Okay, so I keep meaning to post something on here. And I keep thinking that if I just put it off a little while longer, than the perfect thing to say or what to talk about will just kind of jump out at me. But then life gets in the way. Well, maybe that's the whole point. Life. Alright, so now I have something to talk (or rather type) about...
Let's see, right now we're house looking. We'd prefer to own/rent-to-own, but around here that doesn't happen without a large down payment. Something we don't have. So we're stuck with renting. Why move? The schools here suck. While I homeschool one furball, the other two are stuck in the government system, and thus we have to take that into account. So, we're hoping to move to a school system where the kids are actually expected to do work and perform at their best, and given some form of motivation to do so. The system here is little more than a free babysitter. To the extent that B can take in papers where she has written my first name on the "parent's signature" line in her own hand-writing and the teacher accepts it, under the guise that I must have just "forgotten" to sign it. Right... Anyway, so far we've called about around 20 houses, seen 3 and have one more scheduled to look at this afternoon. We like two of the three we've been in, although one screams out as being more practical for us at this time. The one we're in serious consideration over is in Springfield, which isn't necessarily bad. We want out of the Springfield area in the long run, but for right now it's what we can find and afford. Plus, it's close to most of KiKi's doctor appointments and such.
As for the furballs, they're doing alright.
ZoKo is still doing school work daily, and I am still keeping records (which I plan to post on here this evening), even though she has already completely her 1,000 mandatory hours for second grade. Oh, and she also just completed a 5 minute math drill in 60 seconds flat...
KiKi just started speech therapy and occupational therapy (he's on a waiting list for physical therapy), after a 1.25 year hiatus. The speech therapist is the only one he's met so far, and just once. The therapists are not the same ones as the ones who did the evaluations. On the first meeting, I don't really like this speech therapist. She doesn't seem a good fit for him, and thought she was connecting when she wasn't. She also wants to focus on aversion therapy, using things he hates in order to get desired responses. He does not respond well to this procedure, and it has resulted in severe long-term breakdowns in the past.
B is doing well at home. Not so much at school. Her teacher and other influences have convinced her that she has no reason to bother to do her best while at school. So, while she's at a mid-3rd grade math level at home (and rapidly progressing), she is currently bringing home papers in the 50-55% range from school. Why? Because she doesn't feel like doing the work and the teacher just gives her the answers if she's wrong, so why bother trying... Yes, at home, we make her do "school work", and we make her fix it on her own if she gets something wrong. We also expect her to do her best. Those last two things are seriously lacking in the public school system here. They do not believe in kids doing their best work up front, or in making them learn from fixing their mistakes. If you are wrong, the teacher tells you the right answer. And why do your best when "just okay" is good enough? Sheesh, what is our society coming to? Anyway, this is what brought on the whole "time to move" scenario. And yes, we did try to talk to the officials, they all feel her teacher is too strict (if anything), and there are some other issues there as well. Let's just say that some people need to learn the term "conflict of interest"...
As for Odie, I'm not going to say much. Sort of like pleading the fifth. I don't feel like arguing with anyone that doesn't entirely know the situation, or like being held on trial for someone who pretends to know what's going on simply to judge first without bothering to take in the full presentation.
KiKi has been in overload mode for a few weeks now, mostly due to an overwhelming number of evaluations, doctor's appointments, road trips, and new strangers to meet. I really feel badly for him and hope like heck that my baby can snap out of it and return to his former happiness soon, and without too much more of an ordeal.
As for me personally, my days are filled with doctor appointments, shopping, laundry, dishes, schooling, and a million other things I never quite seem to get around to. I intend to start posting on here more frequently. Although every time that I post that intention I get side-swiped with more time-consuming tasks. So maybe I should try saying I'll never write on here again and see if the internet ghosts are subject to reverse psychology... Just a thought. Love ya and peace out. :)
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