Money, Money, Money - I Hate Fundraising

You mean you brought home ANOTHER fundraiser that we aren't going to do? I know you want the crappy prizes, but we aren't getting crappy stuff!

Anyone else have this thought process or conversation with their kids about school fundraisers? These things are horrible!

I know the school needs money for resources and the like, but there's GOT to be a better way!

And? There are 300 other kids selling the same crap to everyone else, too. Annoying! And? They get prizes for selling enough of the crap! So - if you sell 73.4 items, you get get a pencil topper & fart slime? Awesome. We get to spend $83 to get a crappy plastic ladle & coasters? Great. Worth it? NOT A CHANCE!

I would rather the schools just send out a note saying they need $$$. I will happily just give them $20 or $30 to help out. Seriously.

Now my kids have done the "district fundraiser". EVERY kid from kindergarten through 8th grade was to sell these for "fabulous prizes" (see above paragraph). But all these kids in the district are selling them. We had 2 in our house selling them. They were due today. We didn't buy any. Instead we bribed the boys with $5 each that they could spend on whatever crap prize they want from Wally World or elsewhere & then we didn't have to take a card that we would only use 2 of the 20 things from.

I have a much better fundraising idea! Have a talent show for the faculty. Let the kids advertise for it & then keep a tab of which kids you are there to watch the show for. Most of the faculty have an outside talent that can be shared. However, if one was moonlighting as a pole dancer or drag queen, that might be a little different. But I digress. Most of them have a singing, dancing (appropriate), magic, etc. talent. What kid wouldn't want to know that about their educators! And the parents would love to know who is working with their kids - so show off the talent! The kids would beg to come to this event, it would be entertaining for adults & it wouldn't take a kid asking you to buy 20 things to get a crap prize. Hold a drawing at the event for the kids AND for the adults.

I want to help the schools. They need money. I've seen it first hand from doing DOORMAT duties to see where the money needs to go. But there HAS to be a better way! People are guilting their kids into being seriously pushy sales people. It's frustrating when they get told they need to get pumped up for crappy prizes. If they want prizes, just send some $$ to school in their name & give them happy stickers. I mean really!

Am I the only one who feels this way? Or has anyone else bribed their kids into NOT doing a fundraiser?
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A Case of Cheating Not Helping

Today is Monday, a day when I do my duties that requires my DOORMAT tshirt & SUCKER hat: volunteering at Bossyhead's school. And, if you read some previous posts about this (blog or Facebook) then you know about my up & coming arch nemesis, DISORGANIZED DITTO-oh-oh-oh-oh.

However, I haven't had to deal with this villain's copying shenanigans lately, but today was a new one. It's proof of cases when cheating does NO one any good!

Now, I'm all about some cheating as a shortcut, but not when you are dealing with volunteering in the education field.

Lately, the duties I've been helping with is working with the kids on their reading fluency. It isn't our job at that moment to walk them through, but instead make note of where they need help. Trust me, if I was given the reign to help them with the words, I'd be on it! But imagine my dismay when the forces of evil were at hand:

I could hear DISORGANIZED DITTO-oh-oh-oh-oh timing the kids & TELLING them what words were next! How does that help the kids except to bump them up for a moment? What happens when the go to read it at home or to their teacher & don't do nearly as well as this first time out bump in WPM number? So frustrating! There are a couple of kids I work with who only know maybe 3-5 words, period, right now. I would LOVE to tell them the words & help them sound it out. But we have to show where they are at & any growth they have gotten.

Then, on top of that, I had a slight break as Bossyhead's class left the room for a few minutes, so I was just camped in the hallway - listening to my arch nemesis cheating with the class she was working with. One girl came out to work with DD-oh-oh-oh-oh (must always have the echo) who was in Bossyhead's class last year. She saw me sitting in the hallway & waved at me a couple of times - which I waved back, of course. DD-oh-oh-oh-oh actually questioned if I really knew the little girl! REALLY? Listen, new chick on the block, who only came in because you didn't like the school your kid was in before - who do you think you are questioning who knows whom & helping cheat these kids through NOTHING? The audacity is disgusting!

Do you sense the weirdness of evil like I do?

OK, off my soapbox for now. But this is NOT over!
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I Wore a Bra and Hat For This

If you read my previous post about taking Bossyhead to school, then you know how that tends to go.

He asked me to be a car rider again today. I have not yet cleaned my car, so the chances of things falling out onto someone else's feet are very high. Plus I have some boxes in there too - momentarily. That would block him from getting out on the side they want him to, and I am not moving his booster seat to the other side. So this was going to be entertaining. And I would need to at least wear a hat. Trust me.

As I fretted over the thought of the messy car back in the kiddie drive-thru, Bossyhead tells me there's no need to go through that line. I was confused, but relieved. Then he told me it because he wants me to go into his classroom. WHAT?? Oh, man! That means I actually have to put on a bra & get dressed, AS WELL AS wear a hat. But I had to talk to his teacher anyway about an upcoming "event" we will be unable to attend due to another appointment on the books & priorities.

So I got myself together, helped get Bossyhead together, and took him to school. I will have to admit that walking past the kiddie drive-thru gave me a small sense of relief. And then we walked in.

I spoke to his teacher about the event we would not be at, so she gave me some information about what was going to be covered. She then said that one of the topics was about volunteers & cornered me into volunteering...every week...on Monday mornings. Are you kidding? Talk about feeling blindsided.

I almost felt like Bossyhead & his teacher were in cahoots. That's what I wore a bra & hat for today. Do you think that if I'd left my pajamas on, no bra & crazy bed hair alone, they may have had second thoughts on that volunteering thing?

Something tells me that I will have to put my foot down on Bossyhead being a car rider anymore. The bus is fine transportation.
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Whine for Wine

If you've noticed, we have a teenage daughter. A pretty mouthy one, too. And she likes to try to push buttons. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.

We had taken her with us to her high school open house so she could show us where her classes were at. We made jokes all night about how we would have to friend all of the teachers for the times we would have to stay in contact. I only slightly joke.

When we left that evening, we were laying down more laws for the school year as well as reminder her of the ones already set. Of course she got sassy - it's what she does. I got on to her for her nasty attitude & reminder her that she knew it was coming. She didn't like that answer & gave a very hateful response; so daddy got onto her for her attitude. She came back with, "Does Daddy need a beer?"

Are you kidding me? I'm thinking Mommy needs a wine! But was that even considered?

How is it that she is willing to make sure dad chilled out, but mom has to stay stressed?

Yes, you are reading this right: I'm whining about the lack of wining. Can I get an amen from other winey/whiney mamas?

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Messy Car Kid Valet

I'm such a loving mom that I relish in the moment that I can get yet another kid on the bus. It happens 3 times in a morning. Imagine a sense of relief when I get the 3rd one done! Crazy mornings!

There is a "tradition" at our house that involves car rides on the 1st day of school or sometime in the 1st week. My diva 15yo daughter believes this goes to her no matter what, even if it screws up a morning or day for anyone else. So she made my hubby take her on the 1st day...AND pick her up! Geesh! But that meant that the other boys would not be taken by parent chauffeur. However, my hubby worked it that he could pickup the older boy to bring him home. The youngest was looking forward to riding the bus to & from school! Whew! That helped the chaos a little bit.

Well, the kids have been in school a week, and I think the youngest has now figured out that he has not yet been a car rider. So he asked WAY too late yesterday morning...so we worked it out today. So, as I pull up to the school, I start realizing that there is a school staff member opening the back doors of the cars to let the kid(s) out...like a valet. Uh...ruh-roh! My car is a disaster! Then...I realize my son is going to have to crawl across the back seat to await this particular school "valet". I was just hoping that papers, paper towels, old pop tarts, expired sales ads or a jacket didn't jump out at this woman's feet! D'oh!

Even worse? I volunteered at the school once a week last year. These people know me. Guess who will likely be the teachers' lounge conversation focus? Pretty sure my hand goes up here.

Well, they are lucky I decided to put on a bra before I left the house. Baby steps...and a lot of bus rides!

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Omelette Week

If you think that Omelette Week sounds yummy & exciting, then read on & see how it's more like Shark Week.

School started back for my kids last week. The 1st day (Wednesday) was a half day, the high school lets out an hour early every Thursday, and my hubby has Fridays off. I have been looking forward to school starting so I can attempt to get my sanity back. I love my kids, but they were making each other crazy, which was making me crazy. But having three days that were really discombobulated, I was looking forward to the 2nd week of school - a full week with three full days for me to get my stuff done! Right? RIGHT?

I was looking forward to this week. Monday wasn't too bad. It was more of a lazy day as I was basking in the thought I would have a few days coming to do my stuff. Then I found out that my younger son had finally agreed to do soccer (after WEEKS of deliberation), so we were finding out about practice times. Come to find out, he would be having practice on Tuesday night.

Tuesday was also the afternoon that my older son had his orthodontist appointment, a longer one since they had to do extra stuff to his mouth this time. I was getting ready to run errands on Tuesday when my hubby called & wanted to know if I wanted to meet him for lunch. That was nice, but it was filled with shop talk. Then I needed to head on home due to timing & what should've taken me 10 minutes to get home, took me 25 minutes due to backed up traffic, an evacuation situation at a medical building with cops trying to get thru standstill traffic, a funeral procession that couldn't get thru the standstill traffic, and a fresh accident waiting for law enforcement due to...standstill traffic. Then we got dinner ordered (that was in the original plan, luckily), and then we got my youngest ready for soccer practice while my hubby got ready for a meeting.

I then find out that my daughter's high school open house is Wednesday night (tonight). Not a big deal. Then a get a text from her saying that she left a school book at home that she needs for the next class. So, I got that taken to the school just in time.

Apparently, my older son has his middle school open house tomorrow night. Of course.

In the meantime, I have been pulled into some family drama & shop talk this week, so I can't get my stuff done anyway.

So...it's "Omelette Week": scrambled, filled quickly, flipped & fried. Can you tell? And the week isn't over yet...

When I was talking to my mother about the craziness & said that I was just waiting to see how my weeks would actually look. She brought up the point that this is possibly how a regular week is going to look. Ouch.

Hmmmm...strangely, I'm hungry for an omelette now...

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