The Hannah Family

Not a good house guest

Matt showed up unannounced Friday night to see Mandy. He fought with the Littles the whole visit which did nothing for my high blood pressure. He left Sunday with the only key to the car (he lost the other one when he lived here) in his damn pocket by accident, but still.

Mark dropped me at school this morning, but that was as far as he was willing to go. I was about an 1/8 of the way home on foot when Katie had the neighbor boy pick me up. "My mom is walking on Kelly Road in the rain. Go get her now." It was barely drizzling but my foot was killing me after teaching all day so I was grateful!

I was born well on my way to maturity

But Claire is so far ahead of the rest of us it's ridiculous.

This is what she wrote for her language arts assignment today. She's 11.

Bad grades.

Got pills.

Pushed through.

Is it Friday yet?

She volunteered and was accepted to be a "peer mentor" for kids at the middle school who need help because in her words, "if I turned it down I would be a horrible person."

Too good to be true

Tomorrow I am subbing for the media specialist. Surrounded by books and elementary school kiddos all day. How fun is that?

Dave was so sleepy in class Monday

His ADD pill is at the lowest dose for him to get adequate grades and be promoted each year, but it is a stimulant and occasionally makes it hard for him to fall asleep. I feel for him.

The pediatrician and I are constantly weighing the advantages versus side effects with Claire and Dave, but unmedicated at this point - they miss all of the information and may as well not be there in the first place. The doctor equates it to a diabetic getting his insulin; there's no shame.

Happily, Dave's teacher sent me an email that he was awake and back to normal on Tuesday! An occasional off day for a successful school year is fine. If we were talking constant zombie status, the meds would go straight out the window. We will find an alternate route to success if this fails, but we have seen Matt succeed with pharmaceutical assistance and fail every time he claims it's unnecessary.

With 31 of them, it can get loud quickly

Me: You can work together on this if you do so quietly. Don't disturb your classmates. I am too old and tired to keep repeating myself.

7th grade boy: You look really young.

Me - joking only on the first part: You are now my favorite. Finish the assignment.

In old speak, time for a paradigm shift

Matt called late tonight on my cell to find out if I'd read his assignment for next week. Luckily I hadn't since I have a date with Oreo and TLC, so I mentioned he should call another smart girl closer to his age. "I don't know any." Told him to spend time closer to the library instead of bars and our reception got choppy.

Meanwhile Mark found me hiding out in a bar so I know Matt will land on his feet... Or I will finally be a grandma either way. Yippee!

I keep my door shut at night to keep the pets out so I can sleep

Oreo simply makes a racket when he has a hankering to sleep in the king-sized bed and he is in. I justify his admittance with the fact that he sleeps all the way through the night, lucky critter. Smart too. He is extremely content, snoozing away, and I'm just the doorman.

I like to believe he's so pleased because he has Mom here too since he doesn't bother with the bed when the door is open and I'm somewhere else.

Today I will work at the 7th school of 9 close to home

It's previously uncharted territory -- middle school. Fortunately it's the one Claire attends so she and I get to ride in together for a couple days. Monday I have language arts and studies. Tuesday is science. Wednesday is a teacher workday which works out well because I have to take Big D to the dentist to get his teeth cleaned anyway.

Tonight will be fun because

I'm hosting book club, baby!

Not for the weak of heart

I was the substitute teacher in a 4th grade class for 2 days in a row this week, Thursday and Friday. On Friday we had a parent volunteer who asked me a lot of questions because she'd considered being a sub before, but she didn't begin to cover what I would want to know. I believe her questions were answered satisfactorily -- as I'd just survived the process.

Meanwhile, I'm freaking over a plan I sought out last week at the high school. I was teaching in a trailer just like with 4th grade. The elementary school kids can at least take refuge in the main school hallway - even though cement and a solid structure might not be enough. Why require high school kids and teachers to remain in mobile units during a totnado?