Anything But Gray

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  • Don’t ask questions….

    you don't want the answer to.

    It's a long story, but the upshot of it is….

    I was trying to describe myself and I asked a friend of mine….a guy friend…..on im….

    "Am I hot? I can't ask Zak, he's not objective. I think on a scale of 1-10, I'm about a 6…maybe a teeny bit better than average."
    His response?
    "When your hair grows back you can add to it."

    I wasn't fishing for compliments but when he answered like that I actually got a little insulted.
    Obviously I didn't say anything to my friend and to be honest I have no friggin' clue WHY I got slightly insulted.
    I mean I certainly don't think I'm this super hot chick….and I'm pretty thick skinned usually. When I asked the question, I was prepared for the answer, or so I thought.
    Maybe it just bugged me that he was implying my haircut made me ugly or something….or maybe I had hoped he thought a little more highly of me than I do…..I don't know. LOL

    But I know I learned my lesson of the day……and I won't be asking anyone that question again, anytime soon.
    LOL

  • She’s here!

    I got Kayla!!!!

    I am so freakin' excited.

    The flights went well and she is downstairs with Josh, sleeping. She didn't get good sleep the night before she left so she is really beat.

    Jaime about freaked. Kayla told her before we moved that she would come and see her. So Jaime has asked a bunch of times since we've been here "When is Kayla coming?" and I keep explaining to her that it's gonna take awhile because Kayla has to work and has to save money before she can come. When we came home from the airport, we had Kayla and Josh wait in the truck and we came in to see where Jaime and Ben were. They were on the couch watching t.v. and we told Jaime to stand up and close her eyes because we had a surprise for her. Then Kayla came into the house and I told Jaime "Open your eyes" and she opened them and saw Kayla. She yelled "Kayla…!!!" and then ran over to her and gave her the biggest hug ever and she got tears in her eyes, she was so happy!! Then she pulls away from Kayla and looks at her, with tears in her eyes, and says "Finally!". LOL
    It gives me goosebumps when I think about it!! I think it is the first time I've seen her cry tears of joy!
    So awesome…..
    Ben was really excited too, he shook his head all around like he couldn't believe what he was seeing. lol.
    All in all it was worth the wait to surprise her.

    Soo…talking to the school went awesome yesterday. Screw that school board dude.
    I read the article J posted and I went and found the law that says if your child is in a district school that is designated a school in need of improvement, the school district must let you change your child's school. They have to give you a choice of two schools. So I called the school and asked which two schools are the choices and they told me. Neither are the one we wanted but both are like the one we wanted, so we are so thrilled. We have to have a meeting with the principal of the school we are in and then we will figure out from there…
    I. am. PSYCHED.
    And totally pissed off at that jerk at the school board.
    Do you think he told me about this? Noooo……
    I had emailed after my conversation with him, asking about this and he neglected to email me back.
    Nice.
    Thanks for your help, dude.
    REALLY appreciate it.

    Now I"m just all impatient, wanting the principal to call so we can get an appointment set up.
    Yay!!!

    🙂

  • 6am…

    Zak and I are leaving to go pick up Kayla at the airport!!!!
    Yay!!!!!

    I am so excited to see her!

    More later and I have GREAT news about their school!
    J, is a godsend, she found the article I was looking for and it had the information I needed in it!
    so cool, huh??

    anyway…be back with my niece and her boyfriend in a couple of hours!

    🙂

  • Welcome to Nashua…

    No variance for Jaime.
    And "they'll see" what they can do about Ben and kindergarten.

    So they will most likely be separated.

    I am beyond upset.
    I can't barely see what I'm friggin' typing, I'm crying so bad.

    This completely and totally sucks.
    What a big fat waste of our friggin' time to try to find the "best" school for her.
    And yeah, fuck them and their "it's in your child's best interest" to go to their neighborhood school.
    Yeah, let's uproot the kid TWICE because that's in her best interest.
    Don't blow smoke up my ass, don't act like you care about my child.
    All you fucking care about is your stupid fucking rules.

    These young years are what sets up her school attitude for LIFE. This has an effect on her and her schooling, for her whole LIFE. The guy is telling me how a variance isn't a casual thing. No SHIT, Sherlock, that's why I ASKED for it.
    Not that YOU care.

    I am so upset I could just SCREAM.

    But I am trying to calm down and I am thinking….I thought that if your neighborhood school was deemed a school in need of improvement, then you could ask for a variance….hmmm….I'll have to email or call back to ask about that.

    This sucks.
    Just totally sucks.

  • Update & a pic…

    No news yesterday. We have to make an appointment to talk to someone and this someone's secretary was out yesterday. We had to leave our number and she will get back to us, supposedly this morning. We'll see.
    I hate waiting! Almost as much as I hate form letters.
    ha!

    Anyway, Kim and the kids made it back home and she emailed me a pic of Jaime holding the big ass bullfrog we caught. So yay! I have a picture of my frog!!!

    FrogandJamie
    FrogandJamie

    I love this picture! I think every kid needs at least ONE picture of them holding a big ol' frog in their hands! Thank you so much Kim, for getting this picture!!! You are awesome.

    I'll update as soon as I hear anything.

  • Denied…

    When we came in March to set everything up to move, we toured the schools.
    We found a school that we felt was the most like the school Jaime went to in Alaska.
    It is in a different district than we live in so we had to apply for a waiver.
    I applied for it and wrote a long letter explaining that we had just moved here, the neighborhood we are living in is temporary and we are going to eventually move to the district the school we want them to go to, is in. So rather than uproot my kids twice, I'd like to just place them in the school we want. Also, I believe it would be an easier transition for her, given that the school is a lot like the one she just left. AND our "neighborhood" school is full, for kindergarten, so Ben can't go there anyway and I really don't want to separate my kids.
    All in all, it was a very good letter, listing lots of very rational reasons for why I want the other school.

    I got a form letter in the mail and they were both denied.
    They gave me no reason for the denial and then they go on to state…
    "We feel it is in your child's best interest to attend their neighborhood school".
    I about hit the roof, I was so pissed off.
    You, who have never so much as laid eyes on my children, have the audacity to tell me what is in their best interest?
    I have done so much research in person and online, I have put my heart and soul into finding the best spot for my children to make this transition easier and you are going to tell ME, what is in my children's best interest? That is such an asinine comment to make. And to a good parent, it is extremely insulting.
    And someone please explain to me how it is in my son's best interest to attend a kindergarten class that is FULL.

    I'm venting right now, but Zak and I are going to go to the school district office this morning, with the kids in tow, and talk to them, calmly. I just want a reason, at least. I have done so much work and put some much effort into trying to get them into a school that works best for them, at least give me a friggin' reason why they were denied.  And tell me what to do about my son. How can he attend a neighborhood school that is FULL.  They didn't even acknowledge that fact in the letter. I pointed out the fact that our neighborhood school was full so Ben couldn't go there, and they didn't even mention that in the denial letter!

    I fucking hate form letters.

  • Happy Birthday Mummy!

    It's my mom's birthday.
    And I am a terrible daughter.
    Having got my stuff all unpacked and set up only recently, I haven't caught up with all my cards I have to make.
    So my mom didn't get a card from me, yet.

    I feel terrible.

    I know she understands but it doesn't make me feel any better.

    Sooo…..not that she reads my blog….but at least I'll have it here for proof that I wished her a happy birthday and feel rotten for not getting her a card in the mail.

    Happy, Happy Birthday Mummy!!!
    I love you!

    Love
    your apologetic daughter.

  • I got my frog!!!

    We had an absolute blast at the campground yesterday. Aside from the fact that it was my last visit with Kim and the kids, the day could not have been more perfect.

    Zak and I had taken the kids to the playground that is in the park and we noticed a creek ran through the woods right beside the park. So we all went into the woods, by this creek, to try to find me a frog. Well, the kids are all really getting into this hunt. Two little girls had a net and they offered to help too. They said they knew a spot that had tons of frogs and then they take off running to go to this apparent wealth of frogs.  They come running back not 10 minutes later, with a frog! By this time, Zak and the kids had walked a bit downstream and I told the girls that the frog was awesome and thank you for catching it, but I think my kids are really excited about finding me a frog, so I'm going to go ahead and let this one go and let my kids get me one. And they were cool with that and then I rounded everyone up and we walked over to the pond where there were, in fact, TONS of frogs!!!! The little ones we could catch with ease, but what we really wanted was a huge one. So we're all tiptoeing along the bank of the pond, trying to catch a big one. And those suckers are amazingly quick. lol. We keep collecting kids along the bank of the pond, kids that are wondering what we're doing and wanting to help. It was so cute.

     At one point, I was across the pond from Zak and the kids and I watch Zak hold his arms out to keep the kids back and starts sneaking down close to the water. I know he has spotted a big frog and is trying to catch it for me. I think I fell in love with him a little bit more, in that instant. This guy is so awesome to me. He couldn't care less about a stupid frog, but there he is, stealthily sneaking up to the water to try to get his wife a frog. And the truth is, any man that will hunt frogs for me, rocks in my book. LOL Seriously…Ii wish I had had my camera because it truly is one of those little moments that I'll remember for life….17 years into our relationship and the guy will still do crazy things with me/for me. Awesome!
    Between us and all the kids that were helping us, we wound up getting a HUGE bullfrog and a bunch of other ones. We kept them in a bucket for a bit and then let them go. I completely forgot my cell phone has a camera now and I didn't take a picture. (I'm still adjusting to the new phone, that I am still completely in love with….) but oh well….

    On the way home, it was kind of raining and sunshiny and we saw this…..

    Photo_081608_004
    Photo_081608_004

    Photo_081608_001
    Photo_081608_001

    Jaime and the kids loved it. Because of the song "Wishing on a star" by Rose Royce, I always make a wish when I see a rainbow. I told Jaime that, "You know, you're supposed to make a wish if you see a rainbow" I think that is the first time I've told her that and I hope she keeps doing it. Even with all the rain , this is the first rainbow I've seen here.
    Very cool!
    And luckily, I remembered my camera in my phone! lol.

  • fun night…

    Last night we had a little bbq for Rick's bday. Zak cooked and then we all ate and then sat around and had a few drinks and talked. Zachary went out, but everyone else was here and a couple that my sister and Rick are friends with came, with their son. Shelly and Steve also came up, which was VERY cool because I wasn't expecting that, at all.
    I hadn't gotten a chance to call Shelly all day and when I did finally talk to her, she told me she was coming up. I was completely surprised and SUPER excited. It's nice to have company when Zak is gone. And then I had talked to Steve and he didn't say anything at all about coming up. Well, Shelly pulls up and Steve is behind her! Very cool!!

    So we all sat around and just had a really fun night. Zak got home pretty early, so he got to visit for a bit too. Then, as Steve and Shelly are getting ready to leave, Kim (Alaska Kim) emailed me to see if i was still up and if I was she'd call and have a drink with me, long distance. It was fun being able to "have a drink" with her, even if it is 4 thousand miles away. We'll have to make that a regular thing….I miss her!

    It was a really fun night!

    Today Zak is working just a half day and we are packing up the kids and Gabby and going to the campground that Kim and her boys are staying at, with family. We're going to spend the afternoon there and then we're going to see some fireworks and then head home. I'm excited! I haven't been to a "down south" campground in YEARS. I think the kids are going to have a blast and I am *so* going to find me a frog! ha!! One thing I used to tease Zak about, with Alaska, was that it was so rainy there and they dont' even have FROGS! lol. So I am actually really excited to find me a frog!!

    I have tons to do before we go….gotta pack lunch, extra clothes, give Jaime a shower, get dressed….and all that crap.

    Okay, I have no idea how this happens…now, all of a sudden, I have four little girls in my house. lol. Jaime was outside playing with some neighborhood girls and now they are all in the house…….!!

    craziness has begun and now I really gotta go….lol.

  • If I hear…

    "Mommy, could I have……?" one more stupid time I am going to pull every single hair in my head OUT.

    Do you know how IMPOSSIBLE it is to get bills/banking done with FOUR kids nagging and pissing and whining for crap? oh and fighting. I just love the ridiculous fighting they do….right now Ben is trying to shove Gabby and Rayna off the couch because they "smell gross".
    Friggin' lovely. 

    11 more days.
    School starts in 11 more days.
    It is seriously debatable if I am going to make it.