Goodbye Friend

Today was the first morning in a long time that my alarm woke me up before my bladder did.  I seem to have a consistent problem where I wake up sooner than planned where my bladder is telling me it's time to go.  Is this a sign of getting older?  

I wanted to talk a little bit about a childhood friend of mine.  For quite a few years she was my best friend.  We were almost inseparable.  I was in fourth grade and she was in third grade when we met.  As soon as that tall red head stepped on the school bus she greeted me as if we had known each other for years.  She was sweet, kind and purely innocent.  Unfortunately, her life at home was one of the worst experiences I had ever seen.  Her father was in jail and her mother was barely present.  Thankfully, the girls had a loving grandmother who was the glue that kept the household together, until she died many years later.  Sherri and I spent a lot of time in each other's homes, even though her home gave me an uneasy feeling.  When I was going into eighth grade and she was getting ready to start junior high I moved to Pennsylvania.  We kept in touch by phone and the next summer she visited for a week.  In her eighth grade year she met a man much older and she became pregnant and dropped out of school.  This man was no good for her, I can tell you that.  She had a second daughter with him.  After that we lost touch but then reconnected years later on Facebook.  Actually, I connected with her little sister first.  

Sherri's life spiraled downhill as she got older.  I don't want to get into too many details and be as respectful as possible.  It just wasn't good.  She had a total of eight children, all that were no longer in her custody.  A few days ago I found out from her sister that she had passed away over the weekend.  They did not have the details as the police were investigating but I can only take a guess as to what happened.  I won't say it out loud.  All that matters is she lost a battle that she fought for years.  I can only pray for the children she leaves behind.  

I took this picture from her sister's Facebook.  I had some pictures from our early childhood days but have lost them.  Her life just did not bring her any hope but it's my wish she is now at peace.

In other news, my job is going well.  It's been exactly one week since I started.  It's an easy quick trip in the morning and afternoon.  The space in between I use for housecleaning.  I've been spending some time in our rec room area today brainstorming and coming up with ideas to make this a more useable and fun space for the kids and their friends.  There's so much squished in this room and a lot of it is toys that are barely touched anymore.  I have the plan in mind but now I have to execute it into reality.  One step at a time.  

Ending Week One of School

The start of the school year has definitely been an interesting one.  Day one there was a gas leak at the middle school where my daughter attends.  Day two there was a bomb threat at the high school where my son goes.  Apparently, someone said they planted bombs in the cafeteria.  He was detained, the school was evacuated and a search was made by first responders and the K-9 unit.  Nothing was found and this boy will be sent to juvie.  Day three my daughter forgot her I-Pad so after my morning van run I took it to the school.

I'm happy it's Friday!

I had been so worried about how my son would do with going back to school.  His anxiety towards school has been bad since the return of the Covid shutdown.  Over the summer he told me he refuses to take the school bus.  Well, things so far seem to be going well.  He willingly went on the bus and said the ride is quiet, of course teenagers would rather scroll their cell phones than talk to each other, and it's a quick ride.  He also seemed excited about his AP (Advanced Placement) classes and how he can earn college credits already.  It seems he really wants to focus on school and working hard.  It makes me feel so glad.  The chaos of yesterday had me worried if this would send his anxiety into a spiral again but he seemed okay.  He stayed in contact with me throughout the day and I made sure to be the calm that he needed.  He's also part of the CTE (Career and Technology Education) where he can learn about engineering, something he might be interested in as a career.  It has been such a relief to see this school year may go well for him.  So far, at least.  

My job with the van is going well.  Every other school day I take a 12th grader to Vo-Tech, which is 14 miles away.  Then I pick up a 5th grader and the elementary school is at the end of her road so it's a two minute trip.  After Labor Day I'll have a 1st grader added to the van.  I'm back home by 9am and don't have to leave again until 2:30pm when I pick up the senior, or 3:30 when I just have to go to elementary.  Then I'm back home by 4pm.  In between runs I'm at home either grocery shopping or cleaning the house.  For years I had trouble getting this house to be in decent shape.  Now that I'm free of distraction, aside from the needs of the dog, I can get through whatever needs done.  I even want to reserve certain days for writing.  I miss being in the cafeteria but this change is a Godsend.  

If only I can get this crazy dog to stop chewing up everything she finds.  I forgot how grueling having a puppy is.  

Changes

Well, summer vacation is over.  It was a pretty laid. back summer.  No overnight vacations.   We bought a puppy so our time was spent at home allowing her to have time to adjust and train.  Now, as quickly as a snap of the finger it's time for school.   

7th grade. 

10th grade.  

My daughter is excited to get back with friends and start the new year but my son has a lot of anxiety and is not thrilled to be back in school.   I spent a lot of time over the summer praying for him.  Getting him back to brick and mortar school last year after two years of virtual was a big struggle.   I fear this year will be the same so I'm doing my best to work with him and keep the communication open.  As a parent it's my job to give him a push to do hard things but it's difficult to do.   I'm not a fan of public school anymore but the answers of what to do with my kids are unclear.  One day at a time.  He loves sports and is a student athlete.  He needs to be there.  He should be.  

And with me, I made a difficult decision to trade in my hair net for a minivan.  That's right, I'm a school van driver now.  

It's only been two days but so far it's been easy.  I love the split shift so I can be home during the day for uninterrupted housecleaning.  The cafeteria was becoming more stressful by the year and it was frustrating watching a coworker get away with many things I'd get in trouble for, and more reasons.  I feel this new direction will be a great one and an answered prayer.   

Here's to a new school year of changes and growth.