Last day of school

Well, today is the last day of school here.  Brooke is now officially a junior in high school (YIKES...gotta start thinking about college), Kevin a freshman (OMG!), Mark a 6th grader (moving to middle school -- another OMG!) and Daniel is a 1st grader (never, ever again, will I have a Kindergartener...sniff, sniff, tear). 

I always feel strangely sentimental at the end of school.  On the one hand, I am glad to see school end and summer begin.  I always start out the summer kind of enjoying having the kids home.  I enjoy summer activities...the pool with friends, vacations, baseball games, playdates, etc.  On the other hand, I am saddened by the passage of time.  More than even birthdays, I really feel the passage of time with the last day of school.  Maybe because birthdays come one at a time.  On the last day of school they all "grow  up" together.

So, I am happy for the kids and proud of their wonderful accomplishments.  And I am sad for me...that my babies are growing up.

Enabling

I've decided that I'm an enabler. I enable my kids to be less organized and less responsible than they should be and could be. I guess all moms do this to a certain extent because the idea of watching them fall on their face is difficult. And, let's face it, a major reflection on us.

Here are two examples, both from this morning.

At 6:30 this morning Brooke came into my room and told me that the 3rd payment for her Disney trip is due today. Seriously? She couldn't have mentioned this yesterday? Nope. So, instead of having her tell the band director that she forgot it and would bring it on Monday, I got out of bed and filled out the payment coupon and off she went.

Fast forward 35 minutes, Kevin has left for the bus and the phone rings. Surprise! It's Kevin. He left the school's flip video camera on the railing. Can I bring it to him at the bus stop! OK. Now I am in my bathrobe and slippers and it is snowing out. So, what do I do? I grab my jacket and keys and drive around the corner, in the snow, in my bathrobe and slippers to give him the camera. No motivation whatsoever for him to not make the same mistake again.

Or is there?

I'm thinking that there will be a list of chores for both of my forgetful friends when they get home from school. There has got to be a price to pay for them... and a reward for me.

Algebra update

I think I posted earlier this week that Brooke is having a tough time in Algebra so far this year. Well, strangely enough, I am thrilled to report that she currently has a 70.9 average!!! Woo hoo! This is a strange reaction for me to a C- average (she has never gotten a C on her report card and has 90+ averages in every other subject), but since this time last week she had a 69.4 average (a D) and had lost her text messaging priviliges I am thrilled at her progress. She had 3 quizzes this week -- she got 11 out of 12 on the first one, 13 out of 14 on the second one, and 1 out of 3 (OK, this is not so hot) on the third one. I am seeing some real effort on her part (still a little attitude), but some real sweat (and alot of eye rolling and exasperated sighs) went into those three grades this week. (Brooke especially loves when she sits down to do her homework and I say "Wait, let me just run and get my Algebra notebook")

Now, if we could only get this Algebra teacher to lay off the quizzes and let us just get this marking period behind us! She is hanging on to that C- by her finger nails! No such luck, though... another quiz on Monday... Stay tuned...