Week 2 of Homeschool

Well we made it thru week one of our home school excurision with only a few butt heads and foot stomping - more so on my part than Drews.

We have entered week 2 and Drew is discovering the benefits of this more and more. Yesterday he had gotten up ungodly early and was exhausted when the timer went off to start school at 9. We attempted to work on some stuff and he finally looked at me and said " I just can't do it. I need more sleep." At first I thought it was a ploy to watch more TV so I told him he could go lay on the couch BUT he had to turn off the TV. To my surprise he did and was asleep within 5 minutes. He woke up about 90 minutes later and said OK ready for school. He did all is work no problems and was in a much better mood. HE actually told me it was an advantage to HS because he couldn't do that at WildHawk. Because you know you have to do what the teacher says and they don't have nap time at school. But sometimes mom, ya just gotta get some sleep.

Drew has a facsination with SHARKS anything shark. So Sunday Scott programed the DVR to record a bunch of shows from Shark Week on Discovery. Drew was very surprised when I told him his science yesterday was watching TV. We went up stairs and watched a shark show together. He didn't believe TV counted as school and wanted me to double check wiht his Educational Specialist because he thought he was breaking the rules.

Today we are going to the Post office to pick up a box of books I ordered from a dicount book place. THere are some more workbooks to get us thru until his textbooks get here as well as lots of hard cover reading books. To me it will be like Christmas opening this box.

I am learning lots about Drew as we go thru this journey together. He is a hands on learner. I tried for 10 minutes to get him to draw on the face of a clock different times to no avail but when i handed him a clock wiht moveable hands he got every time I gave him correct. He hates to write things down. Holding a pencil is hard for him so I am already learning to be inventive.

Today we are making slime, and watching a shark show, and who knows where the wind might take us....

first day of school

Yes it is only the end of July but Drew decided he was ready to start school. Nice thing about homeschool we could start today. Scott and I scrambled around and got the class room set up. I got some work sheets put together. ( I was chastised this morning because there was nothing in the plans about sharks or science)

Drew worked hard, did find out I was not going to cut him slack. We did have a couple meltdowns - drew not me. We managed to cover language arts, math, handwriting and social studies. That was in a 2 hour period with 20 mintues of playing out side, a snack, and 2 water breaks.

Our actually books for the year won't be here until around September 1. Our ES will put in the order as soon as Drew's account is funded somewhere around August 17. I do have some other books on order, workbooks, reading books etc to help fill the time.

I am going to the old school this afternoon to officially withdraw Drew from the school. I am also sending a letter to the district telling them why we are withdrawing him. The lack of help with getting a 504, lack of willingness to work with Drew's disabilities - which we are finding out are different than we originally thought. Both good and bad. Another reason we are pulling him is the lack of funding for schools. His class this year if he was in main stream school would be about 25. There is no way for a teacher to give the kids the attention they need to grow and succeed. We are working with a couple home school groups for social interaction as well as swimming and sports.

I know that HS will be a challenge but it is one that I am willing to invest in for Drew's future.

all thumbs give away

I love this idea. How do people come up with these ideas? Check out this give a way at All thumbs.

I have always wanted a personal shopper and this one seems to be with in my budget.

Drewism

Many days Drew says something and I think I need to blog about it and then later I can't remember what he said or how he said it that made it funny but here is what he said today.

We have always told Drew that stupid is a "bad word" and you shouldn't use it.

Tonight we were watching the local news and they were discussing the fact that the Govenor had furologhed all state employees 3 days a month BUT the departments were bringing in Contract workers to supplement on furlogh days.

Scott said: That is just stupid.

Drew said: You shouldn't said stupid, It is a bad word.

Scott: When we are talking about the government stupid is the only word that fits.

Drew: Say pathetic because that is the word that should be used when talking about the government. Because, dad the government is just pathetic.

Luke Yoder

This is a friend of a friend son. It shows how fast life can change on a dime. Please pray or send positive energy for recovery and healing.

http://lukeyoder.wordpress.com/

two post day

I have to tell you about this awesome give away I found this morning. I have mentioned PhatFiber before but this is one of my fave stores they promote.

Silversunalpacas on ETSY is one of my all time fave shops EVER!!!! The fibers there are a must have. I drool over every thing and wish I had the talent to do some of the stuff they do. MAybe some day - I am dyeing yarn this weekend - but I digress. This weekend only they have a special code that gives you 20% off your purchase (phat7) Not only that if you order a drop spindle kit it comes with 8 oz of fiber instead of 4. The 20% off doesn't apply but it is such an awesome deal who cares?

Check out this give away on Phat Fibers website. If you win I want one month of the fiber as a finders fee.

New Church

AFter being back at St. Margaret's in Lawrence while we were on vacation I knew we had to get back to an Episcopal Church in Sacramento. While the church we were attending was all right we (I) never felt a connection to the people. Plus the sermons were too far to the right for me.

There is a little Episcopal church abotu 2 miles from the house that I had been wanting to try for a while. Scott finally agreed and we attended 3 weeks ago for the first time. Last Sundya was a church wide breakfast(best zuchunni fritters ever) and I learned why the church was so small. Sad story of betrayal. Anyway the church is trying to restart.

Me being Me I immediately got involved. I worked the firework stand on the 4th, helped with VBS this past week and will be helping with the rummage sale in August. For VBS I helped with snack and was also the official photographer. I took almost 1000 pics in 5 days.

Yesterday I was paid a compliment. One woman who is very involved in the church looked at me and said "It feels like you have been here forever and fit in so well" It made me feel like we had found new home.

Scott is out on a bike ride this morning with church members. They are wanting him to start a men's bible study like the one at St. Margaret's. I think that would be a good thing for him to do. LEt him get involved and feel useful in the church as well.

win 250.00 visa card

My friends at All Thumbs are at it again. They have a 250.00 visa gift card from Capri sun they are giving a way. Check out their site for details

Where o where has Cathy gone

I am back. Long month. Drew and I left June 9th for 10 days in Kansas. It was a mixed trip. The weather was hot and humid but we had a good time with family and friends.

Right before I left, I got a letter from the State Department of Education letting me know they were launching an investigation in to my allegations against the Elk Grove School District. That was something at least.

Drew is very excited about home school. He is already wanting to do workbook pages everyday. Hope the interest holds. If anyone wants to donate stickers it would be great. They are a big help and motivator. I had to break into my private stash of Tinker Bell stickers today. They did go to a good cause. He now knows the proper way to form a manuscript G. In school they were told to copy the letters but not told the correct way to form them. So that is what we are working on now.

Tomorrow is my birthday. I will be 42. WOW. Not sure what to think of that.

CAthy

Glutton for punishment

I have been working on my 25th class reunion. It is next summer but you know me. The early bird gets the worm and in this case all that is done is to plan the food and get the registration info out. then count the people and hope everyone has a great time.

Well, I am also very enthusiastic. (keep your sarcastic comments to your self - ANNA) I got to thinking there were people in the class of 84 and 86 that I would love to see and if Iwanted to see people then I am sure others would feel the same way. So I sent a couple emails and now defintely the class of '84 is in for the reunion. Waiting to hear back from the class of '86.

Next thing I knew - members of '83 and '87 were saying what about us? I can't handle that many classes so they are on a case by case basis. If they hear about it and want to come then the more the merrier but I am not seeking them out actively.

I figure it is a win win. The costs go down the more that come and we get to see people we haven't and wouldn't see. With the advent of Facebook I am in touch with more people than ever that I can't wait to see next June.

HOY HOY!!!!

yoga

Anyone who knows me knows that I think exercise and yoga are evil words. I don't sweat I glisten - to quote Blair from Facts of Life. I do walk on a regular basis now. Yea for me.

One of my fave sites has a great give away if you are in to yoga. Check out all thumbs.

http://allthumbsreviews.blogspot.com/2009/05/yoga-roundup-1-with-giveaway.html

I am sure they are up someones alley.

Revenge of the MArble Maze

We love our friends Faith and Tom and their Daughter Clara - who according to Drew will some day be our daughter in law. (fine by me)

Before Drew's birthday I was talking to Faith (rather venting) about an incident at Toys R Us that involved a toy that Drew wanted for his birthday. It was a rather expensive 500 piece marble maze contraption. Online at Toys R Us it was 49.99 and according to my research 49.99 at Babies R Us Brick and Mortor Stores. Silly me I thought it would be 49.99 at Toys R Us. It was 79.99. They refused to price match in any way. I knew they hadn't sold any since Drew first showed me the toy several months ago - the dust that had accumulated on the top was evidence enough but also that one of them was a taped box that was there. My reasoning was if BRU and online had it for 49.99 then TRU would do the same just to move the stupid toy. WRONG!!!!! They refused to even discuss it.

So I called Faith to complain. She took note and guess what showed up on our door Thursday night. A giant box and in the box was this marble maze. Drew was beside himself. I wish I had a video camera because I would be 100,000 dollars richer. He immediately proposed to Clara over the phone - please note she accepted.

Fast forward to last night. Scott started to put this thing together. I had seen the reviews on teh website and was warned it would take several hours (up to 6) to get this thing togheter. After many "Good Lords, Damns, What in the worlds"and a few words I can't put here it is now together at 930 on Saturday Morning. Drew actually tried to wake Scott up at 630 this morning to finish it. In the assembly we also found out this thing made noise. GREAT (sarcastic)

So my husband now has me on a search for the most annoying multi piece toy I can find fit for a little girls birthday - I have till November. I have looked at Legos but Clara is such a girly girl they aren't for her.

So my wonderful (few) readers - any suggestions for a multi piece, noisy toy that will take Clara's engineer father HOURS to put together?

better alternaitive

after more research we have finally figured it out. There is a charter called South Sutter. It has the most hands off approach to HS. I have to meet with an educational specialist once a month. but other than that I am free to teach how and what I want. PLUS we get a 1800.00 a year stipend to spend on what we sit fit for his education. cirriculum, lessons, camps, supplies, field trips etc. It is our choice. Definetly the way to go. It has the best reviews of all the charters in the area. So it is the way we are going.

Learned a lot today

I spent the majority of the day researching our home school options for Drew. I found a great Yahoo group that cleared up lots of misconceptions that I had about the California Virtual School. We won't be under this districts umbrella which for us is a huge bonus. It is free and we only have to report to a teacher once a quarter. There is a place on line where I will record daily attendance. They organize field trips. If we choose to take a vacation we bring Drew's books with us and he does his assignments there. And plays catch up when he gets home if needed.

We work at Drew's pace. If we can ever get an IEP the Virtual School has to follow it as well. We can opt out of standarized testing is we want. If he doesn't quite finish a subject during the year we can finish over the summer or pick up where we left off in the fall.

I have already had several moms contact me about Drew and the problems with the district. I will have a support group locally as well as thru the state.

I feel more comfortable having a teacher to help me if I need it so I don't fee so alone esp during the first year. If later we choose to go it alone then great but I think CAVA will be what we do this year.

I still wonder about the charter school but I don't like the fact we have to meet every 2 weeks to be monitored. That is a HUGE drawback. I will call them tomorrow to see if that is truly the case. The pros with the charter are there is a stipend for activites for Drew, and the language arts and math are the same that he uses now.

So that is where it stands.

Changes are a coming

After the latest problems with the school district we have made a decision. We are going to home school Andrew. The district has violated any trust I had with them. I will always be wondering what they might be up to next. And IF we were to ever get an IEP we would have to fight for everything and I worry that the districts disdain for me will have repercussions for Andrew. His teacher told me she has been told no child will get an IEP before 3rd grade. Forget the fact that early intervention in most developmental and learning disablites are better served in the early years they just won't do it.

We have filed a complaint with the California Board of Education on the violations. But who knows what that will get us.

We have several ways to home school. We could do virtual school, which would be free but that still puts us under the districts umbrella and we have to follow their rules, regulations, testing and calendar. I guess I am becoming a rebel in my old age. The schools don't believe in Life Lessons so we can't go on field trips etc.

I think the option we are seriously looking at is a program K12. It is what the district uses BUT we pay for the program and can make our own rules as to hours, days, field trips etc. We just have to file an afidavit with the state in October and then we are on our own. We are going to start easing into it in July and go full steam ahead in Mid August. when we get back from Kansas we will be getting together with a couple differnet home school groups to find one we jive with. Drew has several friends from church who are home schooled and so he seems to understand the concept.

My biggest concern is keeping him socialized as much as possible. He thrives on it. So it means outings wiht homeschool groups, karate, swimming etc. But I am very excited about the idea. I feel a certain freedom with his schooling that I haven't before.

Here we go.

School district tried to pull a fast one.

I am so livid. In the mail yesterday I got an envelope from the school district. In the envelope were 4 pieces of paper. On top was a pink sticky note attached to a consent for release of medical information. All it said was sign and return. They want ALL records from Drew's neurologist. Medical tests, medical records, history, meds psych notes, Mental health records ALL of it.

Under that was a letter the school sent to the doc with out my knowledge requesting his records. Under that was a letter of refusal from the doctor saying that I hadn't signed a release for them to have the records. That was all that was in the envelope.The director of special ed asked me for all the records about 6 weeks ago and I in writing told them to put in writing what they wanted and I would obtain it for them. The neurologist has the entire history of Drew (BM issues etc) that is no ones business.

So they tried to circumvent me to get the records. Our advocate is out of town. I am trying to reach him now. The school has a letter from the doc stating Drew's DX of PDD. So why would they need his entire medical history and records? Do they really need them if they have a letter stating what the DX is.

They are already out of compliacne with federal guidelines because I requested and IEE on MArch 31 and they had 15 days to comply and they haven't.

knit one purl 2

Thought I would post a few pics of things i have made lately.
My first completed sweater
Two views of Holding Hands Feeding Ducks

The above is a Debbie Bliss Bag
And this one right above is a wrap that is 95% done.

I have a couple others done but no pics yet.

cool slipper

to me slippers have always been functional. I lived in Kansas. Slippers had to be warm in the winter to trudge thru snow to get the paper. In the summer who wanted to go out and look for the paper when it was 110 at 8 AM?

My friends at ALL THUMBS have a great answer. Check out their latest give away. click here These are fun slippers, stylish slippers the kind you should wear in California.

Borders needs to learn customer service

I went to Borders today. I was looking for a couple magazine as well as couple birthday presents for Drew and what ever else caught my fancy. Hadn't ready a good book in a while and was on the prowl.

The magazine section was horribly stocked. Blank places everywhere. I noticed a girl who was stocking the magazine section and she had 9 boxes on a pallet. I asked if those boxes contained the mags i was looking for. She offered to open the boxes and look at the packing slips to check. They weren't in those but she told me that there were 6 boxes in the back and she would run and check the packing slips.

While waiting for her I had found a couple books, another magazine, and a couple books for Drew. the young lady came back and looked very apologetic. SHe said her manager told her she could not go thru the packing slips. She was not allowed to help me. There were other customers who needed help. I was welcome to come back in a few days and look on the shelves for my self but she could not help me. WTF!?!?!?! I was holding 50.00 worth of books and was going to buy about40.00 in mags if they had them.

I called the store when I got home and talked to the store manager and he basically said Sorry but what do you want me to do. He didn't seem to care that I had laid down other merchandise and because of one of his employees he lost a sale - if not a customer.

What is wrong with customer service these days? With all the competion out there for my business I would think stores would bend over to do the right thing and make situations right. I have called coroporate and left a voice mail for the assistant of someone and maybe I will hear from someone but who knows.

The

on Facebook

You know on FAcebook there is a place to tell what you are doing or thinking. Do you ever want to put what you are really thinking or doing.

Like Cathy Anderson is sitting in her office in her underwear eating cookies and thinking she needs to get a life?

OR Cathy Anderson thinks XXXX is full of shit because they actually are a fan of lightbulbs.

OR Cathy Anderson is really angry at her mom for dying and leaving her to find out she was the one who truly held the family together.

There I said it.