Quote of the Day

Boylee just patted me on the tush and said, "I'm proud of your butt. He's a big, strong man."

Vacation Photos

Here's a blast from the recent past... On our way up to Bolinas we discovered some snow along the Grapevine and we just had to pull over. (Partly because Isaac had informed me that he would kill himself if he didn't get a chance to go to the snow within three months. I'm not really sure where the killing himself part came from, but I'm not too concerned.)

Daddy was dressed inappropriately -- in shorts and sandals. Boylee wasn't dressed too warmly, but I did manage to rummage around in his suitcase and find some warm clothes that I'd packed in anticipation of Bolinas.



I had jeans and a sweater on, but I got cold quickly and didn't feel like rummaging around my own suitcase, so I sought the shelter of the car. Then the boys attacked!



Even Boylee got cold after about 20 minutes, so the next time we visit snow we need to be better prepared. But he couldn't have been happier -- we might just have been at a rest stop off a busy highway, but Boylee was satisfied and hasn't made any further threats to kill himself.

Adjusting

According to Boylee's teacher, all of the kids have been a bit blah this week. I've noticed that Boylee has been vehement about not wanting to go to school for the past few days, but he hasn't been able to communicate why. And he's seemed fine once we got to school. But Mrs. Richards thinks it's a delayed reaction to the abrupt loss of four classroom friends. One left before the holiday, and three left suddenly during the holiday break, with no chance for anyone to say goodbye. She says she's going to plan some extra fun activities to cheer everyone up, and also do some icebreaker-type activities -- though the kids who remain all know each other, of course, she says it's necessary in order to rejigger classroom relationships.

Not Out of the Woods

From the LA Times

A steep dip in school spending has been jointly endorsed. Some of the $3.9 billion in cuts to kindergarten-through-12th-grade education would be offset by declining enrollment in some districts, but there will also be many direct effects in the classroom.

The area of school spending that will be hit hardest is funding for textbooks, which would be cut by $417 million. The loss of that money would make some schools unable to update their textbooks, and some districts unable to supply books to every student.

More than $277 million would be cut from a program to fund long overdue maintenance in school buildings, including some scheduled "emergency repairs." Plans by many districts to fix leaky roofs, cracked sidewalks and broken heating systems would have to be put off another year.

Money for the neediest students would be cut, as would programs to further the professional development and training of teachers. Nearly $110 million set aside for districts to preserve art and music programs would also be on the chopping bock.

State funding to train faculty in how to best teach math and reading skills would also be reduced, as would subsidies available to districts that provide after-school child care. And a program initiated to get high-speed Internet access in every district is endangered. Some schools are still using dial-up technology.

The education reductions erode "the foundation schools are built upon," said Kevin Gordon, a lobbyist for hundreds of school districts.

Breaking News

"Due to the lack of clear information from Sacramento, the need for stability at schools in the second semester, and the high level of interest in a retirement incentive program, there will be no mid-year teacher layoffs."
- Superintendent Ramon Cortines

Quote of the Day

Mama (reading from Boylee's homework): Martin Luther King, Jr. gave a famous speech. He said that he had a dream. He dreamed of freedom and equality in America. He hoped that one day people of all races would live together in peace. Boylee, do you think his dream will come true?

Boylee: It already has!

Sheer Laziness. And It's Raining.

I let Boylee eat lunch in the cafeteria again today.

Red Alert

Today was a hectic day, what with the Oscar nominations happening at 5:30am. I wanted to go and see Dad do his thing, live. So I had to get up at 4am. And then as soon as the noms were announced, I raced home so Scott could go to work. (He left around 6:30 but that was about an hour later than he usually leaves.) Then I had to get Boylee up and out the door early, since I had a School Site Council meeting at 7:30. All of this is a longwinded explanation of the following: Today I let Boylee eat both breakfast and lunch at the school cafeteria. He was thrilled. I was not so thrilled, but pragmatism ruled the day.

A Big Day

We turned on the inauguration the moment we awoke. Boylee knows today's an important day, and he's been quite aware of the political process, and our family's political beliefs, over the last year or so.

Once I tried to impress upon Boylee how interesting it was that Mr. Obama has such a different and unique name. That didn't register with Boylee at all -- and it occurred to me that it's because Boylee has so many pals with different and unique names: Savyonne, Meliki, Kai, and Kaan are just a few off the top of my head.

Catching Up

This week was nuts -- I seemed to use every available minute to catch up on boring stuff that I couldn't do during the three weeks Boylee was on winter break. I got my glasses fixed, I sewed new curtains for the den, I went to the market, etc. Nothing thrilling.

For Boylee, the most thrilling part of the week was today, because he had a substitute teacher. But more than that -- the sub was running late or something, so they had a sub for the sub. The first guy was only there for an hour or two, and then the second guy showed up. The big hit of The Day of Two Substitutes? The first, temporary sub had a guitar. They all sang three songs together. One was about the days of the week, one was about numbers, and the other wasn't remembered.

The second most thrilling part of the day came just as school ended. Every afternoon the PTA sells snacks to the students. The PTA raises money, and the students, most of whom will still be at school for several hours in the after-school childcare program, get a boost of sugar. Isaac loves the snacks -- yes, they're mostly candy and ice cream -- but I limit him to one snack a week. That's invariably Monday. Over the weeks, I noticed that the mom who works the booth on Monday is always alone, whereas the rest of the week it's two moms doing the selling. And one thing led to another and I volunteered to be her helper every week. So it works out perfectly -- Boylee gets a snack, and he sits and eats it while I do my volunteering. Anyway, that same PTA mom (Okay, I call her Queen of the Latinas, because she seems to be the lead of the Latina posse at our school) ended up having to cover for someone today, and she asked me to help...and that meant Boylee needed something to occupy him while I volunteered. And that something was a 2nd snack of the week -- very exciting for him.

Readjusting

That darned winter vacation was just too long for the kindergarten kids! On Monday there were lots of tears as parents dropped off their kids. Not Boylee - but every morning this week he's told me he does not want to go to school.

And there were lots of changes to be found at school -- Four kids from Isaac's class moved or otherwise changed schools over the break. And one new kid arrived. Isaac hasn't quite understood that two of his favorite boys are no longer going to be in the class. He seems to think they'll be coming back soon. According to the teacher, one moved to Tennessee and the other is locked in a custody battle that has also taken him out of state. I doubt either is coming back.

Give me a (Winter) Break

Okay, I think we can all agree that three weeks is too long for school vacation. In the few short months since school started I have gotten awfully spoiled in terms of being able to Get Stuff Done while Boylee is in school. Having him out of school for 23 days in a row has pointed out to me that I've completely forgotten the rhythms of being a full-time mom with a full-time kid.

I have no idea how I'm going to handle the summer but I bet there will be some sort of day camp or organize activity involved.

But I digress. Boylee had homework over this break -- his teacher's philosophy being that since the kids have only been in school for 11 weeks or so, having 3 solid weeks off can really get them out of the learning rhythm. So they had a pile of worksheets to do (1 per day, she instructed, with a plea not to do them all at once). And also a Winter Writing Journal -- Boylee needed to write once every three days and draw an accompanying picture. Here's what he wrote about:

12/22: Today I made a gingerbread house.

12/25: Today I got a Spiderman computer.

12/28: Now we are back at our home. (Having come home from Bolinas.)

1/1: Now are we watching the Rose Parade.

1/4: Tonight we are going to Tatiana's house.

1/8: We are learning to shape balloons. (This involves a balloon twisting kit we got. Lots of fun till it pops in your face.)

Please Stand By

Now entering week 3 of winter break...updates coming soon.