After sending N off to school this morning, I got dressed and went to run a couple of errands before heading to B's school to help with Super Friends Day. I needed to get my tire pressure checked, so I hit Discount Tire before heading to Target to "make" 2 dozen cookies.
As I walked in, my phone started ringing, with a "+" then four digits, a sure sign that I'm getting a call from one of the schools. I answered and a woman introduced herself, then said B was fine. When someone from the school calls, especially B's school, my breath always catches in my chest because he's so asthmatic and allergic to everything. I gave an audible sigh of relief, and then she said something that rocked me to my core.
"I'm calling to let you know that one of B's classmates passed away last night from an illness. We have not told the students, but we will have counselors and staff onsite to help in whatever way possible. More information will be sent out as soon as we know more."
What? I know my voice broke as I asked for any other details, but she couldn't give me any. I know all of these kids. Half of them were in B's class last year, so we know each other really well. And, since I'm room mom, I knew for a fact that, aside from allergies, nobody in the class had a terminal illness of any kind.
I abandoned the cookies and took off for the school. When I got into the building, I talked to my British pal at the front desk and asked if I could go to the classroom. She initially said I couldn't, but then told me how upset B's teacher was and said I should go check on her. I went into the classroom, and immediately started looking to see who wasn't there. I hugged B's teacher and told her I was there to do anything I could to help. We talked and she told me what she knew...that this student was fine on Wednesday, something I knew, because the student's father emailed me and said his child would bring cookies for our Super Friends Day, and then Thursday, the student wasn't feeling well...by Thursday night, they were gone.
My eye kept falling on one particular desk, which was odd because when the woman from the school called me, one of my first thoughts was of that student. I asked B's teacher with a nod of my head, and she nodded. And that's when I teared up...because this student? This student had been in class with B last year, too, a kind, caring, sweet, and smart little learner. When I gave the class the task of making a page for a book for their teacher last year, this student was one of four who actually took time to think of something unique to write about her. "My favorite thing about Mrs. Wilkinson is she teaches us harder and harder and harder stuff to make us smart."
And now? They're gone. B's teacher is brand new this year. She graduated from college this last spring, and I can't even begin to imagine how she is feeling. She's a sweet young woman...and so strong. We talked about things we could do to honor the student and their family, and I checked on her (and her class) throughout the day. I threw my homework to the side and stayed. All. Day.
Around 1:30, I decided I was going to head out, so I stuck my head in to make sure she didn't need anything. B was sitting at his desk all by himself, and he looked awful. He'd woken up with terrible allergies at his dad's this morning, and he looked like he'd been in a fight. I told his teacher I was just going to take him home instead, and we left. On the way out, I called B's stepmom to let her know we needed to meet/talk.
She met us at Chick Fil-A, and B played on the playground while I filled her in. When he came out, we talked about the social at school that was meant to take place tonight, and I told him it had been postponed again (last week it was postponed due to rain). He asked why, and I said, "You know...God has a plan for everything, right? He knows when we're going to be born and when we're going to die before we even exist...and the reason they postponed the social is because one of your friends got really really sick."
He looked at me and asked if it was the student by name, and I said yes. He looked at me, terrified and said, "Did they die?" and I nodded my head and said, "Yes." And that's when my baby boy dissolved in my lap, tears running down his face and sobs wracking his little body. His stepmom sat, seemingly unmoved, while I teared up and cuddled my precious boy. He had a million questions about what he could do to help. Could he make something for his friend's parents? Do I know where they live? Can we do it when they have a little time to be sad? Why did it have to be his friend? Should he tell the other kids in his class?
We sat there, the three of us, having a conversation about how it was okay to be sad, and not okay to tell other kids because that's what parents are for, and that we would absolutely do something for the family when it was appropriate. This friend of B's has a younger sibling in Kindergarten, too, so we talked about how hard it would be for them, too.
And I just thought about how horrible this week has been and how I hope to God that it ends before anything else happens...because I honestly don't think I can take it.
Aubs
Saturday, September 28, 2013
Friday, September 27, 2013
I guess being busy is better than not being busy
My mind has been reeling over the last few days, and I'm so glad I've been so busy. It's given me less time to think. That's probably for the best.
Today was gymnastics day for B, so his stepmom volunteered to pick him up after school, help him with his homework, take him to gymnastics, then bring him home. So helpful. N still wasn't finished with his art project, so the plan was to take him BACK to school at 4:45 so he could work on it for a little while. Meanwhile, I had an event at work for an hour, so I went to do that while he worked.
Long story, short? He's still not finished. The deadline was extended to Monday, but he still has one more part to complete, and I'm not sure when that will happen.
About half an hour before B was supposed to come home, his dad called to see if he could just sleep over instead. B's gymnastics class is late; he finishes at 8:30, which is his absolute latest bedtime during the week. I agreed, because when the boy doesn't get sleep, it's a nightmare for everyone involved.
Since B wasn't coming home, N decided this would be a fantastic time to have a breakdown. He's notorious for leaving clothing at one house and needing it at the other. At 8:15, he decided to call his dad to tell him he needed basketball shorts from his house, and that it was an emergency. That mostly just caused a huge fight between the three of us on speakerphone, and I told N he'd just have to wear something else and be more responsible. We went to his dad's on Tuesday to get baseball stuff for practice. Why didn't he get it then? There have been four other days this week where he could've asked to get it...why wait until Thursday night?
He's my child.
I have so much to do tomorrow...I'm volunteering at Super Friends Day at B's school (Grandparents Day to non-superheroes) and I have three homework assignments that need to be posted by 11:00 pm. Should be a great time...Oh, and I have to make two dozen cookies.
Crap.
Aubs
Today was gymnastics day for B, so his stepmom volunteered to pick him up after school, help him with his homework, take him to gymnastics, then bring him home. So helpful. N still wasn't finished with his art project, so the plan was to take him BACK to school at 4:45 so he could work on it for a little while. Meanwhile, I had an event at work for an hour, so I went to do that while he worked.
Long story, short? He's still not finished. The deadline was extended to Monday, but he still has one more part to complete, and I'm not sure when that will happen.
About half an hour before B was supposed to come home, his dad called to see if he could just sleep over instead. B's gymnastics class is late; he finishes at 8:30, which is his absolute latest bedtime during the week. I agreed, because when the boy doesn't get sleep, it's a nightmare for everyone involved.
Since B wasn't coming home, N decided this would be a fantastic time to have a breakdown. He's notorious for leaving clothing at one house and needing it at the other. At 8:15, he decided to call his dad to tell him he needed basketball shorts from his house, and that it was an emergency. That mostly just caused a huge fight between the three of us on speakerphone, and I told N he'd just have to wear something else and be more responsible. We went to his dad's on Tuesday to get baseball stuff for practice. Why didn't he get it then? There have been four other days this week where he could've asked to get it...why wait until Thursday night?
He's my child.
I have so much to do tomorrow...I'm volunteering at Super Friends Day at B's school (Grandparents Day to non-superheroes) and I have three homework assignments that need to be posted by 11:00 pm. Should be a great time...Oh, and I have to make two dozen cookies.
Crap.
Aubs
Thursday, September 26, 2013
What? Wednesday?
Since N is still not finished with his art project (due Friday), I told him he was going to have to stay after school to get it finished. He agreed, and so B and I had some extra time together this afternoon. While he worked on his math and reading homework, I decided to get a jumpstart on dinner, so that by the time we went to pick N up, I'd just have to boil noodles for spaghetti.
Except, then I realized I didn't have any spaghetti noodles, so I improvised and used rotini instead. When I put dinner on the table, N was pumped, but B was determined not to like it. Twenty minutes (and three clean plates) later, everyone was stuffed, and in pretty high spirits.
That's about when N told me the girl who died of leukemia was in his art class. Apparently, it was her first year in public school, so she didn't really know a lot of people. She was in a wheelchair and was bald from the chemo, and N said he didn't really know a lot about her, just that she was the one who had died. That made me so sad, not only because I have a huge soft spot for pediatric cancer patients, but because nobody at that school got to know her, to have the opportunity to be friends with her.
I let the boys have some time on the xbox while I thought about how her parents must be hurting, and let me just say...this has been a rough week already. Then N told me he'd heard a boy had been hit by a car outside of another elementary school in our town. Seriously? I don't know if the boy is okay, but I hope so.
My heart is heavy and hurting tonight. I squeezed my boys super tight before bed tonight and my eyes filled up with tears. I'm glad N wasn't close to this girl who passed away, but I'm sad he didn't know her better.
Aubs
Except, then I realized I didn't have any spaghetti noodles, so I improvised and used rotini instead. When I put dinner on the table, N was pumped, but B was determined not to like it. Twenty minutes (and three clean plates) later, everyone was stuffed, and in pretty high spirits.
That's about when N told me the girl who died of leukemia was in his art class. Apparently, it was her first year in public school, so she didn't really know a lot of people. She was in a wheelchair and was bald from the chemo, and N said he didn't really know a lot about her, just that she was the one who had died. That made me so sad, not only because I have a huge soft spot for pediatric cancer patients, but because nobody at that school got to know her, to have the opportunity to be friends with her.
I let the boys have some time on the xbox while I thought about how her parents must be hurting, and let me just say...this has been a rough week already. Then N told me he'd heard a boy had been hit by a car outside of another elementary school in our town. Seriously? I don't know if the boy is okay, but I hope so.
My heart is heavy and hurting tonight. I squeezed my boys super tight before bed tonight and my eyes filled up with tears. I'm glad N wasn't close to this girl who passed away, but I'm sad he didn't know her better.
Aubs
Tuesday, September 24, 2013
The joys of baseball practice
B's dad swung by this morning to take B to school for Donuts with Dad (aka sugar up your kids, blow some money at the book fair, and then send them to class to be "productive" students), and agreed to drop N at school, too so he could work on an art project.
What does that mean? I got to shower before work without rushing and it was glorious. I asked him to do me this favor, and I didn't even cringe when I did. I think I might be growing up a little bit...
After work, I got home and checked my email. There was an email from N's school entitled "Sad News" and it broke my heart. The principal wrote to notify parents that a 6th grade girl had lost her battle with Leukemia the night before. This was hard news, but in addition to that another 6th grader had lost a parent over the weekend. When N got home, I asked him if he knew about the girl, and he said he wasn't sure. We both immediately thought of a little girl in his class last year who had been diagnosed with cancer, but neither of us could remember what type.
We loaded up and headed to the batting cages for practice.. B came along and asked me every three minutes if it was time to go. I sat, dying in the extreme temperatures, watching the boys run drill after drill after drill, hoping they'd get to play this weekend, even with rain in the forecast again.
We took another boy home and then headed home for dinner. Night number two was pretty painless, too. I'm starting to think this is the twilight zone...
Aubs
What does that mean? I got to shower before work without rushing and it was glorious. I asked him to do me this favor, and I didn't even cringe when I did. I think I might be growing up a little bit...
After work, I got home and checked my email. There was an email from N's school entitled "Sad News" and it broke my heart. The principal wrote to notify parents that a 6th grade girl had lost her battle with Leukemia the night before. This was hard news, but in addition to that another 6th grader had lost a parent over the weekend. When N got home, I asked him if he knew about the girl, and he said he wasn't sure. We both immediately thought of a little girl in his class last year who had been diagnosed with cancer, but neither of us could remember what type.
We loaded up and headed to the batting cages for practice.. B came along and asked me every three minutes if it was time to go. I sat, dying in the extreme temperatures, watching the boys run drill after drill after drill, hoping they'd get to play this weekend, even with rain in the forecast again.
We took another boy home and then headed home for dinner. Night number two was pretty painless, too. I'm starting to think this is the twilight zone...
Aubs
Monday, September 23, 2013
Seriously?
Why do Mondays keep showing up on my calendar? I mean...I guess it's important to get through them to get to Tuesdays and so on, but I could really live without Mondays.
B came home today after school, and our first day together is always a learning process. The kid eats no less than 5 snacks when he gets off the bus, and that's before N gets home half an hour later. If he's putting away this much food at the ripe old age of 7, I'm terrified of what their teen years hold for me.
We wrestled our way through homework and when N got home, we went to Target to get some groceries for lunches. When we're out of kid-approved lunch items, I just wait to go to the store when they're with me. I hate doing that because it takes forever and is met with a ton of resistance, but it's necessary.
The trip was relatively short, dinner was a pretty easy affair, and the night was relatively peaceful.
It makes me worry about what's to come for the rest of the week...
Aubs
B came home today after school, and our first day together is always a learning process. The kid eats no less than 5 snacks when he gets off the bus, and that's before N gets home half an hour later. If he's putting away this much food at the ripe old age of 7, I'm terrified of what their teen years hold for me.
We wrestled our way through homework and when N got home, we went to Target to get some groceries for lunches. When we're out of kid-approved lunch items, I just wait to go to the store when they're with me. I hate doing that because it takes forever and is met with a ton of resistance, but it's necessary.
The trip was relatively short, dinner was a pretty easy affair, and the night was relatively peaceful.
It makes me worry about what's to come for the rest of the week...
Aubs
What...is...fall?
Dear Fall-like temperatures,
It's high time you made your presence known. These early morning teasers and late evening stunts you keep pulling? Not. Cool. Get it? Got it? Good.
Sincerely,
Me
I woke up sometime around 3:00 this morning, wondering why it was so hot in my room. Since my room faces south, it stays consistently 5-10 degrees hotter than the rest of the house...great in the dead of "winter," but not so much for the other 11.5 months of the year. I kicked my way out from under my cocoon of pillows and sheets and forced myself back to sleep. I woke up again around 9:00 and got started on my homework. Just as I was getting ready to post my assignment, the power flickered...not enough to lose power, but something was up. That was when I looked at the microwave and noticed it was "0" o'clock...and THEN the power went off for real.
I sat there, working on my assignments without posting them, saving them as a document until my laptop battery started running out of juice. Time? 11:00. I called my mom to tell her I was coming over to shower, and spent the next half an hour trying to find things in the dark. Why didn't I open the blinds or windows you ask? Because it was already warm in the apartment, and the southern exposure would've made it boiling in 3.5 seconds. I fumbled around, grabbed what I needed, and took off.
I spent several hours at my mom's house this afternoon, showering and hanging out, working on homework, and eating a super-early dinner before I headed off to babysit two of my favorite kiddos...two, soon(ish) to be three! Their mom told me tonight that they've been cleared to adopt a baby girl from China, and they are so excited!!! It came about in a totally funny way, too...she was rushing through the kitchen, looking for her checkbook. Her husband said, "This one?" and she said, "No. That's the adoption checkbook. Oh yeah, by the way, we're adopting a baby! Waaaaaah!"
This family is just too cute, y'all. I love them to pieces, and I'm so excited to watch their family grow. I've been taking care of C since she was 6 months old, and now she's in Kindergarten. They moved before I did, so I didn't get to see much of J when he was a baby, but he told me I'm the bestest Aubby in the whole wide world and his favorite babysitter. C echoed his sentiments, telling me Lauren is her favorite beach babysitter, but I'm her favorite all the time babysitter...and they both stare at me, wide-eyed, when I tell them how long I've known C. I can't wait to meet this new little one when she's chosen and brought home!
On my way home, I stopped by to see a friend of mine...I haven't seen him in a while, and it was nice to catch up/charge my phone before heading home to an apartment that may or may not have power. I text my neighbor, and she said it had been on and off all day, that right now it was on, but it had just come back on after being off for a couple of hours. I stayed over there way longer than I intended to, but my phone got a decent charge. When I walked into my apartment, the air conditioner was humming away, and everything in the freezer still seemed to be mostly frozen.
I call that a successful day with intermittent power.
Aubs
It's high time you made your presence known. These early morning teasers and late evening stunts you keep pulling? Not. Cool. Get it? Got it? Good.
Sincerely,
Me
I woke up sometime around 3:00 this morning, wondering why it was so hot in my room. Since my room faces south, it stays consistently 5-10 degrees hotter than the rest of the house...great in the dead of "winter," but not so much for the other 11.5 months of the year. I kicked my way out from under my cocoon of pillows and sheets and forced myself back to sleep. I woke up again around 9:00 and got started on my homework. Just as I was getting ready to post my assignment, the power flickered...not enough to lose power, but something was up. That was when I looked at the microwave and noticed it was "0" o'clock...and THEN the power went off for real.
I sat there, working on my assignments without posting them, saving them as a document until my laptop battery started running out of juice. Time? 11:00. I called my mom to tell her I was coming over to shower, and spent the next half an hour trying to find things in the dark. Why didn't I open the blinds or windows you ask? Because it was already warm in the apartment, and the southern exposure would've made it boiling in 3.5 seconds. I fumbled around, grabbed what I needed, and took off.
I spent several hours at my mom's house this afternoon, showering and hanging out, working on homework, and eating a super-early dinner before I headed off to babysit two of my favorite kiddos...two, soon(ish) to be three! Their mom told me tonight that they've been cleared to adopt a baby girl from China, and they are so excited!!! It came about in a totally funny way, too...she was rushing through the kitchen, looking for her checkbook. Her husband said, "This one?" and she said, "No. That's the adoption checkbook. Oh yeah, by the way, we're adopting a baby! Waaaaaah!"
This family is just too cute, y'all. I love them to pieces, and I'm so excited to watch their family grow. I've been taking care of C since she was 6 months old, and now she's in Kindergarten. They moved before I did, so I didn't get to see much of J when he was a baby, but he told me I'm the bestest Aubby in the whole wide world and his favorite babysitter. C echoed his sentiments, telling me Lauren is her favorite beach babysitter, but I'm her favorite all the time babysitter...and they both stare at me, wide-eyed, when I tell them how long I've known C. I can't wait to meet this new little one when she's chosen and brought home!
On my way home, I stopped by to see a friend of mine...I haven't seen him in a while, and it was nice to catch up/charge my phone before heading home to an apartment that may or may not have power. I text my neighbor, and she said it had been on and off all day, that right now it was on, but it had just come back on after being off for a couple of hours. I stayed over there way longer than I intended to, but my phone got a decent charge. When I walked into my apartment, the air conditioner was humming away, and everything in the freezer still seemed to be mostly frozen.
I call that a successful day with intermittent power.
Aubs
Sunday, September 22, 2013
Date yourself Saturday
With all of the rain in the last 24 hours, it was no surprise that N's baseball game was postponed. It just so happens that his game last fall on this exact weekend was ALSO postponed due to weather. Who remembers that stuff? You know...except me. Last fall, though, my sister and brother-in-law were in town for her high school reunion, so they had planned to attend his game, only to spend the entire reunion weekend in the rain. Bummer. What does this mean? Well, it just means that we have games into November now, instead of ending at the end of October.
So, since I had a free day to myself, what did I do? Homework. I know. I live on the edge every single day, wild and reckless. After I turned in some of my homework, I went to the mall. I haven't bought jeans in almost 3 years. I have a couple pair that haven't been ruined or ripped to shreds, but my supply was totally dwindling. I started at Macy's (because I usually have good luck there) and ended up at Dillards, where there was a much larger selection. Newsflash: If you spend at least $80 on Juniors/Women's jeans at Dillards, they will alter the hems for free! You take them home, wash them, and bring them back with your receipt, and they'll mark the alterations for you and get them back to you within a week. This is a huge deal. It's so hard to find the right length; the longer lengths are always there in an (over) abundance, but the middle of the road lengths are impossible to find. It was a good day. And, to round out my great day, I scored a couple pair of jeans for B, too...since he isn't at all picky about what he wears, as long as pants are readily available for when he decides he's cold...like on the third day of school, when I told him he was insane because it was still approximately 187 degrees, even in the middle of the night.
I went home, threw the jeans I needed altered in the washer and thought about continuing to clean my apartment. Instead, I looked at movie times. This girl decided she was going to take herself on a cheap date because she needs to get out a little more. So, after my jeans were done washing and drying, I took them back to Dillards to get them measured for alterations. Then, I did a little bit of window shopping (Bath & Body Works still only has gross smelling candles, by the way), then went to see "The Heat" at the dollar theater.
Y'all, I love Melissa McCarthy. I was first introduced to her as Suki on "The Gilmore Girls," which will always be one of my favorite shows, and she cracked me up. Since then, I've seen her in various roles, but it seems like she's really come into her own on the big screen in the last few years. She is hilarious! There was entirely too much language for my taste, but the sarcasm and wit? I feel like we could be total bffs and laugh all the time!
I picked an earlier showing, so it was before 9:00 when I got out of the theater. It's one thing to go on a date by yourself...it's another entirely to leave an establishment by yourself when it's super-dark/late, and walk to your car by yourself.
Safety first, kids!
Aubs
So, since I had a free day to myself, what did I do? Homework. I know. I live on the edge every single day, wild and reckless. After I turned in some of my homework, I went to the mall. I haven't bought jeans in almost 3 years. I have a couple pair that haven't been ruined or ripped to shreds, but my supply was totally dwindling. I started at Macy's (because I usually have good luck there) and ended up at Dillards, where there was a much larger selection. Newsflash: If you spend at least $80 on Juniors/Women's jeans at Dillards, they will alter the hems for free! You take them home, wash them, and bring them back with your receipt, and they'll mark the alterations for you and get them back to you within a week. This is a huge deal. It's so hard to find the right length; the longer lengths are always there in an (over) abundance, but the middle of the road lengths are impossible to find. It was a good day. And, to round out my great day, I scored a couple pair of jeans for B, too...since he isn't at all picky about what he wears, as long as pants are readily available for when he decides he's cold...like on the third day of school, when I told him he was insane because it was still approximately 187 degrees, even in the middle of the night.
I went home, threw the jeans I needed altered in the washer and thought about continuing to clean my apartment. Instead, I looked at movie times. This girl decided she was going to take herself on a cheap date because she needs to get out a little more. So, after my jeans were done washing and drying, I took them back to Dillards to get them measured for alterations. Then, I did a little bit of window shopping (Bath & Body Works still only has gross smelling candles, by the way), then went to see "The Heat" at the dollar theater.
Y'all, I love Melissa McCarthy. I was first introduced to her as Suki on "The Gilmore Girls," which will always be one of my favorite shows, and she cracked me up. Since then, I've seen her in various roles, but it seems like she's really come into her own on the big screen in the last few years. She is hilarious! There was entirely too much language for my taste, but the sarcasm and wit? I feel like we could be total bffs and laugh all the time!
I picked an earlier showing, so it was before 9:00 when I got out of the theater. It's one thing to go on a date by yourself...it's another entirely to leave an establishment by yourself when it's super-dark/late, and walk to your car by yourself.
Safety first, kids!
Aubs
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