His First Visit To His New School

Kyle starts school in just a few days!  He will be starting 6th grade at a brand new school, in a new school district.  

New school next year

After two years of attending his current school, Kyle will be attending a new school next year.  Since we moved, it put us in a different zone. 

I wanted to get him enrolled into the new school before school ends because it would give me one less thing to worry about.  I tried calling the elementary school closest to us and after being transferred to the Pre-K EC teacher and then having to call back, I asked if we should just come in.  We stopped by and I was able to speak to the head EC teacher and she was able to determine that he would not attend their school.  She gave me the number to her supervisor at the main office/district office. 

I called the number from the parking lot since Shannon has a cell phone and we were already out and about for this purpose.  Anyway, she took down Kyle's name and address and looked up what school he will attend.  She said she will email the principal to let him know.  They will set up transportation too.  She gave me his teacher's name and said I could call her about a week after school ends to meet with her if needed.

I feel better that he will be ready to attend his new school.  We even drove by the school.  It is an elementary and middle school on one campus.

I was also informed that they use the same program as his current school. 

Roughly 36 hours

For about 36 hours, I was feeling very dizzy and nauseous.  Yesterday, I pretty much threw up everything in my stomach (even water), including stomach acid. 

Every time I stood up, or moved just the slightest, I would feel dizzy and almost feel like blacking out.  I also felt light-headed.  Every movement hurt.  I felt like I had very little balance because when I stood up to walk, I would waver a bit.  It was like trying to walk on a trampoline when someone was jumping on it or walking on an unsteady boat. 

Thankfully, during this time, Shannon was off of work.  The whole time I wasn't feeling well, I was hoping I would feel better before Friday, when he would have to return to work.  It is Thursday morning and I am feeling better.  Last night, Shannon brought home some Italian frozen ice dessert cups.  I had two of them last night. 

While I wasn't feeling well, Shannon really stepped up and helped get Kyle ready for school yesterday and took him to the bus stop.  He even met him at the bus stop after school. 

I am still not sure why I was feeling sick and dizzy. 

Shannon got called in to work tonight.  He came in to the bedroom around 12:40am saying they want him to come in to work.  I told him I was feeling better.  He is working until 7am.  I am feeling well enough to get Kyle off to school today.  I've been up since 12:40am or so.  Catching up on emails, blogging and making a list of what I need to do today. 

Also, Shannon received some good news at work.  He said that any time he is working (even if he's called in) he will be getting his normal rate of pay!  Next week, they are wanting him to work at least 40 hours, maybe more! 

Spring Break is over!

Kyle returns to school tomorrow!! I am really looking forward to him going back. It will give me time to work on my school assignments. I like to stay a few days to a week ahead. This week, I have a paper to work on and an assignment to finish up. I still need to re-read the chapters and then take a quiz!

I've been keeping up with my workouts as well. I did have to take a few extra rest days here and there due to muscle soreness but still trying to stay motivated.

Recent bus issues

Kyle rides the bus to and from school.  When we signed up for him to be a bus rider, we were told that he would have to ride the "regular" bus with all of the other kids.  We were given a harness for him to wear in the morning, that would "hold" him down on the bus seat.  The afternoon bus is a different bus, but they added a special booster seat with seat belts. 

Last week, there was a substitute bus driver and the bus she was driving did not have the hooks to strap his harness to, so I couldn't let him ride the bus.  The bus driver didn't even have it noted that there would be a child with special needs on her route either.  We ended up driving him to school that morning and let his teacher know and one of the assistant teacher's already knew what happened since she talked to the bus driver.  I asked his teacher if I should let the assistant principal know what happened and she agreed that I should.  That morning, I emailed the Assistant Principal (he's in charge of the buses) letting him know what happened.  He emailed me the next day (apologizing for the delay) and let me know that he had no idea this happened. 

Just this afternoon, our next door neighbor unbuckled Kyle from his seat which was odd since I usually do it.  When she got off the bus, she told me what happened.  She said just as they were pulling out of the school, Kyle unbuckled his seat belts (yes plural, he has one that goes around his chest and one that goes in his lap).  He then got up from his seat and stood up to turn around to look at her and give her a big smile!  The bus driver then had pull over and they both made sure he was buckled up again and I guess she had to sit next to him to make sure he stayed buckled up. 

Unfortunately, I don't think all of these issues are being brought to the Assistant Principal's attention.  I wish that the bus drivers would say something.  The school won't provide a bus for his special needs, nor have they offered to have someone ride with him.  For now, his "care and safety" is in the hands of a 9 year old and the bus driver.  Does that sound safe enough to you?  

Lately, Kyle's been misbehaving and testing the limits.  We think he's going through the terrible 2's or a little version of it.  He's purposely doing things we told him not to do.  If/when we try to discipline him or tell him no, he will laugh at us.  I don't think he quite understands, but he does understand when we yell, point our finger at him and get a serious look on our face. 

Possible babysitting on Monday

Ever since Kyle started riding the bus this year, I have befriended another parent of a child who rides the same bus.  All the kids that wait at our bus stop happen to live in the same apartment community as us.  The father that I have befriended happens to live across the street.  He and his wife are both Chinese, however, they are 5-7 years older than we are.  They have two very adorable kids, they are so precious!  I love talking to them because they are able to respond verbally when I ask them questions.  The little boy is a few months older than Kyle, so he is 6 and also in Kindergarten (he's in a different classroom than Kyle) and the little girl is 3 years old and she goes to preschool at a church.  The dad has a Ph.D. in Mathematics and the mom has a Ph.D. in Chemistry.  Wow, right?! 

Anyway, the dad asked me if I would be available to watch his son on Monday afternoon.  He has a job interview and he's not sure he'll be back home in time to meet his son at the bus stop.  I agreed and let Shannon know about it.

Second attempt at riding the bus

When we picked Kyle up from school yesterday afternoon, we were told by his teachers that he could start riding the bus tomorrow [the Assistant Principal also came out to introduce himself].  The teachers also gave us the harness that he will have to wear on the bus going to school.  The school bus he rides home already has a built-in harness! 

So this morning, Kyle rode the school bus to school.  He seemed happy to go to school, just like any other day.  He didn't like the harness at first but after a bit, he seemed to forget about it.  He was just excited to get on the bus! 

While Kyle was at school, I made my soy candle.  I followed the directions and now I'm letting it cure for 24 hours before burning it!  If it burns correctly, I *hope* to get more soy wax and fragrance oils! 

What a mess!

We put Kyle on the school bus this morning because we informed the EC Case Manager his "start date."  She and I have been emailing each other since a week before school started.  I emailed her a few days before school started that he would be a bus rider and she said she filled out the forms for us.  Apparently there was some miscommunication because here is what happened (keep in mind, we had no idea about the miscommunication as we thought everything was already set up)...

We have a neighbor girl (who is about 8 or 9 years old) who also attends the same school as Kyle.  She also rides the bus.  There are at least 10 other kids that have the same bus stop as Kyle.  Anyway, her mother asked if we wanted her daughter to "watch over" Kyle and make sure he gets on the right bus and gets off at the right place, etc.  We agreed! 

We put Kyle on the bus this morning.  The neighbor girl takes Kyle's hand while waiting in line to get on the bus (cute) and she gets on right after him.  Kyle sits down at the first seat and she sits right next to him.  She informs us through the window that there is no seat belt!  Before the bus drove off, I wanted to let the bus driver know of his "EC status" but she closed the door so fast and then drove off!  The neighbor girl's mom reassured me that her daughter would watch him.  She said her daughter is very "motherly" and loves the responsibility. 

As soon as I walked in the door [after getting Kyle on the bus], I told Shannon that there was no seat belt on the bus and the driver shut the door before I could let her know about his special needs.  Shannon immediately starting worrying about Kyle's safety (as was I).  I told him that I would email the "EC Case Manager" and let her know our concerns.  Here's the email I sent her at 7:33am, Shannon helped me with the message we wanted to convey:

Dear _____

I just put Kyle on the bus [number 750] and there were no seat belts.  Also, the bus driver seemed oblivious and I didn't have a chance to let her know of his special needs/EC status.  As soon as the last child boarded the bus, she quickly closed the bus doors and drove off.  We have a neighbor girl who also rides the same bus and she said she would "watch" over him, but as parents we can't rely on that.  While we do trust the neighbor girl, it shouldn't be up to a 8-9 year old to watch a special needs child.

  This bus situation really worries us because he does not talk and he will try to stand up or even get up in the bus and walk around without a seat belt on. 

  If the school is unable to accommodate his special needs (seat belt), we will take him to school ourselves.  However, there may be days where we are unable to take him and he won't be attending school those days. 

Shannon then wanted me to call the school to make sure he made it to his classroom, so I ended up calling a little after 8am and asked to be transferred to his classroom.  I talked to one of the assistant teachers and asked her if Kyle made it to the classroom and she said yes.  Shannon and I were so relieved!  We also decided (beforehand) that we would pick him up, so I told the teacher that we would be picking him up! 

When we went to pick him up, I asked the teacher how this morning went.  She said that he was actually standing in the other Kindergarten line!  The other assistant teacher (for his class) saw him and gathered him up to take him to class.  I was just so relieved he made it to his class.  The teacher also told me that "Mr. Harley" was supposed to call us and he didn't.  I guess he one of the "bus coordinators" for the school.  She asked if we could drive him to school on Monday and Tuesday and hopefully by then the bus would be equipped for Kyle's needs.  I even told Shannon what the teacher told me. 

Here's where it gets crazy...

This afternoon, the neighbor girl stopped by to make sure we had Kyle.  Shannon told her that we picked him up.  While they were outside talking, they find out that another girl that rides the bus was put on the wrong bus and had to be taken home by Mr. Hartley!  But it was her mom's mistake as she forgot to let the school know that she moved! 

The neighbor girl also told Shannon what REALLY happened this morning and how Kyle ended up in the Kindergarten line.  The bus stops at the school and the bus driver announces, "all Kindergartners need to get off the bus first."  The neighbor girl (not knowing what to do) tells Kyle to go ahead and get off the bus.  He gets off and he just starts walking and walking.  The teachers are oblivious because they are too busy talking to each other to watch the children.  The neighbor girl was watching this all go down through the window.  When it was her turn to get off the bus, she quickly goes to get him (because he's still walking) and puts him in the Kindergarten line.  She waited in the Kindergarten line until his assistant teacher came to get him!  I don't even want to know what would have happened if we didn't have the neighbor girl watching him! 

Almost Back to School Time!

It's almost "back to school" time for Kyle!  We have open house on Tuesday night.  I want to go so he can "meet" the teacher and "see" his classroom.  I don't want to send him to school on the first day and have him spend the day with strangers!  I think it will help a bit if he can see his teacher and the classroom before the first day. 

I also plan on applying for the free lunch program at the school for Kyle since I'm pretty sure we qualify!  I still don't have all of his "back to school" supplies but I am not going to stress over that. 

His first day of school is Wednesday.  He's going to be a bus rider, so I need to double check with the teacher.  Otherwise, we have a neighbor who will be taking the same bus to school that Kyle will be riding.  The one thing I don't like about this year and this school district is that they don't have a bus specifically for special needs children.  Kyle must ride the big bus with every bus rider (K thru 5th grade)!   And there won't be a second adult on the bus to help strap him in, so I guess I will be doing that.

We're still waiting to hear whether or not we are approved for food stamps!  I hope we get the answer soon! 

Loving

Kyle came home from preschool with the following message from his teacher:

Each day he's at school, the teacher writes a short message about how his day went. This one is by far the cutest!!!! 

Kyle just loves school and loves riding the bus!   He's become more verbal these last few days.  He's making more noises and trying to imitate a few words that we ask him to say.  He'll say the words that he already knows and loves making sound effects. 

Okay, so I'm raising a boy!

Ever since Kyle started school this year, he's been coming home with sand, dirt, and other debris in his shoes and stuck on his socks.  His socks are usually brown!  It's funny!  It made me realize I am definitely raising a BOY!  I think I need to start using bleach in our white laundry loads since his socks are no longer white! 

Kyle is loving school.  He doesn't whine while walking to the bus stop or even while waiting for the bus.  When we can see the bus coming towards us, I point it out to him and he stands there staring so intently at it.  I guess he's too excited to smile!  I keep my hand on him until the bus comes to a complete stop, I don't want to risk him running towards the bus or in front of it, especially after hearing about this local story.

New Vitamins, Ahoy!

I ended up ordering a different vitamin for myself. This time I bought a "vegetarian food-based" vitamin. The other vitamins that I bought a month ago were making me feel sick to my stomach soon after taking them and throughout the day and evening. Just to be sure, I even skipped my vitamin yesterday to see if I still felt sick and sure enough, I felt fine!

This past weekend, I gave in and bought a different vitamin. I was trying to wait until my current vitamins were all gone, but the pain was unpredictable, sporadic, and sometimes unbearable. I also started feeling dizzy at times.

I found a brand that I liked but after reading further, I realized that it wasn't vegetarian. I finally found the vitamin at a great price at vitacost. I plan on starting my new vitamins tomorrow!



We had quiet weekend. Saturday was bright and sunny, it got up around 76 degrees! Sunday was the opposite, it was overcast, windy, and gloomy. It even rained!

Kyle went to school on Monday! We went out to the bus stop and waited...and waited! It never came. The bus comes between 6:56 AM and 7:09 AM (the latest). Well, we waited there until 7:15 AM-- just to be sure. As we were walking back home, Kyle started crying because he was expecting to get on the bus and go to school! We ended up having to drive Kyle to preschool! Apparently one of the kids got sick on the bus (threw up), so they had to take him back home. I guess the bus did come by, but we had gone home already.

Kyle has school tomorrow and Shannon and I are planning on going grocery shopping while he's in school. Kyle has his hearing test on Thursday! I am not sure what to expect or how they plan on "testing" him on his hearing. I guess they will go by his reaction to sound?

School and Taxes

Shannon started college again earlier this month! He's already back in the groove of the school schedule. He is tentatively scheduled to graduate in July 2011. He's also looking at taking the LSAT test, which he needs to go on to Law School. I saw on the LSAT website that he can apply for a "fee waiver" in order to take the test, so we would have to go that route.

Kyle went to school for the first time in a week! As soon as he saw his school bus, I saw a little smile form on his face! He was so excited to get on that bus! The weather got up to 70 degrees today. Kyle doesn't have any short sleeved school shirts. It's definitely time to get him some Spring/Summer friendly clothes. The teacher sent him home with a copy of the incident report from last Friday. It explained how Kyle got hurt. It said that, "Kyle was on a tricycle, and another child came up behind him and PUSHED him on the bike. The bike went forward and Kyle fell face first onto the gym floor." The report also came with a note from the teacher saying she was glad to have him back at school!

Kyle was also sent home with a letter from the school. It explained that his school has teamed up with a local dentist to offer an "initial dental exam" free of charge to any students who sign up. The exam includes x-rays, cleaning, and fluoride. They also give us an option to have Sealants added to his teeth. I was all for this, considering Kyle has never been to a dentist and it is free of charge. But, Shannon and I were concerned that Kyle wouldn't sit still and he wouldn't understand what was happening. I tried calling the office to ask them how they would handle a situation like that and if they would put Kyle to sleep while they worked on him. I was unable to get a human on the phone so I looked up their website. Their website stated that they serve adults and children 0-13 and also offer "Sedation Dentistry." I filled out the permission slip to have Kyle go to the dentist but I attached a note asking for him to have the sedation dentistry!

I received my W-2 in the mail today! Our taxes are done and e-filed! We're getting a nice chunk back from Uncle Sam!

The weather is beautiful today. Shannon took Kyle outside to play this evening. It's supposed to reach 76 degrees tomorrow!

Did I interrupt your nap?

I had to call our local Social Services Department and the "operator" transferred me over to someone without telling me why. I thought it was rude. She could have explained to me that she was not the one to help me but would connect me to someone who could. Either way, I thought that was rude of her. The next person she connected me sounded rushed and rude (just like the operator). I didn't like that both ladies never said their names! Anyway, that call is done and over with!

Then I had to call Kyle's pediatrician's office to make a "4 year old checkup" appointment. The lady said that he's not due for one until June 25th. Considering my son turned 4 in January, I asked why. She said that insurance only covers one visit a year. So then I told her about my concerns we have with Kyle. We want to see if we can get referrals for a hearing test, possibly see a psychologist, etc. She was more than happy to schedule an appointment for my concerns and thankfully medicaid covers that! We have an appointment for next week -- that was quick!

Kyle won't have summer school and we're hoping we can get him further help and see if there are more programs out there for him. While he LOVES going to school and we love it too, the school doesn't let us know what's going on or how we can work with him. He sees a speech therapist once a week and that person doesn't even inform us of what they are working on or how we can help him. Plus the speech therapist is there to work with all the kids in his class, not just him. In other words, we have no idea what is going on at the school. I am not complaining about his schooling, he loves it and he loves riding the bus, so that tells us something! If Kyle doesn't like something or he feels uncomfortable, he won't go near it or he'll start whining. Instead, when he sees the school bus, he will literally run towards it!

Another Round

My in-laws informed us today (I wish they had given us more notice) that they are doing another round of using the septic tank cleaner in their septic tank! Which means we have to conserve on the water for 24 hours. Since the last time they used the cleaner, we were limited to doing one load of laundry per day. I have only done two loads in the last week and a half!

I am taking the weekend off from working out. I did 30 minutes of pilates yesterday and my body is paying for it today. I am sore all over!

When it was time to pick Kyle up from the bus stop on Friday, the bus was already there waiting for us. Apparently they arrived early and they tried calling us. They said every time they tried calling us, they would get the fax machine noise. My MIL and her friend were trying to send a fax during that time! It sounded like the bus had been there for at least 10 minutes! I felt so bad. I am going to give the bus driver our cell phone number. I don't have the voicemail set up on it, but they can always text us too (since many people have cell phones these days).

We went to Walmart yesterday to pick up a few things. I talked to one of my former co-workers and he said that I could come back to work there (he already asked for me). It made me wonder if I really want to go back to work there. I've been thinking about taking the certified nursing assisting course. I guess North Carolina doesn't have a requirement of how long the course has to be, because this course is only one day! Once I take the course, I can take the State tests to get certified. There are actually several places that offer the "one day/fast track CNA course." Typically they are taught by one or two Registered Nurses, it sounds like they do this on the side for additional income. I have also looked on the local hospital website and they are currently hiring for CNAs.

Lately, we've been letting Kyle play on the computer. He plays around on the Nick Jr. website. They have games, art, videos, and radio of all their cartoon shows. As he plays, he's learning eye-hand coordination, he gets to hear music and cartoon characters talk to him. He loves it!

Our forecast is calling for a "winter mix" on Tuesday, which usually means snow and/or rain! Hopefully it won't be so bad to where Kyle will miss school on Wednesday!

Nice Monday

Today was a nice day. Kyle had school, so it was a nice quiet break for us!

I did a Turbo Jam workout this morning and a pilates workout this afternoon! I was feeling energetic and decided to take advantage! I am feeling a little more energetic since I started taking my vitamins!



Kyle looked like he just woke up from a nap when he got off the bus! So cute! When we got home, I gave him a little snack, which he gobbled up! He still looked a little tired. We came upstairs and I pulled out some coloring books and he colored for a bit. Meanwhile, I took that time to skim through my new pilates DVDs! While I was watching them, Kyle came up and ended up falling asleeping next to me!

Lazy Weekend

This has been a lazy weekend for us! Besides going grocery shopping yesterday, we haven't done much! It's been a nice relaxing weekend! I did write two letters today, so hopefully I will have two new pen pals! One of them is in San Francisco, CA which is exciting to me, as I am from California!

Earlier this month, I ordered a workout DVD on amazon and have yet to receive it. Per the vendor/seller, it was shipped on February 3rd. According to their email, they said it should arrive within 4 to 14 days. Well, it's been 18 days! I am tired of waiting so I emailed the vendor asking for a refund. It was shipped via USPS and I know things don't take that long to arrive.

I am anxious to receive my pilates workout DVDs! Yesterday I did a few different pilates workouts from videos I found on youtube! I forgot how much I enjoy pilates.

Kyle still enjoys school! He loves riding the school bus too! He's always so happy when he gets off the bus, I can see it in the way he acts while we are walking home (from the bus stop). The school already has snow make-up days set, which is great! I didn't like that Kyle had to miss a whole week of school.

Snow Make up Day

Kyle has school tomorrow, it's a "snow make up day." A few weeks ago, Kyle missed a whole week of school, due to the weather/snow! Tomorrow was originally supposed to be a holiday, but it's a make up day for all students. Either way, Kyle loves school!

Since Kyle takes the bus, I have to set the alarm a little earlier just so I can get up early enough to get ready, get Kyle up and dressed and to the bus stop on time. I don't want to be one of those moms who takes her son to the bus stop in her pajamas! LOL I like to get dressed and semi-presentable! I have to slap on some "war paint" and warm clothes! I don't put on all of my war paint, just my foundation, bronzer, and mineral veil!

First Day on the Bus!

Today was Kyle's first day riding the school bus to school! I was nervous that he would get scared and/or freak out! He woke up pretty quickly as usual, especially since I told him it's a school day! He just loves going to school. I got him dressed and ready to go. I walked him to the bus stop, which is just down the street. He was just fine with the walk because he knew he had his school clothes, jacket, and backpack on. I asked kept singing, "we're going to school, we're going to school..." I also kept reminding him that "we're going to see Ms. Pam (his teacher)." When the bus pulled up, he got scared and tried to walk away. To him, the bus must be HUGE and it's a loud vehicle! I think the noise scared him, if anything. I lifted him up on the first step (since it's about 2 feet off the ground) and helped him up to the second step and into the helper's reach.

This afternoon, Kyle's teacher called to let us know what time to pick him up from the bus stop. She said the bus driver said that he did really well on the bus. He didn't cry either! He was just fine! I am so glad he adjusted so well to riding the bus, as it is a brand new experience for him!

When it was time to meet him at the bus stop, my MIL walked down the street with me. She brought her digital camera and took a few pics of Kyle getting off the bus. Apparently, Kyle fell asleep on the way home on the bus! These were taken just after he woke up to get off the bus!




Kyle came home with Valentine's Day goodies! He made a few Valentine's at school! They are really cute! Both are in a heart-shaped! One of them is decorated with buttons and glitter. The other has his handprint in the middle, decorated with glitter! Both are adorable! He also has Valentine's candy, which I will be raiding (he's too young to have that much candy). I feel bad I didn't get Valentine's cards for Kyle's classmates. I forgot what it's like being in elementary school, I remember exchanging Valentine's cards with my entire class!