Groovin'

In spite of all my handwringing about it, I'm still on the Supply Teachers List this year, and I have to confess, I feel pretty good about it. I probably would have taken a fulltime job if one had been offered, but it wasn't and I'm ok with that. The fact that I didn't have a cell phone for them to call me on and was in PEI when the major hiring was done might have had something to do with it, but such is life.

I'm especially ok with it because being on the supply list means that unlike Diva Girl, I didn't start back at school a day after getting home from our trip. While I think that the quick turn around was the right decision for her, I'm glad to have the extra time to settle into a new routine before adding work to the mix. The Zen baby and I finally getting into a groove without Diva Girl around--she still misses her sister and remains jealous that Diva Girl gets to head off on the school bus each day while she stays home with mom, but the lures of Super Why, outings to Grandma's house, and all the toys to herself are making it a bit easier to bear. And I'm finally getting everything unpacked and put away without turning around to find the room I've just tidied has somehow morphed into something that would make FEMA cry in my absence.

My two favourite things this September are Super Why and the School Bus.

I don't know if I have the words to describe how much I adore Princess P and the gang and the uninterrupted half hour they give me every morning. Regan has embraced this show with a passion not seen since she first discovered the Wonder Pets. Her day is not complete without Super Why, and since it gives me time to blog without the constant interruptions, mine isn't either. Would it be wrong to tivo it? I can barely even imagine the possibilities of a whole hour (or more) to myself in the middle of the day.

As to the school bus, let's just say that I've finally found a relationship that I can commit to. I looooove the school bus. No more hour roundtrip to drop Diva Girl off at school. These days, it's a two minute game of tag and then home before we would have even left to get to the old school. And picking her up is now a five minute affair, not a 45 minute production. Nearly a whole other hour added to my personal time in a day, all thanks to that shiny yellow bus. It really is magic, you know!

Diva Girl is settling into her new school better than I ever could have hoped for. Sure, there was last weekend's whole Exorcist reenactment, and yesterday there was wailing and gnashing of teeth about the French homework, and she cannot seem to remember to bring home her lunchbox more than 50% of the time, but other than that, I think it's going well. She's (mostly) happy to get on the bus in the morning, and (mostly) happy when she gets off in the afternoons, which is really all you can hope for once you send your kids out into the world, I think.

It may be that new kid cachet protecting her, but I haven't heard tell of any Heathers on this this particular playground. That doesn't mean that they're not there; of course they are. One of the things that you learn as a woman is that Heathers are an inevitable fact of life--sort of like periods, pimples, and guys who don't call when they say they will. Diva Girl, however, doesn't know this yet. She thinks that the move to a new school has solved everything and that she will no longer be subjected to the "very special" attention that only a friend like a Heather can give you. I wonder if I should clue her in, let her know that it's just not that simple, but after years of being at the mercy of Heather's whims and moods, I'm enjoying the break from this particular drama at least as much as Diva Girl is.

It's hard, as a mother, to watch your child struggle socially. To desperately want to make friends, but not know how. To continually misread social cues and to rush headlong into disappointment time after time. So I'm nearly as excited as she is by the fact that today, along with various and sundry papers and bits of homework, Diva Girl brought home something truly exciting in her backpack. No, not the Scholastic flyer, although that would have been awesome. This was even better though: She had a birthday party invitation. I know it doesn't really mean anything, and for all I know this little girl's mother made her invite all the girls in the class, but it's still tangible proof that she's included in the group. That at the very least they are willing to tolerate her presence and maybe, possibly, want to be her friend.

I'm usually not above holding party invitations hostage--making attendance at the event contingent on good behaviour--but this time, I'm giving her a free pass. Even if we have a repeat of last weekend's Omenlike antics, I'm going to let her go to this party and make friends with these new girls. Clean rooms and less backtalk are important, but so is being included, and this weekend I'm making my social caterpillar the priority.

I'm also about to give a whole new set of mommies a headache as I kill two birds with one stone and buy a birthday present guaranteed to shake things up a bit at school.

Comments

I'm a big fan of Super Why also; and its educational so I don't even have to feel guilty when I let them watch it twice in one day!

We LOVE webkinz in our house!!!! The chicken has 3 of them (one of which I purchased after she got 2 as gifts) and they keep her busy for hours! I'll admit that I often log onto her account and play in the arcade. lol

I am with you on the social interaction thing. My kiddo just started 8th grade and some days I get the sense that the school is being run by a bunch of hyenas who are waiting to tear my beloved child to pieces.

Being a teenaged boy sucks under the best circumstances, but it's hell on earth when they are not socially adroit.

Good luck Diva Girl!

You are a TOP MOMMA!
http://www.topmomma.com/mommas/referal/894

How's the party go? (Or is it next weekend?)

The delight of feeling your offspring accepted into a social group is such a weight off the shoulders. Health is super good. Literacy is a plus. Good eating habits are great. But having friends lightens their load something fierce and that makes our load a lot more bearable. Yeah for all of you!

Yeah, I have to say, one of the best things about the Bee's decision to have a sleepover every year is that I don't have to worry much about the social aspect of her life. She just invites 3 or 4 girls, so there's none of that 'will she come or won't she' drama. Although it amazes me that even inside a group of 3 or 4, they still figure out ways to isolate each other.