Quick Check-in

Well, it's crazy.

Not in a bad way. Just in an immediate, frenzied, don't have time to pee and not getting good sleep way.

I have a full house. They're all really nice kids. They are kind to each other, great at keeping their distance from others, terrific at keeping their masks on. None of them are 'traumatized' at having to mask up. I saw a parent pitching a fit on the news last week saying that her poor babies were traumatized at having to wear a mask.

I doubt that.

So they're great kids. Oh sure, they act like children. They snipe at each other a little and they're testing the boundaries with me a bit.

"Ivan, since we talked about throwing toys yesterday and we've already covered it twice today, I'm not going to believe your 'I forgot' anymore. You have not forgotten, you've just decided not to listen. If you'd like to continue playing there, the toys need to stop flying."

He believed me.

This time.

I stopped at Sprawlmart and bought 500 big red plastic cups last week.  They're a construction toy. Towers and houses and corrals and fire stations are built, shared, torn down to be rebuilt even better.

Turns out I will probably need another 200 or so, they are getting broken/stepped on a bit. It's mostly unintentional, they just get excited and forget to look before they step. And I do have quite a few really young kids, too. Our space, while decent, is not large enough for the kids to keep their distance from one another and to make elaborate construction projects at the same time.

I've had to track a few kids down after school. Working to get parents trained to understand that they need to call me and let me know if their child will not be attending program.

Since I am not part of the school, the parental phone call to the school's attendance line does not reach me. Instead, I have to bother school staff to locate the child, then call the parent once I've verified the kid is safe/on their way to me/rode the bus... whatever.

I have to make those phone calls while kids are pouring in after school, getting toys out, making a mess, asking for supplies. I have three sibling pairs who are happy to greet each other after school, too. Usually the larger one needs to be reminded not to lift the smaller one. "Yes, I know he's your brother and I love that you are so happy to see him, but I have to ask you not to lift him while you are here."

Craft projects have been happening on a limited basis. The program area is a pit. There are (or were) about a million crayons, colored pencils, old markers. Broken toys, crumpled tissue paper, GLITTER (oh good heavens no) and various things that make me do a Mowgli.
(It's much higher class for me to put it that way than saying WTAF over and over... you can say many things about me, but 'keeping it classy' needs to be near the top of the list.)

I brought in a big bin of cotton string. The Cream and Sugar kind you get in the craft stores for about 5 bucks a skein. In my case, I buy it at Goodwill in bags with 10 or more skeins for 5 bucks. Although I end up paying for that stuff myself quite often, it's still a good deal and makes my job easier, something that's worth a little of my cash.

We're making these.

And let's face it, I am not going to retire on the 20 bucks here, 30 bucks there that I've spent on my program(s) over the years. Eric calls it 'buying tools'. As in, "You're buying tools that will help you do your job better. It's an investment, not an expense."

Man, I love that guy.

I'm not sleeping well, and not really resting when I finally DO sleep. The night before I actually started the job I slept a TOTAL of three hours. Count 'em... one, two, three. Saying I felt like doodoo is an understatement. UGHHHHH. Not sure I've caught up yet, either.

There are lots of little details and stuff that needs to happen, and it's not going to be done overnight. Unfortunately, I have no magic wand.

This weekend (Saturday!!) is Mason and Alyssa's wedding. I'm still working on getting ribbons and bows and things made for the flower arrangements, and I'll be baking about 80 cupcakes on Friday. The weather looks like it's gonna be just about perfect. The shelter we rented is covered just in case, but I am guessing things will be fine.

I'm grateful my kid is as low maintenance as I am, being practical and pragmatic are usually helpful to me, I hope those traits are equally helpful to her. She's a trip.

I'll post some getting married photos (if it's okay with her).
I'll definitely show you the decorations and cupcakes, though.

Okay, so that sleep I haven't been getting? It's 8:22 already, and I am not only up at 5 like I've always been for this job, but I have a much longer commute. I have to leave the house at 5:45 to get there on time. It's freeway driving for more than halfway, so it's bright and fast and hectic.

Which are good adjectives to describe me AND my new job.

And how are things in your life?