerely,
A Kindergarten War Survivor
Yikes, KLee!! That sounds beyond awful. Sending so many hugs
Oh, KLee. Thank you for what you do, and it's so frustrating when there isn't the proper home support, and the kids haven't learned any kind of boundaries.
AW: we survived Halloween, and it was fun! Li'l E was mobile enough to go out a little (we carried between houses, she could walk up the door a bit).
((((KLee))) Sorry your year is so difficult. And...well said.
--NL
OH, KLee. Sweet tells me about kids who are on "yellow" every single day, except when they're on "red." Sorry you're the one having to deal with them and their parents. Ugh.
((((KLee))) Sending love and hugs.
Oh, KLee. xoxo
KLee, you might enjoy Big Little Lies, by Liane Moriarty. It features kindergarten parents, some *very* misguided. (Good read, anyway!)
Each year is a challenge of its own, but honestly, it has NEVER been this bad. Usually, it's one or two kids who, for whatever reason or another, are more difficult to deal with....but this year is something all together different. We have about seven challenging students, all of them boys. As a whole, they are very immature and whiny. They cry at the drop of a hat, often over nothing at all. We have:
- one who is a suspected autistic (older sister is, and mother is in process of trying to get an actual diagnosis now) and who while not usually a *behavior* problem, per se, often refuses to do any work, and will sit in a chair for hours at at time, shredding paper or coloring on the table or his shoes.
- one who is repeating kindergarten this year, who is a complete uproar in the classroom, constantly hitting or pushing others. He yells out all day, never raising his hand, frequently screaming at both teachers nd students. He steals from others and is as sneaky and mean as they come.
- one who constantly whines and cries and refuses to do work, just shutting down completely. Often takes off his shoes and throws them at others.
- one who is so immature that he will constantly do things for attention, and then when he is stooped, will hurt others in retaliation. I found out just the other day that this one attended a private program this past summer at a local private school, but was kicked out due to his bad behavior. If he does not get his way, he will scream, kick, throw things, call others names or hit, push, or kick them. Very spoiled, very mean.
- one who is very slow, developmentally. Notes from the parent indicate that he only began talking within the last year. Does not seem to have all the capacity needed to function in a typical classroom... Often does no work, content to make noises, flap arms, and play with pencils/crayons for hours without actually completing anything. Not really a behavior problem, but easily led astray by others, running around, crawling on the floor, destroying supplies, etc.
- one who can be a behavior problem, but more often just wants to do his own thing. Does not want to do assignments other students are doing,wants to read a book or play on the computer all day long. Would be better suited to a Montessori environment, but behavior might be an impediment to that. Can get riled up and kick, hit, push, etc when angry.
- one whose family is Jehovah's Witness, and they don't want him learning anything about holidays or celebrations. One of our biggest units is about America, and symbols of America, and they are squawking about not wanting him to learn this information. While not really a behavior issue, we constantly have to plan additional lessons or alternate plans for him, and this is exhausting in of itself. This child is also very suggestible, and is beginning to pick up bad habits from other boys - beginning to color on the tables and tear up work of other students, starting to cut up everything he sees with his scissors.
So, as you see -- each of these is challenging in its own way, and usually we only have one or two of these in a class each year. This year, we have them all. I was telling a fellow whiner the other day that I am feeling down lately, and some of it is due to job dissatisfaction. I come home exhausted, but physically and mentally. I just want to enjoy my job again, and I don't see that happening any time soon.
Holy cow, KLee. What are the odds of these kids all being in the same classroom? Seems fishy. Hugs.
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