& so it begins...

The school had sent us paperwork that was very conflicting. We HAVE TO turn in this health assessment form next week, though elsewhere on the form it said it was only required for 1st graders. ???

I guess a few parents called to clarify or something because they sent a letter to clarify that it is not required for K. But they want it anyway. But they don't need it until our children turn 5. Huh?

Likewise, they sent an "oral assessment" form which says much the same. It's "mandtory" by May of Kindergarten year (next May) BUT they want it before school starts. But you can just x the "opt out" option.

Oy vey.

Anyway, the deadline made me nervous as we wait for his doc to complete this form. So now all that stress for nothing. There are 200 kids coveting my child's spot, and I just want everything squared away.

So of course I would send dh with the application today, and my opt out, now that they have changed their mind and allowed that we can turn it in without the health assessment. But it's at work where I made copies. So maybe he will turn it in tomorrow...

Then it will be official!! Oh my.

The other surprising thing is that they sent a calendar and school starts mid-August. I was rather surprised, but school also ends mid June. Holy cow. I looked up their old calendar, and indeed they had historically started after Labor Day.

Why 2 more weeks? They are taking off 15 days throughout the year for curriculum development. Obviously people had been complaining because they had all over their website how wonderful this is for the teachers (& likewise the kids) and on and on and on.

Wow...

I just look at the calendar flabbergasted. It hardly matters to us, since dh is home. But I really have NO IDEA how working parents do it.

I count 35 non-holiday school days off throughout the year.

I keep assuming if dh did want to work or go to school or whatever, that my schedule would be quite flexible. It is quite flexible.

BUT I am not sure I could really maintain a full-time status and be home all these days off and such.

So it's just a little mind boggling to me.

Likewise, I don't want to leave my kids at the school daycare full-time. I have no idea what middle ground there is. (I feel like back to square one since full-time preschool was always in abundance, but part-time, anything worthwhile or substantial anyway, was so hard to find. Seems like the choices were mostly 2 hours a week or 40 hours a week. What about the parents who want something in the middle?)

Oh well, worries for a later time. Indeed. Glad this is not stuff I have to figure out now.

Likewise, I look at the calendar and can NOT believe he starts K in just 5 months. Wow.

We had just decided to pull him out of preschool in August so he had a nice month off. Dh just really wanted to enjoy the time with him before he goes off to school. (Of course now I see he won't really be off at school THAT much. LOL).

Anyway, so now we are thinking pulling him out mid-July. Since the preschool was going to be closed the middle week, he will only be going 3 days in July. Will save $200 in July, and $315 in August. Wow.

I think we will use that money for the kids' birthday and for school uniforms (ugh, my pet peeve. S'posedly for the poor, but I am peeved to fit a second wardrobe in the budget. I think, yeah, this is REALLY helping the poor. ???????). I mean at least I could respect it if they said it was for school safety and keeping track of the kids, etc. That I get. But this is not the angle they push for. It just bugs dh and I on so many levels...

So anyway, them pushing the start date early affords me some extra cash to buy some school uniforms. I usually hit Target or the thrift shops for cheap clothes, but not sure if I Want to bother with the specific clothes I need to look for. (Ugh!). Likewise, if I spend a little more, at least I know LM can wear the hand-me-downs. (Though the kids grow so fast even the cheap clothes have lasted them both just fine).

Oh well, it will be a summer project. Should start looking out for sales on bigger sizes...

So yeah, it all comes down to that I only have to slam my budget with 2 in preschool, for 3 more months! Plus, it has been going quite well, and May is a short month (8 preschool days instead of 9). So I think I will survive. I am very pleased that it was not near as hard as I thought it would be. Was a good beginning to the year. (Likewise it shouldn't be that hard to divert it all to savings come August).

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In other news, I dug out some old stuffed animals because I wanted to show the kids I had a stuffed pooky (GArfield pooky). Was reading a Garfield book and said, I had a pooky and was telling them the story when I lost it on the school bus but found it again eventually. Since I went to so much trouble to find it, BM asks me if I still have it. & frankly, I thought I did! So I went to see. Anyway, for whatever reason there was a pile of nicer/newer toys in the bag - along with the old ratty stuffed animals I could never toss. I assume it was the stuff I couldn't bear to toss. A lot of personalized items were in the bag (maybe just didn't know what to do with them).

Anyway, so I pulled out this personalized Elmo doll that says BM's name. We had gotten it for him around 18 months or something, maybe age 2, and though he adored it, he outgrew it at some point. Or bored with it anyway.

So BM saw it and he just fell in love. He has been carrying it all around the house and sleeping with it. & he is just fascinated that Elmo TALKS to him.

Anyway, this doesn't really seem to bother the LM. BUT the first day I found it I thought, I should get one for LM. He just will not understand why Elmo only talks to BM.

So I wondered if they still made them.

I pop online and couldn't find the exact doll (we ordered it to be personalized).

But I found Elmo "Know your Name" or something like that. This one you program it yourself and can program favorite foods, and friends' names and family names and all this stuff.

Plus I saw it for 25% off and free shipping, so for $30 I ordered one at amazon.

It was probably a little unnecessary. & then of course I start to wonder if BM will be confused or upset why LM's Elmo is SO fancy. LOL.

So I realize I should just give up. Why even bother. !!

But overall I don't really buy the kids toys, so it was a nice little splurge. Grandma buys them so much crap we generally don't need to buy them anything. But it is fun to buy them something once in a while...

Likewise, dh has been going a little overboard with Easter. He clearly has not learned a thing. I said, "I hope you know your mom and your grandma are also buying them a slew of toys and candy." Which is why I could care less to partake in the Easter shopping. I understand the joy and all, and not much money was spent. But it's just all the crap filling the house. I find the best bet is to let everyone else buy the crap, because they insist, and then there is no point for us to. & well I can't believe dh hasn't figured this out yet either.