This is what I have to do at work.
I sit working, thinking, being bombarded on all sides by phone, email, and think I have done my best. Then if I take a break I can remember all the details I still need to cover.
My last post did not do justice to what happened today.
While all the other 5th graders were taking their science TAKS test, Annabel spent the day in the 3rd grade classroom with one of my favorite teachers. She had a GREAT day. She learned something. She was admired by the other students who were disappointed to learn she would not be back in the class tomorrow.
But her day started with being called to the principal's office.
According to her, the principal talked to her about what was happening in her class. She was told to come to her any time she needed to, but that she, the principal, could not stop anything the girls were doing. HUH??????
Yes, that is what she told her. That girls were like that and she could not stop them.
She had a couple of other teachers tell her basically the same thing.
I appreciate everyone who left comments about the situation. I will keep you updated.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Too much on my mind
Tonight there is so much on my mind, it feels like I am playing the audio for a bad movie and I am the narrator.
So I will sound off about a few things that are bugging me first and hope to get the rest cleared up.
Ants in the kitchen. I have tried to handle getting rid of the ants in a reasonable way and less drastic methods so I put out boric acid and ant traps. They literally walk over the boric acid and probably sleep on top of the ant traps.
The swine flu which is to be renamed by the World Health Organization to avoid people killing off all their pigs.
The flu itself is not bugging me, it is my reaction to it. I am a news junkie when there is a major event happening, not something like the election, just stories that are interesting. (That one is for you, Holly!)
They closed an elementary school in our neighborhood today.
They keep reporting there are only a few confirmed cases yet they have also called off major events scheduled this weekend.
Next weekend we have our biggest event of the year. Planning began last year. So I am anxious to hear the news tonight! I will watch it on as many channels as I can just to be sure I don't miss anything!
Back to us.
A friend recommended I contact a friend of a friend, who might be able to help about the problems at school.
With only minor details, she agreed that things had not been handled correctly with the bullying and the lack of instruction provided for Annabel.
She is working to get resources for us.
I feel such mixed emotions.
For the first time I feel some relief but also guilt, that I did not force the school to do more.
I finally got a return call from my voice mail on Tuesday and also my email on Wednesday. It was offered to set up a meeting with the teachers again.
I was shocked! My email clearly stated that I expected her to be removed from that classroom. I was told we could discuss it next week.
So do I just keep her out until then?
But to show how "normal" our life is, tonight Annabel was showing me a spot on her toe. It took a magnifying glass and a bright light to even see it, but she was quite concerned that it was something major.
I got so tickled at her because I told her it looked like she had scratched it.
She assured me that she had NEVER scratched her toe.
NEVER?? In all 11 years?
No, never. I said that would have to make the blog!
So I will sound off about a few things that are bugging me first and hope to get the rest cleared up.
Ants in the kitchen. I have tried to handle getting rid of the ants in a reasonable way and less drastic methods so I put out boric acid and ant traps. They literally walk over the boric acid and probably sleep on top of the ant traps.
The swine flu which is to be renamed by the World Health Organization to avoid people killing off all their pigs.
The flu itself is not bugging me, it is my reaction to it. I am a news junkie when there is a major event happening, not something like the election, just stories that are interesting. (That one is for you, Holly!)
They closed an elementary school in our neighborhood today.
They keep reporting there are only a few confirmed cases yet they have also called off major events scheduled this weekend.
Next weekend we have our biggest event of the year. Planning began last year. So I am anxious to hear the news tonight! I will watch it on as many channels as I can just to be sure I don't miss anything!
Back to us.
A friend recommended I contact a friend of a friend, who might be able to help about the problems at school.
With only minor details, she agreed that things had not been handled correctly with the bullying and the lack of instruction provided for Annabel.
She is working to get resources for us.
I feel such mixed emotions.
For the first time I feel some relief but also guilt, that I did not force the school to do more.
I finally got a return call from my voice mail on Tuesday and also my email on Wednesday. It was offered to set up a meeting with the teachers again.
I was shocked! My email clearly stated that I expected her to be removed from that classroom. I was told we could discuss it next week.
So do I just keep her out until then?
But to show how "normal" our life is, tonight Annabel was showing me a spot on her toe. It took a magnifying glass and a bright light to even see it, but she was quite concerned that it was something major.
I got so tickled at her because I told her it looked like she had scratched it.
She assured me that she had NEVER scratched her toe.
NEVER?? In all 11 years?
No, never. I said that would have to make the blog!
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Good news and bad news
Today was the last of a lot of doctor's visits trying to catch up on medical exams to determine if there was a need for additional medical treatment that might have been missed in China.
I cannot thank God enough that all the reports were good! No problems!
Regular check ups are all we need. YES!!!
The only trouble, before we left for the doctor, and as Annabel came from the school, she was crying, huge tears.
She had gotten in trouble at school for shouting out an answer during a "jeopardy game" in class. And so even if everyone else was dong it, when she did it, a number of girls in the class began taunting her to the point of making her cry. The teacher allowed it to continue and shouted that he did not know how to deal with her, so he sent her to the principal's office.
Only Annabel refused to go and cried for the next 30 minutes, which was actually the second time that morning she had cried, until it was time for her doctor's appointment.
I really hoped from the last meeting that we were over these problems and actually thought we could make it through the end of the year.
Instead I am desperately searching for alternatives to avoid Annabel having to return to that classroom through the end of the year.
I just can't see having her confidence, her self esteem, her growth stifled by a teacher who seems oblivious to doing his job of controlling his class.
Grace does not want to leave and I don't know if you can get into a private school this late? Or a charter school this late? Or home school? I really don't know what to do.
I cannot thank God enough that all the reports were good! No problems!
Regular check ups are all we need. YES!!!
The only trouble, before we left for the doctor, and as Annabel came from the school, she was crying, huge tears.
She had gotten in trouble at school for shouting out an answer during a "jeopardy game" in class. And so even if everyone else was dong it, when she did it, a number of girls in the class began taunting her to the point of making her cry. The teacher allowed it to continue and shouted that he did not know how to deal with her, so he sent her to the principal's office.
Only Annabel refused to go and cried for the next 30 minutes, which was actually the second time that morning she had cried, until it was time for her doctor's appointment.
I really hoped from the last meeting that we were over these problems and actually thought we could make it through the end of the year.
Instead I am desperately searching for alternatives to avoid Annabel having to return to that classroom through the end of the year.
I just can't see having her confidence, her self esteem, her growth stifled by a teacher who seems oblivious to doing his job of controlling his class.
Grace does not want to leave and I don't know if you can get into a private school this late? Or a charter school this late? Or home school? I really don't know what to do.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Texas A & M school of balloon artists!
During spring break I came up with the idea of visiting Texas A & M's school of veterinary medicine to get a preview of colleges for Grace.
For quite some time she has said she wanted to be a vet. I'm not sure if she understands what that means, but she has stuck with it for a while.
My background of working with career exploration for clients showed me that people need to take time to really look at potential careers, not just pick a degree and hope that it fits.
When I went to college, I did not think women had a choice in a career, but being a nurse or a teacher and since I could not stand the sight of blood, I went into teaching. While I enjoyed teaching, no one mentioned how low the pay was back in the days when I taught. So after just 5 years I went on to something else. And something else. And something else.
So why not help my daughters do their career exploration early?
I had checked with A & M and they explained that spring break wasn't the best time to come since they would also be closed, but they had an open house at the end of April.
I really was not sure if we would make it since Grace was not up to speed on Friday, but a good night's sleep and she was ready to go. Annabel and I packed quickly and we headed down to Bryan and College Station.
Surprisingly I have been to China twice but never to College Station.
The drive was just beautiful and the wildflowers are just beginning to bloom. There were so many pretty little towns that you could easily see yourself relocating to if your kids ended up in College Station.
By the time we arrived it was quite evident that a LOT of families had the same idea. There was a wide variety of activities, most with long lines.
Since teddy bear surgery had been a big draw to making the trip, we managed to wait the 1 1/2 hours to get into surgery.
Annabel left her stuffed animal in the car, but thankfully they had plenty to choose from for a small donation. For almost the entire time we waited, Annabel worked through her thousands of choices of stuffed animals switching from large to small, dogs to bears, and at the last minute settled on a dog that had a heart hanging from its mouth and "LOVE YA" on its back side.
When we finally got in, the vet students made sure the girls were "prepped" for surgery. They had hair nets, masks, gloves, gowns, and even slippers over their shoes. It was all quite believable from appearances. The vet students then did a complete examination of the animal and asked each girl what was wrong with their animal. Grace took her bear "Starry" which is the bear I sent her while she was still in China. It was one of the only gifts she actually received from all the care packages I sent, so she did not want major surgery on her bear.
But Annabel was all into it and decided the heart hanging from her dog's mouth needed to be removed and inserted in where the heart belongs. The vet student was very meticulous in her stitching up the dog with it's heart back in place. Grace's bear ended up with a back brace due to some recent "falls" she had experienced.
From there we wandered through the rest of the many displays. There were so many dog rescue groups with dogs available. It was really hard to leave with no new ones!
At the end of the open house, we found where they were doing face painting, liquid nitrogen experiments, color examination, and the most popular event of the day - balloon animals! I thought the girls were going to stay there the rest of the time. The only way they left was the chance to see some ferrets.
So if veterinary medicine does not work out, they can fall back on their new skills of balloon artistry. I've even bought them both a kit at the dollar store and loads of new animals are being created!
We had a room reserved in the Memorial Student Center, which took calling twice to get directions. Upon inspection I wished I had spent a little more so we had more than room for just the bed in the room! I don't think I have stayed in a room that small since a time in London and then it was only me! BUT the girls LOVED it. They did not want to leave the room and thought it would be spectacular to stay in the rest of the day and watch the TV!!
BUT we had places to go, people to meet, and things to do.
My mom had begged me to call a distant cousin, which I did, and we met for dinner. It was great fun and her daughter, who is only 5, entertained Annabel throughout the meal!
Afterward we enjoyed a huge scoop of homemade ice cream and a trip to Half Price Books. Annabel was VERY disappointed that she could only find 1 book in Chinese. Actually there was another, but it was Harry Potter and we have it n Chinese!
Although it was a very late night and everyone was way too tired, Grace could not give up and go to sleep until I laid down. I think I forgot to mention that our room had one king size bed. There had been a lot of discussion as to who would sleep in the middle and I guess I drew the short straw because it was decided I would.
So to gt Grace to go to sleep I jumped into the middle of the bed and within minutes, all of us were asleep and slept much later than intended!
Denny's has done too much advertising and made me want to eat there! Only everyone in town also had seen the ads. Annabel grows way too impatient when making her wait. I keep trying to help her learn deep breathing so she doesn't have to drive me CRAZY tapping, clicking, snapping anything she can find!!!
We made it home safe but along the way heard about the adventures Mom had with the dogs while we were gone.
The pet sitting service didn't show up as planned so it left Mom to take care of our hounds! They seemed very concerned about the situation and where we might be so they did not want to do their usual routine. Then Ollie found an opportunity to run!
Evidently Dad's voice works the same way on dogs as it does on kids and for once, Ollie came running back!
We made the trip home safe and sound and the dogs were very glad to see us. Not nearly as glad as Mom, so we could take over our dog's affairs.
The girls practiced their new vocational goal tonight - balloon artists! Great!
For quite some time she has said she wanted to be a vet. I'm not sure if she understands what that means, but she has stuck with it for a while.
My background of working with career exploration for clients showed me that people need to take time to really look at potential careers, not just pick a degree and hope that it fits.
When I went to college, I did not think women had a choice in a career, but being a nurse or a teacher and since I could not stand the sight of blood, I went into teaching. While I enjoyed teaching, no one mentioned how low the pay was back in the days when I taught. So after just 5 years I went on to something else. And something else. And something else.
So why not help my daughters do their career exploration early?
I had checked with A & M and they explained that spring break wasn't the best time to come since they would also be closed, but they had an open house at the end of April.
I really was not sure if we would make it since Grace was not up to speed on Friday, but a good night's sleep and she was ready to go. Annabel and I packed quickly and we headed down to Bryan and College Station.
Surprisingly I have been to China twice but never to College Station.
The drive was just beautiful and the wildflowers are just beginning to bloom. There were so many pretty little towns that you could easily see yourself relocating to if your kids ended up in College Station.
By the time we arrived it was quite evident that a LOT of families had the same idea. There was a wide variety of activities, most with long lines.
Since teddy bear surgery had been a big draw to making the trip, we managed to wait the 1 1/2 hours to get into surgery.
Annabel left her stuffed animal in the car, but thankfully they had plenty to choose from for a small donation. For almost the entire time we waited, Annabel worked through her thousands of choices of stuffed animals switching from large to small, dogs to bears, and at the last minute settled on a dog that had a heart hanging from its mouth and "LOVE YA" on its back side.
When we finally got in, the vet students made sure the girls were "prepped" for surgery. They had hair nets, masks, gloves, gowns, and even slippers over their shoes. It was all quite believable from appearances. The vet students then did a complete examination of the animal and asked each girl what was wrong with their animal. Grace took her bear "Starry" which is the bear I sent her while she was still in China. It was one of the only gifts she actually received from all the care packages I sent, so she did not want major surgery on her bear.
But Annabel was all into it and decided the heart hanging from her dog's mouth needed to be removed and inserted in where the heart belongs. The vet student was very meticulous in her stitching up the dog with it's heart back in place. Grace's bear ended up with a back brace due to some recent "falls" she had experienced.
From there we wandered through the rest of the many displays. There were so many dog rescue groups with dogs available. It was really hard to leave with no new ones!
At the end of the open house, we found where they were doing face painting, liquid nitrogen experiments, color examination, and the most popular event of the day - balloon animals! I thought the girls were going to stay there the rest of the time. The only way they left was the chance to see some ferrets.
So if veterinary medicine does not work out, they can fall back on their new skills of balloon artistry. I've even bought them both a kit at the dollar store and loads of new animals are being created!
We had a room reserved in the Memorial Student Center, which took calling twice to get directions. Upon inspection I wished I had spent a little more so we had more than room for just the bed in the room! I don't think I have stayed in a room that small since a time in London and then it was only me! BUT the girls LOVED it. They did not want to leave the room and thought it would be spectacular to stay in the rest of the day and watch the TV!!
BUT we had places to go, people to meet, and things to do.
My mom had begged me to call a distant cousin, which I did, and we met for dinner. It was great fun and her daughter, who is only 5, entertained Annabel throughout the meal!
Afterward we enjoyed a huge scoop of homemade ice cream and a trip to Half Price Books. Annabel was VERY disappointed that she could only find 1 book in Chinese. Actually there was another, but it was Harry Potter and we have it n Chinese!
Although it was a very late night and everyone was way too tired, Grace could not give up and go to sleep until I laid down. I think I forgot to mention that our room had one king size bed. There had been a lot of discussion as to who would sleep in the middle and I guess I drew the short straw because it was decided I would.
So to gt Grace to go to sleep I jumped into the middle of the bed and within minutes, all of us were asleep and slept much later than intended!
Denny's has done too much advertising and made me want to eat there! Only everyone in town also had seen the ads. Annabel grows way too impatient when making her wait. I keep trying to help her learn deep breathing so she doesn't have to drive me CRAZY tapping, clicking, snapping anything she can find!!!
We made it home safe but along the way heard about the adventures Mom had with the dogs while we were gone.
The pet sitting service didn't show up as planned so it left Mom to take care of our hounds! They seemed very concerned about the situation and where we might be so they did not want to do their usual routine. Then Ollie found an opportunity to run!
Evidently Dad's voice works the same way on dogs as it does on kids and for once, Ollie came running back!
We made the trip home safe and sound and the dogs were very glad to see us. Not nearly as glad as Mom, so we could take over our dog's affairs.
The girls practiced their new vocational goal tonight - balloon artists! Great!
Friday, April 24, 2009
A science lesson
Watching the news tonight reminds me of what Annabel was telling us tonight.
She was trying to tell us what her science teacher had told the class today.
There was something about how amazing that pigs, birds, and humans all share the same "spot"??
Hmm, don't know about any spots that all of us share.
She showed us how on her arm and again talked about the spots that we all share.
Could it possibly be that he was talking about swine flu?
Oh yeah, that's what it was.
She was trying to tell us what her science teacher had told the class today.
There was something about how amazing that pigs, birds, and humans all share the same "spot"??
Hmm, don't know about any spots that all of us share.
She showed us how on her arm and again talked about the spots that we all share.
Could it possibly be that he was talking about swine flu?
Oh yeah, that's what it was.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Out of a funk
I usually write my posts over and over in my mind long before it ever gets on the page. When this happens, I try to work it out so that what I end up writing will focus on the girls, rather than the distractions that at times cloud my life.
Yet, this time, it has been difficult.
I have a degree in counseling and so I try to rationalize, compartmentalize, and then justify the feelings I am experiencing.
The timing of tax day along with our 6 month follow up, was substantial.
It required reviewing the past year on so many levels.
Starting with the financial, I became overwhelmed when I looked at what I had earned, seeing how little it had increased from the previous year, but with the bottom line being that regardless of the amount, we had been through one of the toughest years financially that I have had in a LONG time.
It worried me.
With all the economic problems most are facing, had I been a good steward of the money God provided through my job? I felt like I was the receiver of the talent that had gone and buried it showing nothing but the original gift provided. Yet I could see the cost of the adoption in the other column and easily could see why money had been an issue. But once you get down on yourself, then you can begin to worry that even that talent will be taken from you. And during this time you are susceptible to rumors you hear at work, the impact evaluations of you and your performance have, and then just like that you doubt it all!
But thankfully all I have to do is step out on my deck and receive words of encouragement from having wonderful parents next door. It's not necessarily magic, but does make you feel that at least 2 people think you can do something right!
Preparing for the visit by the social worker, I was looking for pictures and other things she would need to complete her report to China.
I came across documents from our initial return home. Can I just say that was a REALLY difficult time and think I am still tired from that. Much less adding Annabel's surgery and then mine!
OK, enough about my funk!
Sunday at Earth Day was a great time.
It is amazing what has been accomplished developing Earth Day for Oak Cliff in just a few short years. Marcie, my niece, has been in charge of the artists and their displays. Probably best that I had 3 kids who did not want to look at everything there, as it saved me money! But what was even more difficult to ignore was the number of cats and dogs there who needed homes! Oh my goodness, I am so glad I can be rational sometimes. Some might even call it evidence based decision making, even though I have received low marks on that!
It was a very nice experience meeting Grace and Annabel's friend. She was a breath of fresh air compared to what they have endured from the other kids in their class. She was very polite and I especially liked that she made time for Annabel to join into the conversations!
Annabel had her first experience in a porta potty! If you have been to China you know that even their restrooms can be pretty bad, not much better than a porta potty at some public facilities. BUT after eight months here, she was not too sure about trying out our "temporary" toilets!
Grace found out that she has passed the math TAKS test, but did not get commended. I felt badly for her as she had made commended last year and was hoping to again this year.
Tonight seemed to be a good example of when too much can happen on a school night! I knew we would be pressed for time between school and piano and actually put something in the crock pot before leaving for work.
With the girls getting out of school at 5:00 and needing to leave for piano at 6:00, I was glad we did have time to sit and eat and talk together. I taught 5th grade for one and half years and very glad I don't teach it now! Stories of what happens in those classes are chaotic! It seems like everyone on facebook is helping build some final project. Their class is actually making their final project at school out of those thousand popsicle sticks! YIKES!!!!
When we came back from piano we met with a potential "dog sitter". Thankfully she thought she could handle our two ragamuffins. After she left our neighbor dropped by worried about a suspicious person who had been parked in front of our house. Good to have good neighbors.
He volunteered to watch our dogs, but the dogs just would not be his friends. Too bad!
A brief conversation with mom gave me an update on my aunt, with dementia, and a cousin diagnosed with prostate cancer at way too young of an age, plus learning a long time church member had passed away. So while the girls took their showers, I turned our meal into stew for that family.
Tomorrow morning we are celebrating volunteer week with a breakfast and then again dinner! I am so grateful to the fantastic volunteers I have worked with. They have taught me so much. Plus they are always just grateful at the wide variety of programs I keep coming up with and thankful that I care.
Yet, this time, it has been difficult.
I have a degree in counseling and so I try to rationalize, compartmentalize, and then justify the feelings I am experiencing.
The timing of tax day along with our 6 month follow up, was substantial.
It required reviewing the past year on so many levels.
Starting with the financial, I became overwhelmed when I looked at what I had earned, seeing how little it had increased from the previous year, but with the bottom line being that regardless of the amount, we had been through one of the toughest years financially that I have had in a LONG time.
It worried me.
With all the economic problems most are facing, had I been a good steward of the money God provided through my job? I felt like I was the receiver of the talent that had gone and buried it showing nothing but the original gift provided. Yet I could see the cost of the adoption in the other column and easily could see why money had been an issue. But once you get down on yourself, then you can begin to worry that even that talent will be taken from you. And during this time you are susceptible to rumors you hear at work, the impact evaluations of you and your performance have, and then just like that you doubt it all!
But thankfully all I have to do is step out on my deck and receive words of encouragement from having wonderful parents next door. It's not necessarily magic, but does make you feel that at least 2 people think you can do something right!
Preparing for the visit by the social worker, I was looking for pictures and other things she would need to complete her report to China.
I came across documents from our initial return home. Can I just say that was a REALLY difficult time and think I am still tired from that. Much less adding Annabel's surgery and then mine!
OK, enough about my funk!
Sunday at Earth Day was a great time.
It is amazing what has been accomplished developing Earth Day for Oak Cliff in just a few short years. Marcie, my niece, has been in charge of the artists and their displays. Probably best that I had 3 kids who did not want to look at everything there, as it saved me money! But what was even more difficult to ignore was the number of cats and dogs there who needed homes! Oh my goodness, I am so glad I can be rational sometimes. Some might even call it evidence based decision making, even though I have received low marks on that!
It was a very nice experience meeting Grace and Annabel's friend. She was a breath of fresh air compared to what they have endured from the other kids in their class. She was very polite and I especially liked that she made time for Annabel to join into the conversations!
Annabel had her first experience in a porta potty! If you have been to China you know that even their restrooms can be pretty bad, not much better than a porta potty at some public facilities. BUT after eight months here, she was not too sure about trying out our "temporary" toilets!
Grace found out that she has passed the math TAKS test, but did not get commended. I felt badly for her as she had made commended last year and was hoping to again this year.
Tonight seemed to be a good example of when too much can happen on a school night! I knew we would be pressed for time between school and piano and actually put something in the crock pot before leaving for work.
With the girls getting out of school at 5:00 and needing to leave for piano at 6:00, I was glad we did have time to sit and eat and talk together. I taught 5th grade for one and half years and very glad I don't teach it now! Stories of what happens in those classes are chaotic! It seems like everyone on facebook is helping build some final project. Their class is actually making their final project at school out of those thousand popsicle sticks! YIKES!!!!
When we came back from piano we met with a potential "dog sitter". Thankfully she thought she could handle our two ragamuffins. After she left our neighbor dropped by worried about a suspicious person who had been parked in front of our house. Good to have good neighbors.
He volunteered to watch our dogs, but the dogs just would not be his friends. Too bad!
A brief conversation with mom gave me an update on my aunt, with dementia, and a cousin diagnosed with prostate cancer at way too young of an age, plus learning a long time church member had passed away. So while the girls took their showers, I turned our meal into stew for that family.
Tomorrow morning we are celebrating volunteer week with a breakfast and then again dinner! I am so grateful to the fantastic volunteers I have worked with. They have taught me so much. Plus they are always just grateful at the wide variety of programs I keep coming up with and thankful that I care.
Saturday, April 18, 2009
New school, art exhibit, the zoo, karate, and taxes!
This has been a busy week and when I realize that I last posted the day before the infamous April 15, it explains a lot. But I think I will start from today and try to work backward, while in extreme pain!
Today was a great day, very busy, but full of important details.
We started the day with a great breakfast from Grandmom's Restaurant, which is conveniently located next door. It was so cloudy and overcast this morning, we all overslept, so really helped to have breakfast prepared for us.
Our first stop was North Hills, the school I have chosen for the girls for next year. It is quite a ways from home, but every time I go, I am so impressed with the students and their impressions of the school. They always have students as volunteers leading future students around the campus. These kids are engaging, very conversational (is that a word?), and extend their hand to shake, smile, and look you in the eye.
We had our pre-admission conference at 9:35.
We met the PE teacher who did our conference. It was supposed to last 30 -45 minutes, but with 2 girls that were full of questions, ours took more like an hour. Then they had a math placement test. Annabel breezed through hers since she guessed at all the answers, because they were word problems.
I thought Grace had been swallowed up in a math black hole because she took 1 1/2 hours!! She told me a few of the problems and I was impressed that she even tried.
They had a special display set up for ESL! Thank goodness! I spoke to the teacher and she said they would be pulling Annabel out for special classes. All I can say is, "FINALLY!"
After three hours, which was supposed to be maybe an hour, we raced home after stopping by a Korean restaurant for lunch for the girls.
The dogs were supposed to get groomed today, but we were 2 hours overdue for that appointment. Thankfully they agreed to take them late. Dip and Clip on Davis is the best about that. Most places require you drop them off early, even though they won't be ready for hours!
So I left the girls to eat their noodles and take a shower while I ran the dogs to the groomer.
From there we went to the Ice House Cultural Center. There was a special "Dia de los Ninos" exhibit and both girls had a piece on display. Grace has had several pieces on display, but it was Annabel's first. AND Annabel WON! BEST OF SHOW!!! I was so excited for her and it was hard for her to conceal her pleasure. She got a nice red ribbon and was only 1 of 2 winners out of 120! It was a clay piece and now she has decided she LOVES working with clay.
At North Hills they had a choice of fine arts; band, choir, art, or theater. I was sure they both would choose art, but when Annabel found out that clay would not be done EVERY day, she chose band. This was pretty funny, because I am not sure she knows what band is, BUT she loves to play like she is playing drums. Grace chose theater, which was also a big surprise, since she has really been quite shy lately. But when she learned it would be like the Christmas Carol we saw, she decided that's what she wanted to do!
After the art show we came home to get ready for our 6 month visit by the social worker for the adoption agency. It has actually been 8 months, but we had some conflicts getting it set up.
Amy, the social worker that did the original home study, was the same who came today. She is so kind and helpful, it really was not as stressful as it could have been.
She was telling me about some recent research, specifically on adoptees from Ethiopia. They have discovered a relationship of the neurotransmitters and the heightened stimulation of older adoptees due to the extensive trauma endured. These are treated with supplements and tremendous improvement seen. I relayed that I was concerned that Annabel was not grieving for her foster parents the way that Grace did, yet I know she must miss them at least as much. After all, they were the only parents she knew for about 8 years. We still have lots to work through and will follow up with some suggestions Amy made.
After that we went to pick up the dogs and it is so nice for them to smell good if even for a little while.
Facing the second surgery, I decided I had to get in better shape. It is really hard to work in working out once I get home, so I took advantage of a special at a gym that included a couple of sessions with a trainer.
When he asked how long it had been since I had worked out regularly, it dawned on me that it was MUCH longer than I had realized. So here I am WAY out of shape and WAY over weight and the trainer started me off with squats and lunges. About half way through i thought about what was missing, WARMING UP!!! I am so sore! Duh!
But I knew I probably still needed to keep moving. The zoo was having a special for members to spotlight the new albino alligators. It was really interesting being at the zoo after dark since most of the animals are nocturnal. It was difficult to see some of them, but kind of scary too. Regardless of the pain level, much less the fear level, we kept on until 9:00!
The last stop was the carousel.
While there, Annabel pointed out a family whose hair was red. She could not understand how someone's hair could be that color! There was also a Chinese family behind us in line. Annabel whispered, rather loudly, "I think they are Chinese". Really??
At karate Thursday night, the girls had sparring.
Maybe parents are not supposed to watch.
I get so nervous when the girls actually have to "fight".
There was one little girls taking her exam for a yellow belt and first up was Grace to spar with her. Grace just wouldn't fight back. She looked terrified! Pretty quickly it was Annabel's turn and she had overcome her fears from the last bout. She went right into it, headstrong, and did a great job of defending herself. I told them I was going to hire a big old boy that could take their punches, to practice with! Annabel was concerned she would hurt him! I LOVE HER SPUNK!
Wednesday was the dreadful tax day, which really wasn't dreadful, since we should get a return due to adding Annabel! But to file your taxes you must have your children's social security numbers. That was why I had applied for Annabel's back in February.
BUT it disappeared. It truly disappeared.
I searched this whole house, going through stacks of mail, adoption papers, magazines, coupons, books, drawers, files, truly everything.
I looked at work. I went through every single thing on my desk and trust me, it was a LOT. It had simply disappeared.
I finally went back to the social security office and got the number.
While putting things back into their files, there was the card. Also my pants that I had lost showed up! I knew if I could take a long enough break from looking that both would be easy to find. I would almost think that someone was just playing mean jokes on me, but guess I not!
Tomorrow, Sunday, is the Earth Day celebration in Oak Cliff. Grace wanted to invite her friend to go with us. I'm glad she did. Last year her friend who went with us ended up joining forces with the class bully and I think she has been very sensitive to extending her hand in friendship again.
If I can withstand the pain, I must stand up and call it a day!
Today was a great day, very busy, but full of important details.
We started the day with a great breakfast from Grandmom's Restaurant, which is conveniently located next door. It was so cloudy and overcast this morning, we all overslept, so really helped to have breakfast prepared for us.
Our first stop was North Hills, the school I have chosen for the girls for next year. It is quite a ways from home, but every time I go, I am so impressed with the students and their impressions of the school. They always have students as volunteers leading future students around the campus. These kids are engaging, very conversational (is that a word?), and extend their hand to shake, smile, and look you in the eye.
We had our pre-admission conference at 9:35.
We met the PE teacher who did our conference. It was supposed to last 30 -45 minutes, but with 2 girls that were full of questions, ours took more like an hour. Then they had a math placement test. Annabel breezed through hers since she guessed at all the answers, because they were word problems.
I thought Grace had been swallowed up in a math black hole because she took 1 1/2 hours!! She told me a few of the problems and I was impressed that she even tried.
They had a special display set up for ESL! Thank goodness! I spoke to the teacher and she said they would be pulling Annabel out for special classes. All I can say is, "FINALLY!"
After three hours, which was supposed to be maybe an hour, we raced home after stopping by a Korean restaurant for lunch for the girls.
The dogs were supposed to get groomed today, but we were 2 hours overdue for that appointment. Thankfully they agreed to take them late. Dip and Clip on Davis is the best about that. Most places require you drop them off early, even though they won't be ready for hours!
So I left the girls to eat their noodles and take a shower while I ran the dogs to the groomer.
From there we went to the Ice House Cultural Center. There was a special "Dia de los Ninos" exhibit and both girls had a piece on display. Grace has had several pieces on display, but it was Annabel's first. AND Annabel WON! BEST OF SHOW!!! I was so excited for her and it was hard for her to conceal her pleasure. She got a nice red ribbon and was only 1 of 2 winners out of 120! It was a clay piece and now she has decided she LOVES working with clay.
At North Hills they had a choice of fine arts; band, choir, art, or theater. I was sure they both would choose art, but when Annabel found out that clay would not be done EVERY day, she chose band. This was pretty funny, because I am not sure she knows what band is, BUT she loves to play like she is playing drums. Grace chose theater, which was also a big surprise, since she has really been quite shy lately. But when she learned it would be like the Christmas Carol we saw, she decided that's what she wanted to do!
After the art show we came home to get ready for our 6 month visit by the social worker for the adoption agency. It has actually been 8 months, but we had some conflicts getting it set up.
Amy, the social worker that did the original home study, was the same who came today. She is so kind and helpful, it really was not as stressful as it could have been.
She was telling me about some recent research, specifically on adoptees from Ethiopia. They have discovered a relationship of the neurotransmitters and the heightened stimulation of older adoptees due to the extensive trauma endured. These are treated with supplements and tremendous improvement seen. I relayed that I was concerned that Annabel was not grieving for her foster parents the way that Grace did, yet I know she must miss them at least as much. After all, they were the only parents she knew for about 8 years. We still have lots to work through and will follow up with some suggestions Amy made.
After that we went to pick up the dogs and it is so nice for them to smell good if even for a little while.
Facing the second surgery, I decided I had to get in better shape. It is really hard to work in working out once I get home, so I took advantage of a special at a gym that included a couple of sessions with a trainer.
When he asked how long it had been since I had worked out regularly, it dawned on me that it was MUCH longer than I had realized. So here I am WAY out of shape and WAY over weight and the trainer started me off with squats and lunges. About half way through i thought about what was missing, WARMING UP!!! I am so sore! Duh!
But I knew I probably still needed to keep moving. The zoo was having a special for members to spotlight the new albino alligators. It was really interesting being at the zoo after dark since most of the animals are nocturnal. It was difficult to see some of them, but kind of scary too. Regardless of the pain level, much less the fear level, we kept on until 9:00!
The last stop was the carousel.
While there, Annabel pointed out a family whose hair was red. She could not understand how someone's hair could be that color! There was also a Chinese family behind us in line. Annabel whispered, rather loudly, "I think they are Chinese". Really??
At karate Thursday night, the girls had sparring.
Maybe parents are not supposed to watch.
I get so nervous when the girls actually have to "fight".
There was one little girls taking her exam for a yellow belt and first up was Grace to spar with her. Grace just wouldn't fight back. She looked terrified! Pretty quickly it was Annabel's turn and she had overcome her fears from the last bout. She went right into it, headstrong, and did a great job of defending herself. I told them I was going to hire a big old boy that could take their punches, to practice with! Annabel was concerned she would hurt him! I LOVE HER SPUNK!
Wednesday was the dreadful tax day, which really wasn't dreadful, since we should get a return due to adding Annabel! But to file your taxes you must have your children's social security numbers. That was why I had applied for Annabel's back in February.
BUT it disappeared. It truly disappeared.
I searched this whole house, going through stacks of mail, adoption papers, magazines, coupons, books, drawers, files, truly everything.
I looked at work. I went through every single thing on my desk and trust me, it was a LOT. It had simply disappeared.
I finally went back to the social security office and got the number.
While putting things back into their files, there was the card. Also my pants that I had lost showed up! I knew if I could take a long enough break from looking that both would be easy to find. I would almost think that someone was just playing mean jokes on me, but guess I not!
Tomorrow, Sunday, is the Earth Day celebration in Oak Cliff. Grace wanted to invite her friend to go with us. I'm glad she did. Last year her friend who went with us ended up joining forces with the class bully and I think she has been very sensitive to extending her hand in friendship again.
If I can withstand the pain, I must stand up and call it a day!
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
The mystery of the Easter eggs
I'm glad we did our Easter egg hunting on Saturday because the weather forecast was correct. Rain!
We had a great church service, then on to Mark and Martha's for a delicious lunch. My girls LOVE seeing their cousins. And their aunt and uncle of course. My brother ALWAYS works with the most unusual characters and is very entertaining telling about his job.
In anticipation of the next surgery, I've decided I have to get in better shape. I took advantage of a 6 week program at Anytime Fitness so we stopped by there before going to Tom Thumb for breakfast necessities, and then McDonalds for dinner.
When we got home, I noticed the egg carton on the table was all torn up. Neither girl claimed responsibility and that was when I noticed the remnants of egg shell on the floor.
I guess I need to install a video camera to see who actually manages to climb up on our table, as both dogs are very small. But whichever one, they were capable of tearing apart the egg carton and getting out the egg, consuming all but a small bit of the shell. I hope the shell works as roughage!
Neither dog will talk or sell out the other!
When Grace first became ill with allergies last time I ignored her fatigue and general malaise as irritation over something else. But then she got sick and was pretty miserable for 2 weeks.
Last night when I got home, she had the same symptoms. This morning she climbed into bed with me, so that is where she is, sound asleep. I just cannot get over how much the two of us are alike. When I start having allergy/sinus problems, my body just wants to rest. If I can take a day to do that, then I nip it in the bud, otherwise, I can count on weeks of coughing, blowing, and overall just feeling badly. I hope we might stave it off this time.
It still feels odd sometimes when it is just Annabel and me, like it was for breakfast this morning. But I did notice we are finally becoming more comfortable. I grabbed her by the head as she ducked out this morning in an attempt to plant a kiss on the top of her head. AAAHHHH!!!! Why did you do that Mom?? At least she didn't wipe it off!
We had a great church service, then on to Mark and Martha's for a delicious lunch. My girls LOVE seeing their cousins. And their aunt and uncle of course. My brother ALWAYS works with the most unusual characters and is very entertaining telling about his job.
In anticipation of the next surgery, I've decided I have to get in better shape. I took advantage of a 6 week program at Anytime Fitness so we stopped by there before going to Tom Thumb for breakfast necessities, and then McDonalds for dinner.
When we got home, I noticed the egg carton on the table was all torn up. Neither girl claimed responsibility and that was when I noticed the remnants of egg shell on the floor.
I guess I need to install a video camera to see who actually manages to climb up on our table, as both dogs are very small. But whichever one, they were capable of tearing apart the egg carton and getting out the egg, consuming all but a small bit of the shell. I hope the shell works as roughage!
Neither dog will talk or sell out the other!
When Grace first became ill with allergies last time I ignored her fatigue and general malaise as irritation over something else. But then she got sick and was pretty miserable for 2 weeks.
Last night when I got home, she had the same symptoms. This morning she climbed into bed with me, so that is where she is, sound asleep. I just cannot get over how much the two of us are alike. When I start having allergy/sinus problems, my body just wants to rest. If I can take a day to do that, then I nip it in the bud, otherwise, I can count on weeks of coughing, blowing, and overall just feeling badly. I hope we might stave it off this time.
It still feels odd sometimes when it is just Annabel and me, like it was for breakfast this morning. But I did notice we are finally becoming more comfortable. I grabbed her by the head as she ducked out this morning in an attempt to plant a kiss on the top of her head. AAAHHHH!!!! Why did you do that Mom?? At least she didn't wipe it off!
Saturday, April 11, 2009
The Easter bunny is coming to town
I hope the Easter bunny is more reliable than the tooth fairy!
When we were growing up, I remember going to a huge Easter egg hunt in Paris, Texas. It was so much fun and I was always hoping to find one of the "special" eggs to win one of the "big" prizes. I'm not even sure what the "special" eggs looked like or what the prizes were, but the thrill of the hunt was what it was all about.
This is just one more holiday that is difficult to explain to Annabel.
I know we did all of this for Grace, but maybe since she was only 6 and had her cousins here to celebrate, it doesn't seem like it was as difficult to introduce these holidays.
But for Annabel at 11 years old, it seems "late" to just now be having these holidays. But it doesn't seem to lessen her interest in participating.
Today we dyed eggs, which did not make any sense, but she enjoyed it anyway! She is always afraid that her things are not good enough, but i thought she did a great job.
While they were busy dying eggs, the Easter bunny hid the eggs, since it is supposed to rain all day tomorrow.
So now I have made her dye eggs, which are supposed to be eaten, then I send her out with a basket to look for her food.
Still she didn't mind and got into the pleasure of the hunt very quickly!!
Amazingly both girls found almost the exact same number of eggs all 100 times we had to hide them!
OK, so it was not 100 and pretty quickly they decided they would rather play, but on the third try I used the smaller "hide and seek" eggs and hid them so well that at least 5 are still out there somewhere!
The three of us played soccer, or our version of it and then progressed to "Four square". I had forgotten about playing that until today. I LOVED that and kickball at their age.
We kind of made up our rules as we went along but had a good time.
I called it quits when we were all tied.
Annabel wondered if they would be getting gifts when they woke up, since Grace told her they would.
I think they were afraid that being grounded would eliminate the visit by the Easter bunny. Jana sat the standard for HUGE Easter baskets. Or was it my Auntie Betty?
At our house, the Easter bunny always came the Monday after Easter. But one weekend we were at my grandmother's at the same time that my Auntie Betty and her 4 boys were there. The Easter bunny was coming to see the Hogue boys, so they also had to come see us! That ruined the bargain Easters from then on!
I took the easy way out, I have to confess. Annabel did not have an Easter basket and for just the basket alone, it was $10!!!! Can you believe that? At Sam's I found a great Easter basket with a soccer ball and tons of other great things. But f I don't get them out of the car, it will start raining or the Easter bunny will be as bad as the tooth fairy!
When we were growing up, I remember going to a huge Easter egg hunt in Paris, Texas. It was so much fun and I was always hoping to find one of the "special" eggs to win one of the "big" prizes. I'm not even sure what the "special" eggs looked like or what the prizes were, but the thrill of the hunt was what it was all about.
This is just one more holiday that is difficult to explain to Annabel.
I know we did all of this for Grace, but maybe since she was only 6 and had her cousins here to celebrate, it doesn't seem like it was as difficult to introduce these holidays.
But for Annabel at 11 years old, it seems "late" to just now be having these holidays. But it doesn't seem to lessen her interest in participating.
Today we dyed eggs, which did not make any sense, but she enjoyed it anyway! She is always afraid that her things are not good enough, but i thought she did a great job.
While they were busy dying eggs, the Easter bunny hid the eggs, since it is supposed to rain all day tomorrow.
So now I have made her dye eggs, which are supposed to be eaten, then I send her out with a basket to look for her food.
Still she didn't mind and got into the pleasure of the hunt very quickly!!
Amazingly both girls found almost the exact same number of eggs all 100 times we had to hide them!
OK, so it was not 100 and pretty quickly they decided they would rather play, but on the third try I used the smaller "hide and seek" eggs and hid them so well that at least 5 are still out there somewhere!
The three of us played soccer, or our version of it and then progressed to "Four square". I had forgotten about playing that until today. I LOVED that and kickball at their age.
We kind of made up our rules as we went along but had a good time.
I called it quits when we were all tied.
Annabel wondered if they would be getting gifts when they woke up, since Grace told her they would.
I think they were afraid that being grounded would eliminate the visit by the Easter bunny. Jana sat the standard for HUGE Easter baskets. Or was it my Auntie Betty?
At our house, the Easter bunny always came the Monday after Easter. But one weekend we were at my grandmother's at the same time that my Auntie Betty and her 4 boys were there. The Easter bunny was coming to see the Hogue boys, so they also had to come see us! That ruined the bargain Easters from then on!
I took the easy way out, I have to confess. Annabel did not have an Easter basket and for just the basket alone, it was $10!!!! Can you believe that? At Sam's I found a great Easter basket with a soccer ball and tons of other great things. But f I don't get them out of the car, it will start raining or the Easter bunny will be as bad as the tooth fairy!
I mamam
Some days seem to be more full than others. Or at least in 24 hours, a lot can happen.
Last night on our way home from piano, I asked for the third time if anyone had homework.
A very quiet voice from the back answered, but I could not hear what Grace said.
Finally Annabel just blurts out that their math project is due tomorrow. This would be the math project that had been assigned 4 weeks before, I'm guessing. LOTS of days had passed with NO homework and lots of free time.
This assignment had them watching five 30 minute TV shows and recording how many commercials they saw. From there they had to make a graph and determine what conclusions could be drawn from the results.
Believe it or not, they had also watched plenty of TV in the last 4 weeks too.
Thank goodness for DVR or TIVO or whatever, since we were getting home at 6:30 and faced 2 1/2 hours of just watching TV before doing the rest of the project.
We had plenty of shows that we had recorded so I took control of the remote and we breezed through the shows and stopped at the commercials. Quite the opposite of the usual way to watch TV.
But the commercials on Disney and Nick are pretty entertaining too so I switched and made them watch a Food Network show, Good Eats. Much more interesting to me, but found out they have a LOT more commercials than Disney or Nick. Very surprising!
When it came time to write their conclusions, I had to help Annabel with spelling. So she wanted me to help her write, "I am surprised...". So I spelled am, a m. So she spelled it back, mamam. HUH???
Every time I tried to explain a m then she said, ok, m, now what?
It took me a while to understand that each time I said a, she thought I meant like "the" M, so she kept on adding mamam. I'm not sure if that makes sense, but it was pretty funny.
Today I had my appointment with 2 of the 3 teachers and the assistant principal. It has taken a while and lots of visits to the school, phone calls, and emails, but I think they finally understood what I was explaining and what Annabel had also told them.
Yes, Annabel still has a LOT of adjusting to do, language to learn, rules for a western society, manners, how to participate in groups, etc. BUT regardless of any or even all of this, she does not deserve to have someone taunt her, calling her bad names, make fun of her ethnicity, and spitting on her.
No specific plans were made but it did help that I knew specific situations, where they had happened, who all was involved. It has taken Annabel a LONG time to get to the point where she has shared this much.
This afternoon I decided that we needed to go shopping for something new for Easter. The girls have received so many clothes from friends that we have not bought anything in a long time and money is still so tight, but when you shop at Target, you can at least get a pretty good value and all the "extras" that girls need.
We had such a good time and ended the evening with Taco Bueno and thanks to coupons that was less than $10!
So when I write it all down like that, it does seem like a LOT for 24 hours! Plus work, plus volunteering at the book sale.
Speaking of work, this has been one of the crazier of weeks. Not due to the work itself, but due to the problems so many brought to us this week.
Then late yesterday afternoon, my co-worker Gloria, whom you have read about before, has been told that a spot on her eye may be cancerous. Not the best bed side manner, but the doctor was very frank about the risks and told how a similar patient had died within 2 months of surgery. Gloria is handling it much better than I could especially with a 15 month old and husband of 2 years.
The surgery cannot be scheduled for 2 more weeks, so there is plenty of time for prayers.
I'm thankful my friend Erika's husband is coming back from helping with the fires that have plagued North Texas. The weather is forecasting LOTS of rain, so hopefully he won't have to return any time soon.
Tomorrow has a day with building a bird house at Lowes and then possibly a craft at the Ice House. This is Annabel's first Easter, so this will be interesting.
Last night on our way home from piano, I asked for the third time if anyone had homework.
A very quiet voice from the back answered, but I could not hear what Grace said.
Finally Annabel just blurts out that their math project is due tomorrow. This would be the math project that had been assigned 4 weeks before, I'm guessing. LOTS of days had passed with NO homework and lots of free time.
This assignment had them watching five 30 minute TV shows and recording how many commercials they saw. From there they had to make a graph and determine what conclusions could be drawn from the results.
Believe it or not, they had also watched plenty of TV in the last 4 weeks too.
Thank goodness for DVR or TIVO or whatever, since we were getting home at 6:30 and faced 2 1/2 hours of just watching TV before doing the rest of the project.
We had plenty of shows that we had recorded so I took control of the remote and we breezed through the shows and stopped at the commercials. Quite the opposite of the usual way to watch TV.
But the commercials on Disney and Nick are pretty entertaining too so I switched and made them watch a Food Network show, Good Eats. Much more interesting to me, but found out they have a LOT more commercials than Disney or Nick. Very surprising!
When it came time to write their conclusions, I had to help Annabel with spelling. So she wanted me to help her write, "I am surprised...". So I spelled am, a m. So she spelled it back, mamam. HUH???
Every time I tried to explain a m then she said, ok, m, now what?
It took me a while to understand that each time I said a, she thought I meant like "the" M, so she kept on adding mamam. I'm not sure if that makes sense, but it was pretty funny.
Today I had my appointment with 2 of the 3 teachers and the assistant principal. It has taken a while and lots of visits to the school, phone calls, and emails, but I think they finally understood what I was explaining and what Annabel had also told them.
Yes, Annabel still has a LOT of adjusting to do, language to learn, rules for a western society, manners, how to participate in groups, etc. BUT regardless of any or even all of this, she does not deserve to have someone taunt her, calling her bad names, make fun of her ethnicity, and spitting on her.
No specific plans were made but it did help that I knew specific situations, where they had happened, who all was involved. It has taken Annabel a LONG time to get to the point where she has shared this much.
This afternoon I decided that we needed to go shopping for something new for Easter. The girls have received so many clothes from friends that we have not bought anything in a long time and money is still so tight, but when you shop at Target, you can at least get a pretty good value and all the "extras" that girls need.
We had such a good time and ended the evening with Taco Bueno and thanks to coupons that was less than $10!
So when I write it all down like that, it does seem like a LOT for 24 hours! Plus work, plus volunteering at the book sale.
Speaking of work, this has been one of the crazier of weeks. Not due to the work itself, but due to the problems so many brought to us this week.
Then late yesterday afternoon, my co-worker Gloria, whom you have read about before, has been told that a spot on her eye may be cancerous. Not the best bed side manner, but the doctor was very frank about the risks and told how a similar patient had died within 2 months of surgery. Gloria is handling it much better than I could especially with a 15 month old and husband of 2 years.
The surgery cannot be scheduled for 2 more weeks, so there is plenty of time for prayers.
I'm thankful my friend Erika's husband is coming back from helping with the fires that have plagued North Texas. The weather is forecasting LOTS of rain, so hopefully he won't have to return any time soon.
Tomorrow has a day with building a bird house at Lowes and then possibly a craft at the Ice House. This is Annabel's first Easter, so this will be interesting.
Friday, April 10, 2009
Grace's birthday pictures
OK, so I am a lot late, but wanted to finally add some pictures. These are from Grace's birthday party at the bowling alley. We had a great time.
Tomorrow I finally have a meeting at the school. Anxious to hear what they have to say.
Tomorrow I finally have a meeting at the school. Anxious to hear what they have to say.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
A fun filled day to Killeen, Texas
While some of what goes on in our lives probably is quite dull, it keeps my life quite eventful!
Today the 5th graders went to Killeen, Texas for an all day field trip.
If you had been here for the preparations for this day trip, you would have thought we were packing again for China. There was a check list that was checked twice! At least!
BUT you just cannot risk not having such vital components as your nintendo and MP3 player for the day, right? Plus your hot cheetos, yogurt, and oreos.
The preparation started last night and continued until they went out the door this morning. They made sure that Poppa knew that they had to be there NO later than 7:15, so 7:05 was the agreed upon time!
I couldn't help but worry all day for lots of reasons, but a main reason was concern for Annabel and the risk of being a target for the "mean" girls while spending so much time together.
The best part of the trip was that no one knew where and why they were going! So I have googled it and found out they went to Central Texas College.
According to Grace, the first stop was the nursery.
You know, the place where you learn to be a nurse. From there they think they had lunch and saw some movies and the library.
Annabel sat by her favorite teacher on the bus and I feel that I should apologize to the teacher. Annabel reported that the teacher kept trying to fall asleep, but that Annabel managed to ask her a question any time she nodded off.
When Grace called to tell me they were coming home early the noise on the bus was so loud it was almost impossible to hear her.
While hearing all the details, I kept asking if they were hungry, as it was getting late quick. No, neither were hungry, no problem.
Then as I sent them to get ready for bed Annabel announced that she had not eaten her dinner on the bus and was VERY hungry. I can't stand the thought of sending her to bed hungry as I am afraid she has done enough of that in her previous life.
It is not easy to prepare something that she can eat at 8:00 p.m. as she can take up to an hour just to eat a bowl of noodles. She does not like sandwiches, cereal, peanut butter and crackers, so I made rice! Thank goodness for Annabel, Grandmother brought home chicken tenders left over from her Luby's LuAnn special.
Last night at karate I thought I was going to cry.
The karate uniforms are $30 and I was just sure I could find one cheaper, but attempts at ebay were foiled as we are blocked from ebay access at work!So I kept losing out.
I had decided to go ahead and ask the instructor to order Annabel one. We got one for Grace from a neighbor whose daughter quit after just a few lessons. But Annabel was the only kid in class who did not have a uniform.
The instructor maintains a tough exterior pushing the kids to reach new levels of skill and ability while maintaining a strict environment.
But last night he came up to Annabel and handed her a new uniform.
We looked at each other shocked.
She quickly put it on and it fit perfectly and she quickly became just one in the class.
I don't think he expected to be paid but I was so glad for Annabel to "fit" in, I didn't care how much it cost. He took the check for the uniform but would not let me pay for her t shirt. What a nice guy!
Today the 5th graders went to Killeen, Texas for an all day field trip.
If you had been here for the preparations for this day trip, you would have thought we were packing again for China. There was a check list that was checked twice! At least!
BUT you just cannot risk not having such vital components as your nintendo and MP3 player for the day, right? Plus your hot cheetos, yogurt, and oreos.
The preparation started last night and continued until they went out the door this morning. They made sure that Poppa knew that they had to be there NO later than 7:15, so 7:05 was the agreed upon time!
I couldn't help but worry all day for lots of reasons, but a main reason was concern for Annabel and the risk of being a target for the "mean" girls while spending so much time together.
The best part of the trip was that no one knew where and why they were going! So I have googled it and found out they went to Central Texas College.
According to Grace, the first stop was the nursery.
You know, the place where you learn to be a nurse. From there they think they had lunch and saw some movies and the library.
Annabel sat by her favorite teacher on the bus and I feel that I should apologize to the teacher. Annabel reported that the teacher kept trying to fall asleep, but that Annabel managed to ask her a question any time she nodded off.
When Grace called to tell me they were coming home early the noise on the bus was so loud it was almost impossible to hear her.
While hearing all the details, I kept asking if they were hungry, as it was getting late quick. No, neither were hungry, no problem.
Then as I sent them to get ready for bed Annabel announced that she had not eaten her dinner on the bus and was VERY hungry. I can't stand the thought of sending her to bed hungry as I am afraid she has done enough of that in her previous life.
It is not easy to prepare something that she can eat at 8:00 p.m. as she can take up to an hour just to eat a bowl of noodles. She does not like sandwiches, cereal, peanut butter and crackers, so I made rice! Thank goodness for Annabel, Grandmother brought home chicken tenders left over from her Luby's LuAnn special.
Last night at karate I thought I was going to cry.
The karate uniforms are $30 and I was just sure I could find one cheaper, but attempts at ebay were foiled as we are blocked from ebay access at work!So I kept losing out.
I had decided to go ahead and ask the instructor to order Annabel one. We got one for Grace from a neighbor whose daughter quit after just a few lessons. But Annabel was the only kid in class who did not have a uniform.
The instructor maintains a tough exterior pushing the kids to reach new levels of skill and ability while maintaining a strict environment.
But last night he came up to Annabel and handed her a new uniform.
We looked at each other shocked.
She quickly put it on and it fit perfectly and she quickly became just one in the class.
I don't think he expected to be paid but I was so glad for Annabel to "fit" in, I didn't care how much it cost. He took the check for the uniform but would not let me pay for her t shirt. What a nice guy!
Sunday, April 5, 2009
A good weekend with hopes for a better week!
When you adopt a child from China, there are really strict rules on the qualifications for the adoptive parents. One of these is age. I think I know why.
By the time the adoption of Annabel was complete, I was actually past the maximum age limit, but had started the application in time, so they approved.
This weekend, I have felt every MINUTE of my age.
Friday night I helped with an auction that benefits the girls' school. This was done by a group that helped us out so much when Jana died and then again when I adopted Annabel, that I was glad to help them out for a change. ONLY all of those parents are MUCH younger than the maximum age for adopting.
We helped with setting up, then went back to get our clothes to change. While trying to make it up the steps to the party, I fell. Big time.
Our focus at work this year has been on falls and fall prevention. I had felt somewhat smug during the discussions because it had been a couple of years since I had fallen.
Friday's fall made up for it. I landed on one side, so my arm, shoulder, and leg are bruised and VERY sore. Then I had to stay on my feet through the whole thing and dogs were yapping by the end of the night.
The girls had a great time spending the night with Mom and Dad. They even went to IHOP without me and got to stay up much later than I allow!
Saturday was a day for errands and if I had not had my girls, not sure if we could have done it all.
At the grocery store, I gave the girls the coupons of what we were shopping for and away they went. I realized it was a good way for Annabel to practice reading too.
Later we went to pick up the dogs' medicine. While there, I thought the girls were just going to stay. Thankfully we have a kind and patient vet who took the time to answer thousands of questions. When I mentioned that Grace wanted to become a vet, he showed a number of scars from bites and scrapes from the animals he has treated. I don't think that was a deterrent.
Since Annabel had a hard week, I always think a visit to the Chinese buffet provides "comfort food". I told them that while we were eating and realized they are completely unfamiliar with that term. Pretty funny to explain.
Tonight while eating dinner, I asked Annabel if she had to wash her own clothes in China. She had told us before she did, but I was not sure how she did it. I am not sure what she was describing, but somewhere behind the group home, she was responsible for washing her own clothes, as well as her foster brothers. She knew how to get out the stains and rub the clothes together to get them clean. There was also some sort of scrub board they used. I forgot to ask how they dried them, but when asked about her foster family and washing clothes, she told me that her foster mother had a washing machine. I hope so, but really doubt it.
Grace had told me before about going to the river to help her foster mother wash clothes. Today she mentioned that you had to be careful not to lose your clothes by them floating down the river.
I asked Annabel if she was surprised when I adopted her that she no longer had to wash her own clothes. She said she wasn't, but she also mentioned again about her foster mother calling her "Annabel".
Grace mentioned something else that happened when she first got here and didn't tell me because she was afraid to tell me. I asked why she was afraid. She and Annabel answered quickly because in China they would have been in trouble for a lot of things they were afraid to tell me. So the safer way was not to tell me.
I wish the amount of love and support they get during the weekend could hold them through the week. This is a hard week too with another of the TAKS tests and a day long field trip. At church today, a dear sweet man prayed that they will triumph over these bullies. So do I.
By the time the adoption of Annabel was complete, I was actually past the maximum age limit, but had started the application in time, so they approved.
This weekend, I have felt every MINUTE of my age.
Friday night I helped with an auction that benefits the girls' school. This was done by a group that helped us out so much when Jana died and then again when I adopted Annabel, that I was glad to help them out for a change. ONLY all of those parents are MUCH younger than the maximum age for adopting.
We helped with setting up, then went back to get our clothes to change. While trying to make it up the steps to the party, I fell. Big time.
Our focus at work this year has been on falls and fall prevention. I had felt somewhat smug during the discussions because it had been a couple of years since I had fallen.
Friday's fall made up for it. I landed on one side, so my arm, shoulder, and leg are bruised and VERY sore. Then I had to stay on my feet through the whole thing and dogs were yapping by the end of the night.
The girls had a great time spending the night with Mom and Dad. They even went to IHOP without me and got to stay up much later than I allow!
Saturday was a day for errands and if I had not had my girls, not sure if we could have done it all.
At the grocery store, I gave the girls the coupons of what we were shopping for and away they went. I realized it was a good way for Annabel to practice reading too.
Later we went to pick up the dogs' medicine. While there, I thought the girls were just going to stay. Thankfully we have a kind and patient vet who took the time to answer thousands of questions. When I mentioned that Grace wanted to become a vet, he showed a number of scars from bites and scrapes from the animals he has treated. I don't think that was a deterrent.
Since Annabel had a hard week, I always think a visit to the Chinese buffet provides "comfort food". I told them that while we were eating and realized they are completely unfamiliar with that term. Pretty funny to explain.
Tonight while eating dinner, I asked Annabel if she had to wash her own clothes in China. She had told us before she did, but I was not sure how she did it. I am not sure what she was describing, but somewhere behind the group home, she was responsible for washing her own clothes, as well as her foster brothers. She knew how to get out the stains and rub the clothes together to get them clean. There was also some sort of scrub board they used. I forgot to ask how they dried them, but when asked about her foster family and washing clothes, she told me that her foster mother had a washing machine. I hope so, but really doubt it.
Grace had told me before about going to the river to help her foster mother wash clothes. Today she mentioned that you had to be careful not to lose your clothes by them floating down the river.
I asked Annabel if she was surprised when I adopted her that she no longer had to wash her own clothes. She said she wasn't, but she also mentioned again about her foster mother calling her "Annabel".
Grace mentioned something else that happened when she first got here and didn't tell me because she was afraid to tell me. I asked why she was afraid. She and Annabel answered quickly because in China they would have been in trouble for a lot of things they were afraid to tell me. So the safer way was not to tell me.
I wish the amount of love and support they get during the weekend could hold them through the week. This is a hard week too with another of the TAKS tests and a day long field trip. At church today, a dear sweet man prayed that they will triumph over these bullies. So do I.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
A double whammy
When will this school year be over?
Last night I was overhearing a conversation between Annabel and Grace about school. Annabel was very distressed. Something had happened and it went from one topic to another finally ending with her despair over never having had a friend.
She came and laid down on my bed face down crying.
We talked for almost an hour about the problems she continues to have with just a few of the girls in her class. This isn't news. It is something we have been dealing with from the very beginning of school and continues to be the same small group of girls causing all the problems.
Annabel is so desperate to fit in and to make a friend that she has tolerated all sorts of abuse from these girls. The name calling, the pushing, the spitting, all just make my blood pressure spike!
I tried to reason with Annabel that there had to be other girls to be friends with and to just ignore these girls. I even threatened to take away privileges if she continued to pursue their friendship.
Of course I know that none of that will help.
What I really don't understand is how this continues to take place. Evidently Annabel cries at school often because her feelings are hurt. She just does not cry at home. UNLESS she is talking about things that happened at school.
Tonight I wanted to clarify a few things she told me last night. So I brought it up again.
This time I asked Grace if she had heard any of the girls saying the things that Annabel reported.
Grace began to cry and told me that something had happened at the end of the school year last year that she was afraid to tell me about.
One of the same girls that has tormented Annabel had started a "club" called IHG. While they told her it stood for something else, she knew it stood for "I hate Grace". How cruel is that? One of these little girls had been to our house several times and Grace to hers. The other has been in her class since the very first year.
She was afraid to tell me because she thought I would call the mothers involved and then then their daughters over her. Oh dear. How can I build their confidence in my love for them.
I feel so emotionally drained and overwhelmed.
I've asked for a meeting at the school. So far it has not helped, but feel I need to continue trying. I have to make sure they know that they finally have a mom that will take care of them and fight their fights.
Last night I was overhearing a conversation between Annabel and Grace about school. Annabel was very distressed. Something had happened and it went from one topic to another finally ending with her despair over never having had a friend.
She came and laid down on my bed face down crying.
We talked for almost an hour about the problems she continues to have with just a few of the girls in her class. This isn't news. It is something we have been dealing with from the very beginning of school and continues to be the same small group of girls causing all the problems.
Annabel is so desperate to fit in and to make a friend that she has tolerated all sorts of abuse from these girls. The name calling, the pushing, the spitting, all just make my blood pressure spike!
I tried to reason with Annabel that there had to be other girls to be friends with and to just ignore these girls. I even threatened to take away privileges if she continued to pursue their friendship.
Of course I know that none of that will help.
What I really don't understand is how this continues to take place. Evidently Annabel cries at school often because her feelings are hurt. She just does not cry at home. UNLESS she is talking about things that happened at school.
Tonight I wanted to clarify a few things she told me last night. So I brought it up again.
This time I asked Grace if she had heard any of the girls saying the things that Annabel reported.
Grace began to cry and told me that something had happened at the end of the school year last year that she was afraid to tell me about.
One of the same girls that has tormented Annabel had started a "club" called IHG. While they told her it stood for something else, she knew it stood for "I hate Grace". How cruel is that? One of these little girls had been to our house several times and Grace to hers. The other has been in her class since the very first year.
She was afraid to tell me because she thought I would call the mothers involved and then then their daughters over her. Oh dear. How can I build their confidence in my love for them.
I feel so emotionally drained and overwhelmed.
I've asked for a meeting at the school. So far it has not helped, but feel I need to continue trying. I have to make sure they know that they finally have a mom that will take care of them and fight their fights.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)