Category Archives: School Days

The moment I pray for God to have some answers for me

Posted on by
22

I’m just going to pre-warn you all that there is probably going to be some MAJOR rambling with this post…. I’m upset, and I’m confused and it’s times like this that I wonder why God entrusted me with children…. what if I make a wrong decision?

Shortly after I posted my {post} on Jayden being an Out of Sync Child and then my {post} on him realizing he’s different, I received a phone call from a friend of mine.  Our children go to school together and she had something VERY upsetting to tell me….

Let me first give a little background on her daughter Hailey & Hailey’s friend Riley.  These girls have been going to school with Jayden since Kindergarten.  They have ALWAYS looked out for Jayden and stuck up for him when they’ve seen a problem with the way other children are treating him.

Hailey came home to tell her mom that there were boys that had Jayden cornered and was holding Jayden around his neck.  Hailey, Riley and another girl went over and told the boys to knock it off and basically saved Jayden from these boys.

I am heartbroken.

I am speechless.

I am utterly at a loss for what I’m supposed to do here.

My first instinct is I would like to pull Jayden out of school and protect him from the evil kids that are hurting him.  But I don’t have the confidence in me that I can do as good of a job as his teacher does.  He has so much help to help him succeed in academics, and I feel like I’d be at a total loss.  But I don’t want ANYBODY hurting my child.

There’s been a lot of talk about bullying lately.  I just read a fantastic {post} by Single Dad Laughing regarding bullying, and if you have read it I HIGHLY suggest that you do.  It’s long, but heart felt and something EVERY parent & teacher needs to read.

2 days after writing the above:

Jayden finds everything to be a game.  He doesn’t quite understand what a bully is.  To Jayden, it’s a game and he doesn’t see the severity of it.  To Jayden he’s actually getting some kind of attention from one of his peers.  He’s been more effected by kids who call him weird than kids you have threaten or done physical harm.  But how many times of some kid telling him he’s weird or gay or sucks balls {yes, that’s one of the newest ones} can I allow to happen?  Eventually with so many times of being told you’re something you eventually begin to believe it right?

My friend’s husband is a special education teacher and recently had taken my kids along with his daughter to Jayden’s school one evening to let them play while I got some homework done. Jayden was telling him that he always plays by himself at recess, and Jeremy asked him why he would play with himself when there’s so many kids to play with. Jayden said that because the other kids think he’s weird.  This does things to my heart that I can’t even begin to describe.

I do not want my son to have his “social” time that is so important for children to be negative like that. I feel like I can create a positive social atmosphere for him. Why should I have him somewhere where people are continually putting him down?

I’m not going to lie, making a decision of taking your child out of school is a VERY hard decision to make.  I don’t want to completely shelter my child from society, but at the same time I do.  I don’t want him to graduate, go off to college and be completely clueless to the world.  I don’t want him to miss out out on playing sports in school if that’s what he wants to do, or going to prom, or the thrill of having a crush on a girl at school.

BUT I don’t want him to learn ways from other children whose parents don’t care about them and treat them horribly.  I don’t want my son to have to deal with people putting his self esteem down because he’s “different”.  Then comes the academics side of it all.  Budget cuts keep happening, programs I find beneficial for children are being taken away…. example: MUSIC!

I am really starting to think that trying to do homeschool with Jayden might be the way to go.  There’s an amazing FREE program available in our state called {Connections Academy} and it just seems like the perfect thing.  I can create a positive social atmosphere for Jayden, which I just really feel like he needs.

I really would love any and all advice from anybody out there will to give it to me.  Please share with me why you are homeschooling, your successes with it, if you’ve done Connections Academy your thoughts on it….

This is such a scary decision for me.

There is a Friend

Posted on by
Reply



There is a friend!


And my heart feels THAT much better.


Not all kids at Jayden’s school are devils mean.


And I wish I had a camera to see the looks on their faces today as they saw each other at Costco.

A girl.  



Jayden and this girl stood in front of each other, arms to their sides, HUGE grins on their faces…


Jayden says, “Hi, Anya, how’s your day?”


She replies… “It’s good Jayden how is your’s?”


and more awkward, silly, cute grins.  Then she says….

“I’ll see you at school, Buddy.”



She called him Buddy.

Photobucket

Kids are SO Mean!

Posted on by
3
I’m still a bit upset about {THIS POST}, because Jayden’s still upset. He’s such a cute, sweet, hard to not love boy. I don’t get how he doesn’t have friends. I don’t get how kids are so mean to him.

To be honest I would honestly like to pull him out of school and keep here where I can protect his feelings. He has such an amazing teacher though, and his school is REALLY helping him with his reading and doing things with him I probably would be no good at.

Nothing’s worse than going out to the playground and not having friends to play with, or to go through elementary school not having a friend. And what’s even worse is when you are the parent that knows your son has no friends. They throw his shoes in puddles, call him a loser, when he’s so much more than they are. Both Gino and I have told him… Stand up for yourself, Jayden. You have OUR permission to do whatever you need to do to protect yourself from little asshole children {okay, we didn’t say asshole children to him…. but that’s what they are!} And you know what he says…. It’s not right. It’s not right to be mean to other children.

Jayden, I’m going to tell you right now that I know you were put on this earth for things that are so wonderful, because you are so wonderful. 

Photobucket

His BFF is Gone… and I’m so sad :(

Posted on by
6

This year when Jayden started 2nd grade and started is Mrs. Rice’s class he made his first BFF. Jayden had been through K-1 without a BFF.  I don’t know if this is normal.  I don’t know if it’s because Jayden is different (IMO in the BEST way possible) but I do know that when he got moved to Mrs. Robert’s class and he was no longer in Isaiah’s class I learned that Jayden had truly found his BFF.  


Isaiah would come to my car ever, single day after school to ask if they could have a play date.  They now only had 1 recess together and yet they still remained so close.  I loved this.  I loved that Jayden finally knew what it was like have that one best friend!  


Today he came home and I asked him if he played with Isaiah at recess and he said no, he moved to California.


MY HEART ALMOST STOPPED!


His best friend is gone.  No goodbye…. just gone.  And my heart is completely aching for him.  I remember when we were considering moving to Colorado and he said to me, “But I can’t leave Isaiah, Mom.”  SIGH I could ramble on and on all night long… I really could. 


I was moved around a lot as kid…… seriously here’s how it goes:


K – started in Jackson, CA ended in Lodi, CA
1 – started in Lodi, CA ended in Jackson, CA
2- completely in Jackson, CA – wow… a year of stability 🙂  
3- started in Jackson, CA ended in Ely, NV
4 – Ely, NV
5 – Started in Ely, NV ended in Fallon, NV
6- Started in Fallon, NV, moved to Ely, NV, then moved to Jackson, CA then back to Ely, NV 
7- Full year in Boarding School in Sheridan, OR Delphi
8- Started in Fallon, NV ended in Jackson, CA
9- Started in Jackson, CA, then went to New Haven in UT
10- Sacramento, CA Country Day School for the entire year
11-12 home study and graduate early


and the kicker…. I was not a military brat.  Nope…. that’s just the life of a dysfunctional family for you.


That my friends is some absolute craziness, and that my friends is why I am so adamant about staying planted where we are.  I want my kids to be in ONE place.  Luckily for me, for the most part I kept going back to places I had already made friends…. so I’d just pick up where I left.  Through all that moving around though I kept one friend through it all… her name is Jenise.  Jenise and I actually started Kindergarten together in Jackson, CA…. the first place on my crazy school list.  Today, with me living in Oregon and her in Sacramento we are still best friends.  We will always be best friends!  


I was hoping that Isaiah was going to be Jayden’s best friend like Jenise was mine.  I’m so heartbroken that they won’t be.

Photobucket

The Run Down…

Posted on by
Reply

Ella has developed this high pitch squealing scream when she sees anything that’s little girl related. Then following that scream is her saying, “Ella!” She’s explaining to us all that since that is something that she loves it is Ella’s. I love that. I love the excitement that comes squealing out of her. I just am absolutely head over heels in love with this precious little girl! 


 Today it has been 2 years and 12 days since we discovered that our little precious princess has a heart problem. 2 years and 12 days since we learned that life is so precious and that horrible, sad things can happen to you, and more sadly to our children. I am so happy to say that Ella has been off of her medication for over a month now without any signs of SVT. It’s scary, but it’s something that her doctor really wanted to test and we’re listening to him. I don’t think that Gino’s on the same page as me on this… in fact I don’t even think I’m on the same page as myself, but for some reason I feel strongly about listening to what he says.


She is just this little bundle of smarts that I’m almost not too sure on what to do with. For a little girl just turning 2 I get a little concerned at how much she knows. How much she soaks in. I need to make sure that I am doing every thing I can to make sure that her little mind is soaking things up…. and good things! She’s already interested in colors, numbers, I feel like she’s going to be reading by the time she’s 3. I’m extremely proud of her.


Jayden has been adjusting well with his new class. It definitely does help that it is his old teacher. I’m going to start helping him with goals so that he can feel the excitement when he accomplishes that goal.


I’m currently working on my goals that I plan to accomplish this month, this year, and for the next 5 years. I think that my plan is to sit down with him and do this with him. Have him have his goals written out just like mom and we can get excited together and for each other.


Gino and I are getting more and more excited about the new direction we are taking our life. We both feel so fortunate to have been given an amazing opportunity that will not only change our lives, but our children’s lives, and children’s children’s lives… FOREVER.


So, life has been busy… but in such a good way!  We are in the middle of building this amazing company and I can’t even begin to describe how exciting and fun our new adventure is for us.

Photobucket

School Budget Cuts Effect MY FAMILY

Posted on by
2

On Thursday we received a phone call from the Principal. Never a good thing… I’m extremely happy that Gino was the one to answer the phone!  I’m sure his stomach was turning as the principal announced who he was over the phone, but then he said… he’s not in trouble or anything.  And here is where some happiness and irritation begins…


At the beginning of the school year I was a bit SHOCKED at the fact that my son is in a class with 30 kids.  I am pretty sure that in the previous years he was close to 16.  Um, a kid with Sensory Processing Disorder does not focus well with 30 kids in his class.  To top this off there were 6 3rd graders in this class, because thank you to the beautiful budget cuts there just wasn’t enough room for them w/the 3rd grade teachers.  *SIGH*


Okay, back to the phone call… the principal informed my husband that Jayden is going BACK to his 1st grade teacher, who we & he ABSOLUTELY LOVES!  He’s not the only one, there will be a few other 2nd graders going with him.  He will still be in 2nd grade and will be in a class where a few of his friends from church are… which is a nice plus.


Downfall:  I’m a little irritated at the fact that Jayden has become comfortable with where he’s at, with his classmates, with his new friend Isaiah, and we are ripping him from that and he’ll be starting completely over.

I’m just really disgusted that this is what it has come to.  They’re cutting budgets in places that SHOULD NOT BE CUT!  It’s going to effect our children and I don’t like that.

A close family friend introduced to me something called Connections Academy which seems like an amazing home schooling program.  If things get bad we just might have to venture that way… and I don’t want to take him out of school, but I want him to learn.  

Photobucket

Friday Favorites/ALOHA! ~ Reviews on Blogs?

Posted on by
12

MY FRIDAY FAVORITES ~ **if you’re here for Aloha Friday and don’t care about my favs of the week scroll on down**
What a week! Actually, it was pretty uneventful for me. Jayden started 2nd Grade…. that gets its own post in its own, but the same day he also started soccer.
Ella has officially started her terrible 2 tantrums today. I in no way paid any mind to them and completely ignored them… hopefully she gets the hint that a) she won’t get her way and b) she’ll get no attention from it.
My son actually brought me a shook up soda… I can’t believe he actually did this.  
HUGE accomplishment for us…. Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday (and unfortunately we missed tonight) we had family scripture reading. I’m trying really hard on structurizing my evenings in this house from the time Jayden gets out of school to the time they go to bed. The past 2 nights are complete successes on both kids in bed by 9pm! Jayden hasn’t even been getting up to sneak down for water. I need this time. Gino and I need this time too. It’s nice that when he gets home from work it will just be us…. no kids!
I’ve talked about Katie and Ryan on my blog, and I just wanted to say that it sounds like she’s getting better every day, however, I know her heart is still aching for the loss of her husband. Please keep her and everyone who was touched by Ryan in your prayers for the healing of their hearts.
My friend Anne started a great new blog w/her friend. They post posts that moms and housewives can really use in their daily lives. Delicious recipes, sewing patterns, tips that we can all use. It’s called {A Place to Bloom} they chose such a beautiful name for it! It’s definitely worth the checking out!!
This week I discovered that I have been losing out on THOUSANDS of dollars. I have never been the bargain shopper, never paid any mind to coupons, and I’m actually sickened by it. {My Frugal Adventures} turned me on to this new adventure in my life and I am now proud to say that I AM A COUPON JUNKIE! And I’m PROUD OF IT!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
OKAY! Now for {Aloha Friday}!


How do you go about doing reviews on your blog? This is something I really interested in doing, but don’t know how to start. This is something I definitely want to get into. I have done reviews for people I know… never really just a random person.






Photobucket

School Already?!?!?

Posted on by
3


This summer just FLEW right before my eyes. I feel like Jayden just got out of school and in 1 month he’ll be right back in it…. and in 2nd grade! Where oh where did my baby go?

Mornings suck for us. I have a hard time getting up early enough and without structure things for us do not go well. {Kristen}, who hosts Works for Me Wednesday suggested morning cards. My thoughts exactly! I’m big on morning cards and next week’s WFMW post will go into a little more detail about these cards, and not just for your kids ;). So first off I’m seconding what Kristen wrote regarding these nifty things.

My other advice for back to school is the following:

NEVER leave things til morning to prepare, no matter how tired you are, make sure things are set and ready for an easy morning.

2 weeks before school you should put your kids on their school schedule. Make sure that they are going to bed at school time bedtime hours

I suggest getting a workbook for the school year that they’re going into to prepare them for things they’ll be learning… that way they aren’t too lost ~ and even seem a little bit of a smarty pants

Most of all, spend lots and lots of fun times with them before sending them back to school. Plan special little surprises for them like picnics or trips to the zoo…. maybe a camp out in the yard… treasure your last few weeks with them, because this next year they’re going to grow so much. Treasure the time with them.

So, I’m sorry that my back to school tips aren’t the best, but I’m tired, traveling, but wouldn’t miss Works for Me Wednesday for the world. Join me next week to learn about how I have found the solution to organizing my housekeeping, my kids housekeeping and everything else in my home ~ it’s working and I can’t wait to tell you all about it! So make sure you are either following me on {Twitter} or my {RSS Feed} so you don’t miss out on the secret I found. And check back in with me on Monday for my inspirational carnival {Just a Motivating Monday}!

Works for me Wednesday – Summer Learnin’

Posted on by
3


Welcome to {Works for me Wednesday}!!

Summer time is a great time for kids to start to forget all of the things that they learned throughout the year. That way when school starts back up it takes them a while to get back into the swing of things, because let’s face it at the end of August Long Vowels and Short Vowels are pretty much the same thing in the mind of my 7 year old.

I found a way to see to it that this doesn’t happen to my main lil’ man!

Passing through my mall we have this awesome store where you can buy curriculum packets for homeschooling and a ton of other awesome educational things, and they had a stand right outside of their store with {Summer Bridge Activies} books. I stopped looked through one and was sold I bought one for my son going into 2nd grade and LOVE it!!!

It has a summer reading list, flash cards, a fitness program, things on feelings and every day there is a worksheet for them to do that keeps them brushed up on the little things. Plus there’s a TON more things packed in this nifty workbook. Every day’s worksheet is different, it takes them about 15-20 minutes for them to finish it up, and you don’t feel like the day was a complete waste of their minds!

So, this summer this is what’s working for this family, and my son even loves doing his worksheets! I highly recommend this program for the summer.

To read about what works for others head over to {We are THAT family}

IT WAS FAKE!!

Posted on by
1

I went to Jayden’s conference and left so pleased. My little man isn’t doing too bad, and I kept looking at the report card with this warm feeling in my heart…. he’s doing so great!

So, the fact that he’s doing great in school isn’t a fake, but that report card was! We got another student’s report card ~ so I have yet to see how Jayden is “really” doing LOL.

I have seen a huge difference in him and his school work. His reading comprehension used to not be as good as it is now. He’s been getting 100% on his reading comprehension answers, and his math skills at home have been excellent.

I as a parent need to try harder though. There are days that I actually forget to have him read to me… there shouldn’t be a day that goes by that Jayden isn’t practicing his reading. I need to be more structured with the kids and myself. I need a time schedule in this house to keep me on track. I know that it doesn’t work for some, but I think it would really work for us. Sometimes I get consumed in other things and I need to limit things for all of us…. computer time, TV time, and make sure that there is time for the things that matter.

I need to block time for my work for my grandparents, I need to block time for Wildtree and make sure that I’m not spending too much time on those things and not the kids. I should be completely done with everything by the time I pick up Jayden so that the rest of our day is spent together and that they have good memories… and this isn’t impossible. It just takes organization and structure… and I need to get us there.