first day of kindergarten! (warning, this post is mainly me complaining)

(i wrote this post without capitalizing any sentences at all. then i decided to go back and capitalize them. then i realized that was too much work. so excuse my on and off capitalization in this post! and I'm just going to post it and not proof read it. its just too much work at this point)


I thought I'd write out Conrads first week of kindergarten for absolutely no reason at all.

Were you expecting me to say so i would remember these little things later down the road? that just seemed too obvious don't you think?

so okay. like right now, for example the Haitians need to come to America. but we'll skip that and jump right into Conrad's life as a school student.

his first day i woke up 6AM sharp. i was totally that mom who jumped right in the shower and got all ready and excited even though Conrad is a "late bird" at his school. they have the early birds (I am not an early bird so that's a big, HELL no thanks! I'm not getting him to school by 8:30 every single day. can you imagine? its just so…EARLY, BIRD.) so he's a "late bird", which starts at 10:35.

  Jeremy, Scarlet and myself decided to walk Conrad to school because we can literally see the playground of his school from our master bedroom window. we thought how pleasant it would be, and the walk can't be THAT long. i mean, we can see the school yard from here! only that its august and 10am---BAM WHOOF KABLAMO! its already 90 degrees outside! like what in the crap? by the time we took that nice long wonderful hot delicious HOT (did i mention it was hot? it was hot did i tell you?) walk to the school i was dying. because it was hot. i loved that we did this because we are currently a one car family right now. actually we have been for almost 2 years now so I've been used to it in a sense. just not the sense that i have to walk places in the heat. the only place i walk to in the heat is the pool at our little community. oh right! back to Conrad! yes. okay.

He wasn't so very nervous. Huzzah! He's not a loud obnoxious kid when it comes to things like this. He's pretty chill when it comes to a big group type of environment so he was quiet and stood near us. We all waited around with the other parents and students IN THE HEAT in the section where it said his teachers name. It was very cramped and we were all kind of huddled together. There is just something about standing close to strangers and little children in the sun that makes you feel really joyous you know? Your scalp starts to prickle and you start to bite your lips and you think of how you could murder…oh look! Someones coming to take the kids to their classrooms! Girls called "proctors" are there to line up the kids and take them to their class. So we all walked to see his new classroom and meet his new teacher! We walked into his classroom!  There was his teacher! AND! AND! AND! She was just sitting there. I think she said hello? I think? She already had her "early bird" class all seated on the floor. It was very quiet. I was expecting something. Anything? Some type of direction? Jeremy said to go look for his name on one of the tables. Thanks for the direction Jer, thanks for nothing Mrs stupid head. I found Conrad's name on a table in the far corner of the classroom with a big packet on it. I think I was supposed to pick it up? Was this for me? I looked around to see what the other parents were doing and some picked them up. I felt like it was my first day of school too. I felt lost and looked around to see what everyone else was doing. Do you remember those days? Oh I hated that I feel so lost what are we supposed to be doing right now in class? It gives me knots in my stomach just thinking about it.  The teacher never introduced herself. Never gave a little speech. Nothing at all.  I'm not even trying to be dramatic or lame, I promise. She didn't even make eye contact. The only thing she said was "Okay parents give your kids a hug and a kiss and say goodbye". That's it! No hello?! No welcome! No greeting the kids?! All she said was to come sit on the mat. Conrad looked at me with a helpless look in his eyes. Maybe because I had the same expression also. I smiled and tried my best to give him my most encouraging look! I excitingly said "Okay bud lets go sit on the mat!" He sat on the very edge on the side not close to any kids and I gave him a big hug and a kiss and he let me give him a big kiss which he normally is like "ew mom!" But I think he wanted it and needed it. I needed it too. It was all a little too fast too soon for me. Don't we at least get to spoon or cuddle for a second? Or…no? Call you tomorrow? You'll call me? Oh…well…okay? ….Nice meeting you? Did we meet?

He came home and said he loved his first day of school! He made a buddy named Michael! Michael is now his best friend and that's basically all he talks about. It was pretty cute. His teacher sent home a big packet of homework the first day to be completed by Friday. I was like whoa okay! Here we go! This is it!

Jeremy had to leave for a work convention in San Diego. Basically he gets to sit in a class all day then they all go out to a really expensive restaurant, order tons and tons of food. Its all paid for by his work, including drinks so everyone gets super super drunk and Jeremy gets to order steaks that cost 67 dollars which he claimed was just average (he texted me this while I was eating cereal. Oh the envy!) And he is the only sober one enjoying the show. Then everyone goes back to the hotel bar and stays out until 3am drinking all night. They stayed classy. Jeremy however doesn't drink, so he would be totally exhausted tired and pass out in his room at 11 and have no idea how his co-workers could drink all night and be able to work the next day. You stay classy San Diego.

So ANY WAY  I  had the whole first week of school to manage on my own. It was a lot harder than I thought it was going to be. Trying to get Conrad to do his homework, (Hello tantrum) managing to get myself, Scarlet and Conrad all ready for the day while making sure he's had breakfast, being creative in packing a lunch each day, making sure both kids are bathed, dinner made, keeping the house clean, and all that jazz was sort of difficult. I would have Conrad start on his homework, run upstairs to give scarlet a bath, run back down because Conrad was yelling for me, run back up for Scarlet. It was so exhausting. Then I had to bathe Conrad because, duh, and he would get so sweaty from school. I give my kids a bath every single night but for some reason it seemed so much harder this week trying to get homework done, dinner ready at the perfect time because now he had to have a good bedtime! I mean, its a school night now!

We have to park far away to drop Conrad off at school. Scarlet HATED having to take him to school and picking him up. Getting her dressed and into the car itself was a nightmare. We have to get out and walk across the street and walk him up to his table and then all the parents would stand around and wait until these girls walk them to their classroom. We weren't allowed to go with the students to their classrooms but for some reason I felt like I should stand and wait until the girls were ready to take them back. Maybe because the other parents were also? By Wednesday I was like you guys are whack and realized it was hot and didn't need to wait around 5 minutes until it was time for them to go. All the kids just sat at their assigned table anyway. (In the shade, thank goodness)  I think those were the overbearing dumb parents. Plus scarlet was like yo mom! i gots stuff to do back at home. i was so glad i had the car because everyday was so freaking hot! Then to pick him up, we all have to wait on this grassy area, then a girl has to unlock this side door and we all have to cram our way up this narrow stairway and walk into their classrooms and the teacher has to look at the parent and let the kid go one at a time. Its a hassle. I guess it is what it is though?

Day two of school Conrad didn't eat his lunch. I asked him why and he said the teacher never said it was lunch time. I was so confused by this and SO sad to know he was at school all day and didn't eat a thing! or drink! I asked if he went to the bathroom and he said yes. He looked really hot and flushed when I picked him up. I told him when he is excused for lunch he needs to eat. He kept saying BUT MY TEACHER DOESN'T SAY ITS LUNCH TIME! I was so confused?! What was the drill exactly?

Day THREE.  I packed his lunch yet again and talked to one of the girls who take the kids back to their class and told her my son hasn't been eating  his lunch and explained what was going on. She felt just as sad as I had! She asked what his name was and was sure to see that his lunch was eaten. He came home with his lunch pail full and super thirsty and dying to go to the bathroom. this sort of thing was seriously killing me. i felt so mad. what the heck is his teacher doing?! how can she not see that my son was leaving for lunch empty handed!? in his backpack i received a letter i owe the school cafeteria money because they fed Conrad one day. Conrad said "oh! my teacher said i need to give this to you!" i asked if he ate and he said no. well, just some carrots and milk. I thought THAT is what they fed you?! only carrots and milk?! i felt really sad and helpless at this point and couldn't help but cry. Jeremy is the major aggressor and really pushes me out of my comfort zone to be more bold. i am very bold but he has made me VERY outspoken when it comes to getting things my way. i mean, this is a no brainer but i just wish that Jeremy had been home this week because if he had been i know this wouldn't have gone on 3 days. i thought talking to the girl earlier solved my problems but obviously not.

Day four I finally walked with the students back to the class and talked to his teacher for the first time (like hello. don't you think she would introduce herself to all the parents the first day of school? i heard her take roll one day and she makes all the students say "aloha". one kid said something and she said "just aloha is all you need to say" it kinda made me turn my head sideways and want to slap her across the face. you know the feeling.) i explained to her that Conrad has not been eating his lunch and the whole situation. she said does he need to sit next to miss Sarah today at lunch? i was like, yes? i guess? who is Sarah? why does he need to sit next to her. you are his teacher you twat YOU need to see that he's bringing his lunch pail to lunch! which he hadn't been doing in case i didn't make that clear…
 that day he ate his lunch! yes! victory! he still is too shy to ask to use the bathroom.  I'm thinking doesn't the teacher ask the class if anyone needs to use the restroom? does she? what goes on in that class?! i expected to have her send home a big letter of what to expect for the school year, or what a day in the class is like but instead she just sent home a packet of homework and that's it. so weird? i mean, this is kindergarten not senior year or high school. I'm so new to this school so i have no idea if this teacher totally sucks or what. so far I'm thinking yes.
 Friday Conrad didn't eat his lunch but had spilled a bottle of water in his backpack. i was so mad! and so upset! and on top of it all, the teacher puts in all of his homework, and books and the work they've been doing in class in their backpacks (i know this because everything is in separate folders that she puts them in) and everything was drenched in water! so I'm thinking, she obviously saw this and still put everything in there? so he came home with a back pack filled with all his paperwork completely falling apart. like WHAT IS GOING ON OVER THERE?!

 I pulled out this gigantic stack of paper that they had obviously been working on that week. it was enormous!!!! i could not believe the amount of work they had done in just one week. i showed it to Jeremy when he finally arrived back home after his work trip and even he was amazed and he isn't a big reaction type guy. i finally realized why Conrad HATED doing his homework each night. i image all day all they do IS homework type stuff. it was about 30 pages worth of stuff. if not more. if you went to your printer and picked up a stack of paper that's how much they did just in class alone! I'm a little torn because i think, well its good he's learning a lot and i suppose its better to be pushed hard instead of the opposite. its just a little hard for this new mom who isn't used to all this new school stuff for her first born. (why am i talking in a third person?)

Conrad seems to be enjoying school so far. he loves playing and he loves his friend Michael. he sits next to a girl who he says he doesn't talk to because "he doesn't like girls". but at church he has a girlfriend i hear? so maybe he's just into the LDS chicks. i can dig that.

Conrad is still kind of questioning WHY he has to go to school everyday. He's like i have to go AGAIN?! when it was Friday i told him he didn't have to go to school tomorrow or Sunday and he gave me the loudest high five. it felt like a dude was giving me a high five like he just won the a basketball game. So theres that for ya.

so today is Monday and i had an early morning dentist appointment and Jeremy had to get Conrad ready for school. again his lunch wasn't eaten…but i forgot about the water spilling in his backpack and didn't realize there was a little puddle at the bottom of it. i didn't get him ready at all so Jeremy was fully in charge. he sent Conrad off to school with water in his pack and when he came home i pulled out sopping wet paper and his school folder completely ruined by water. so, did the teacher just ignore the fact that everything in there was wet and just slip it in anyway? these are the things that baffle me and seriously tug at my heart strings. so far this school year has been really hard on me. its hard not being able to protect my little guy and take care of him the way he needs to be taken care of! and watched over and make sure these things don't happen. I'm handing him off to this school hoping they will take care of my little guy and so far I'm less than impressed. Here is to buying a thermos cup today! (no more water leaks i hope!) and crossing my fingers it starts to cool down soon because we have to walk to school everyday now because Jeremy is back at work and i am left car-less! maybe I'll just drag out the stroller so scarlet won't be totally impossible to convince to walk with me.

and that my friends is Conrad's exciting first week of school! or was it just a long list of complaining about his stupid teacher? also…back to school night is from 6:30-7pm. oh 30 minutes! to talk to the teacher! how lovely of her to take out 30 minutes of her time for us all!