First day of school and all the drama (hope you have the time)

This was yesterday morning when 4 of my 5 kids started school. Nick is off with his dad at some Barbershop thing for which he is getting college credit apparently so he won't start school until Monday. We have had quite the time getting the kids into these schools with this move on post. Our senior suffered the most so far with having to take summer school classes to make up credits but now he's only taking English and then a ton of elective classes so his suffering should end and his fun should begin.

We live in a new housing area on post and the elementary school that is being built right outside it did not get finished in time for school so they are doing all sorts of weird things to plan for a move from other schools in January with half the kids here. I was told to find out who the kids' teachers are the day before school by coming to the school and checking the door. I hate schools that post information like this at the last minute. I'm sure they can't afford to pay people to work even one more day because of budgets or whatever, but I hate it. Especially when my kids are going somewhere new or worse--I have one starting Kindergarten-- which I did this year.

I got a phone call the day before school started telling me my girls aren't going to the school we thought but a different one. Ok fine. We go to this different school that afternoon to find the girls' teachers and they aren't on any lists. We're told to return in the morning--new lists will be up. We come back, the girls are all excited but it quickly turns to panic as they have taken down all lists and we're standing in the gym with nowhere to go. There are people running around everywhere and this lady tells me to just leave Hannah on one side of the room with the older kids and Rose on the other with the Kindergardners. Oh right. That's about as ignorant as it gets (to me). She tells me the teachers are coming to get their students and I tell her half the teachers have already left with their classes and she says they'll be back for the ones they missed!? I finally find out who their teachers are and in what room and I'm tearing up (as in crying, not ripping things) by now because I'm pregnant and way too emotional and my baby's first day of Kindergarten feels like a disaster. I take them to their rooms where the teachers are already full into their day (returning to get other kids--not!) and I actually feel pretty comfortable because I get a great vibe from both their teachers whom I've never heard of until 5 minutes before. I tell both the teachers in no uncertain terms I will pick them up by car in the afternoon. I watch both of them write this info down on a their papers. I go to the office to get the car rider number--they have no more--whatever--I design my own to match at home and wait until the afternoon. I cried a few more times because I miss having Rose home and am worried the disorganization in the morning will have made her upset. She was a little clingy when I left her but she didn't cry. Anyway, I get Spencer from middle school and Jr. drives home from high school and I head off to pick up the girls. I'm in the car driver lane and all is well. The line isn't even that long and soon I'm telling them I need my girls by name because apparently the numbers aren't being used yet. I get Hannah but no Rose. They come out to tell me she went home on the bus!!!!!!! What!? I don't think so! Here come more tears again because I am pregnant and out of control (maybe I would've cried anyway but it was nice to have an excuse). Rose has no idea where we live and I am freaking out. My cell phone hasn't been working and I'm using Spencer's trying to call the boys to go outside and watch for her. And I'm really mad at the school. I keep telling the assistant Kindergarten teacher I watched the teacher write Rose's name down under the car rider section and so WHY is she on the bus???? I see the list she has and it isn't the same and Rose's name isn't even on it! They keep asking me if I want the bus to drop her off or return her to the school. I say, I'm staying right here until I or my 17 year old son has her. Finally they tell me to come inside. The bus is going to return her to the school. An hour and 20 minutes later, the bus finally returns her to the school and by then I had calmed down. When I originally came inside the school, her Kindergarten teacher came right up to me and hugged me and profusely apologized and explained what had happened. Rose didn't end up on the assistant teacher's list so even though her real teacher put her in the car rider area, the assistant took her out of it, looked up her address and decided to throw her on a bus. I'm still not very happy with this assistant woman but her real teacher took all the blame, tried to make me feel better, told me all about Rose's day and sat with me and Hannah the whole time until Rose returned. Then when Rose returned all sweaty and red-cheeked from being on an un-airconditioned bus for so long, she went and bought her a soda from the machine. I was really impressed with her real teacher and very thankful that Rose seems completely unaffected by the whole thing. In fact this morning she asked to ride the bus again because it was so fun. :-) Go figure.

So far today is also a bit eventful because the middle school had no electricity so after a couple hours of that, they decided the kids might die of a heat stroke or something, so they sent them all home. My cell phone still isn't working, my husband is out of town and they kept trying to get ahold of me--finally they try Jer and he gets me on the home phone (I don't know why they didn't try that number, they have it) and so I run off to pick Spencer up just before he got bussed to some other school with A/C. Did I mention it was 104 degrees here the other day and that's not including the humidity? Ugh. No tears for that though. It's about time I handled something without falling apart.

All I could think of during that whole mess with Rose was that time Jr. and Nick went to school on a bus (they were in Kindergarten and 1st grade in Alaska) and I get a call mid-morning asking me if I've decided not to send the boys to school. I say, what on earth, I sent them on the bus, and the lady goes, oh okay, bye, and so I worry all day, and THEN when the bus drops kids off, mine are nowhere to be seen. I'll spare you the details now that I've already written a novel-length blog, but let's just say I could've killed their school that day. And thank goodness for the good woman who helped them get safely home.

So really all is well, it could've been a hundred times worse and I am just thankful for cell phones. The school was able to make sure Rose didn't get off the bus and to keep updating me with how much longer it would be. And her real teacher couldn't have been nicer. Rose did tell me the other day when they all went to school, I'd be able to do whatever I wanted all day. So far that hasn't happened but I hope to get at least one day in before I have this baby! :-)
And I hope everyone else has a less stressful first day of school!