Sunday, February 28, 2010

Just for you

I've got a suprise for you! When you're having one of those days where your kid is being the most whiny, cranky & misbehaved kid ever, feel free to refer to THIS story & use it. Go ahead. Pass it around. Tell your friends. Whatever. I'm a giver. Merry Christmas. Happy Birthday.

My 2 oldest boys decided to quickly jump in the shower. I should have known something was up right there. After several minutes Reagan emerged from said shower crying & talking about pee. Yes pee. A few seconds later Reid jumps out of said shower & begins trying to defend himself. From what we still had no idea. We were still trying to decipher:

Reagan-"Reid..sob...sniffle..sob..he...cry..sob..pee..."

Reid-"But..but..he.."

Now I had two brothers & heard stories. I'm thinking maybe someone peed in the shower & the other one slipped in it. Which is gross in itself but better than what actually happened.

So we make both boys get dressed & sit down to explain. Both boys decided to see if you could fill a water gun with pee. Then undecided on how to then rid the gun of pee got the brilliant idea to take turns shooting each other with it. I know. I know.

You're welcome.

Monday, January 25, 2010

Report Cards

As a student that struggled with grades, especially Math, I have looked at the report card as more of an ongoing progress chart. That's not to say I have no expectations. I expect each child to perform within their spectrum. No conduct issues are acceptable.

Reagan has maintained a steady stream of S's. Which is Satisfactory. Meaning great for 1st grade. Reid has struggled with Math & Science. Boy can I relate. Tutoring has helped & so now we have all 80-100's with our math grade being the best improvement. Going from a 65 to a 90!! I know how hard he worked for that 90 so it means more to us. Going in early everyday for 6 weeks paid off well. Reid is proud of himself too which is the most important thing.

Reagan is the Student of the Week at school. Which means we made a huge poster outlining his interests & fun facts. He gets special attention from his friends & teacher. I get to read his favorite books to his class & he will get an awesome crown made of cardboard. Yay!! So all in all a great week for the Howard clan.

Normal

"There's a new kid on our bus Mom, and he sits by me." Great, I thought while I listened to Reid describe this child. He seemed like a very nice young man. Every day after that Reid came home to tell me something else he'd learned about his friend on the bus ride to & from school. He was in a car wreck, his brother is still in the hospital, his Mom is in jail, his Mom was driving drunk & caused a wreck that almost killed his younger brother, he lives w/ a new foster family. The story kept getting worse as the week went on.

I talked to Reid about it & of course he had a ton of questions. I checked on the family to ask if they needed anything since they are indeed a foster family & had just inherited a couple of boys. They said they were OK & were actually happy that their new "son" was talking to someone since he says nothing at home. The stories this child says are true & so much worse. After 2 weeks this child had unloaded all of his burdens & was finally able to talk about something else.

After learning what foster care meant Reid was sad he may one day lose his new friend. He asked me one night if we could ever adopt his friend & his brother, like The Blindside movie. I explained life isn't like a movie. There are laws, rules & circumstances beyond our control. I told Reid that God had chosen this certain foster home, this bus & him to help this child heal. To listen, learn & be grateful. Saturday when I looked outside Reid was playing with this child & they were both so happy. So normal. I said a silent prayer that this precious child get as much "normal" as possible.