Yesterday, I got a call from Mrs. Banks at work. Normally, she would have been tutoring SJ, since it was a Wednesday. I had cancelled the tutoring appointment, since we were headed to the Pirates game that evening. Immediately, I assumed he had gotten into some trouble at school. I always assume the worse (they are boys!).
She said she had spoken to his teacher, Mrs. Hazelnut. Mrs. Hazelnut co-teaches his English/Language Arts class. He had been taking the state mandated tests since Monday. She wanted to see how SJ was handling the tests. This was a fair question, because in the past he has not handled them very well.
She was happy to report that Mrs. Hazelnut told her that he has been doing a fabulous job. He hasn't complained, grumbled or had a meltdown all week. She said he has been cooperative and has worked very diligently on the language arts portion of the tests (math is next week).
I was so happy to hear this. It was music to my ears. Mrs. Banks also said that she told Mrs. Hazelnut that he has hardly complained to her about reading in their tutoring sessions as well. I said, "I have a theory." I told her that I think he is working so hard, because he believes that he will be able to be in a "regular" language arts class in 9th grade if he does well on these tests.
She agreed with my theory. She also said that she thinks it is great that he has realized that maybe he could be out of co-taught language arts if he does better on the tests. We won't know until the end of the school year how he does. For his sake, I hope all his hard work pays off!
Thursday, April 14, 2016
8th grade tutoring #10 and #11
Two weeks ago, SJ had his weekly tutoring session with Mrs. Banks. Before the session started, I got a text from Mrs. Banks. This was our exchange.
I then called SJ. He answered immediately. I told him that Mrs. Banks was waiting for him. He said he didn't want to have tutoring. I told him that was too bad and if he didn't go downstairs immediately there would be big trouble when I got home.
I sent Mrs. Banks another text.
After his session was over, I sent her a follow up text. I thought SJ may have given her a hard time. Here are our text exchanges.
Last week, SJ was waiting for Mrs. Banks when she arrived (I gave him several reminders in the morning). She sent me a text after their session was over to update me on his progress. Here is our exchange.
I had cancelled his appointment the next week (yesterday), because we had plans to go to a Pirates game. More to come in two weeks.
"I'm in the basement and have called for SJ. No sign of life upstairs."
"Ok. I will text him."
I then called SJ. He answered immediately. I told him that Mrs. Banks was waiting for him. He said he didn't want to have tutoring. I told him that was too bad and if he didn't go downstairs immediately there would be big trouble when I got home.
I sent Mrs. Banks another text.
"I just talked to him. He should be down shortly."
"He arrived."
After his session was over, I sent her a follow up text. I thought SJ may have given her a hard time. Here are our text exchanges.
"How was he today?"
"He was good. He really didn't complain. We talked about his birthday and Easter and then read a really long chapter. He remembered all of the details too."
"Yeah!"
Last week, SJ was waiting for Mrs. Banks when she arrived (I gave him several reminders in the morning). She sent me a text after their session was over to update me on his progress. Here is our exchange.
"SJ did well tonight. We finished reading Chapter 2 and began Chapter 3. He was able to find a lot of answers to the questions. We had a good discussion about a new character that was added to the story."
"Glad to hear. I guess he was ready for you today?"
"He was in the kitchen when I came in. He grumbled down the steps and then happily read with me."
"Good. Better than last week."
I had cancelled his appointment the next week (yesterday), because we had plans to go to a Pirates game. More to come in two weeks.
Friday, March 25, 2016
sj...aka ninja warrior birthday boy
Last Sunday, we had SJ's 14th birthday party. He invited 7 friends. They were all able to come except for one (that is pretty good odds). We couldn't fit all the boys in one vehicle, so I had Bob, Topher, George and Kingston in my car. My husband had SJ, Willie, Garry and Dallas in his vehicle. The trampoline park that we were going to was about 40 minutes from our house. Our jump time was scheduled for 12, but we didn't actually make it there until almost 12:30. Kingston's grandfather got a little lost on the way to our house (no biggie).
We stopped at McDonald's to get the boys lunch. We let them have anything they wanted, so we had a variety of orders (Big Macs, Chicken Nuggets, breakfast sandwiches, etc.). The manager didn't seem to care that we were a little late. We signed up for a 90 minute session. In that 90 minutes, they could do the trampolines, dodgeball, rock climbing wall or the ninja course.
They all decided to begin with the ninja course. They were in there for over 15 minutes (and they cheated a little). They moved on to the trampolines and then dodgeball. They also had a huge airbag that you could jump into from a platform. They were back and forth between all the areas so many times. Some preferred dodgeball and some of the other boys preferred the ninja course. As long as they were having fun, all was good.
Only Topher and Bob braved the rock climbing wall. They both said it was very hard. Bob got slightly higher than Topher and that is saying a lot since Topher is over 6 feet tall.
When our 90 minutes were over, we drove back home. We only had 30 minutes until parent pick up, so we sang to SJ right away. The boys ate gluten free cupcakes and had chocolate ice cream while SJ opened his cards and presents.
They went outside for their remaining time at our house. Some of the boys played basketball, some played soccer and the rest tossed a whistling Nerf football. All the boys behaved nicely, had great manners and were very fun to be around. Once again, I am very thankful for the boys in SJ's grade. They are always so accepting and kind to him. I am glad he is able to have genuine friends.
I am so glad one of my new friends from work told me about this trampoline park. We will definitely be going back there soon!
We stopped at McDonald's to get the boys lunch. We let them have anything they wanted, so we had a variety of orders (Big Macs, Chicken Nuggets, breakfast sandwiches, etc.). The manager didn't seem to care that we were a little late. We signed up for a 90 minute session. In that 90 minutes, they could do the trampolines, dodgeball, rock climbing wall or the ninja course.
They all decided to begin with the ninja course. They were in there for over 15 minutes (and they cheated a little). They moved on to the trampolines and then dodgeball. They also had a huge airbag that you could jump into from a platform. They were back and forth between all the areas so many times. Some preferred dodgeball and some of the other boys preferred the ninja course. As long as they were having fun, all was good.
Only Topher and Bob braved the rock climbing wall. They both said it was very hard. Bob got slightly higher than Topher and that is saying a lot since Topher is over 6 feet tall.
When our 90 minutes were over, we drove back home. We only had 30 minutes until parent pick up, so we sang to SJ right away. The boys ate gluten free cupcakes and had chocolate ice cream while SJ opened his cards and presents.
They went outside for their remaining time at our house. Some of the boys played basketball, some played soccer and the rest tossed a whistling Nerf football. All the boys behaved nicely, had great manners and were very fun to be around. Once again, I am very thankful for the boys in SJ's grade. They are always so accepting and kind to him. I am glad he is able to have genuine friends.
I am so glad one of my new friends from work told me about this trampoline park. We will definitely be going back there soon!
8th grade tutoring #9
Last Wednesday, SJ had his weekly tutoring session with Mrs. Banks. They finished the "Toilet Paper Tigers" book. Mrs. Banks told me she thought SJ may not be able to answer some of the comprehension questions that they were scheduled to do. I had to cancel his appointment the week before since he had a high fever virus. She was pleasantly surprised that he remembered everything from two weeks earlier. She said he really enjoyed that book.
The next book they are going to read is by Sterling North. It is called "Rascal". It is a memoir of the author's childhood, but it is fictionalized. It is set in the 1920's and is about the author's childhood best friend. Not another boy, but his pet raccoon. The author brings home a baby raccoon. He already owns many other wild animals (woodchucks, skunks and a crow) and a few cats and dogs.
Although the boy has other animals, Rascal becomes his best friend. He is a funny showoff who is rather mischievous by stealing items from neighbors' gardens and yards.
I like that Mrs. Banks picks books that SJ would never gravitate to himself. Hopefully, he will like this one as much as the others she has selected. He will be skipping tutoring next week...Easter Break.
The next book they are going to read is by Sterling North. It is called "Rascal". It is a memoir of the author's childhood, but it is fictionalized. It is set in the 1920's and is about the author's childhood best friend. Not another boy, but his pet raccoon. The author brings home a baby raccoon. He already owns many other wild animals (woodchucks, skunks and a crow) and a few cats and dogs.
Although the boy has other animals, Rascal becomes his best friend. He is a funny showoff who is rather mischievous by stealing items from neighbors' gardens and yards.
I like that Mrs. Banks picks books that SJ would never gravitate to himself. Hopefully, he will like this one as much as the others she has selected. He will be skipping tutoring next week...Easter Break.
Thursday, March 17, 2016
no more speech sessions
A couple of weeks ago, my husband took SJ to speech. We had missed a bunch of sessions due to basketball games. I felt bad cancelling them, but the basketball season only lasts for a short while. When my husband dropped him off, the therapist told him she was at a loss of what to do with him since we had so many cancelled sessions. She said she was going to have to reevaluate his goals and potentially do something different with him.
My husband called me while SJ was back with the therapist. He said she sounded somewhat frustrated. We discussed this for a few minutes. I told him he may want to tell her that we are going to take a break. SJ wasn't loving going there and it was very difficult to get him there with their (Bob's and SJ's) activities and our work schedules.
When he came out of his session, my husband told the therapist that we were going to take a break. She seemed a little surprised, but honestly she must have be relieved. We believe that he has outgrown the speech therapy. If we feel he starts to slip, we can always start it again.
We have been going there since he was 3 years old. He will be 14 next week. Eleven years is a long time. All of the therapists that he has seen over the years have made such a huge difference in his life. It is a little sad to end this chapter of SJ's life, but also joyful that he has made so much progress. Thanks to all of you who helped SJ with his speech (both physical and social) and also to the occupational therapists who also helped him with his weak fingertips and texture issues. We are very grateful to all of you.
My husband called me while SJ was back with the therapist. He said she sounded somewhat frustrated. We discussed this for a few minutes. I told him he may want to tell her that we are going to take a break. SJ wasn't loving going there and it was very difficult to get him there with their (Bob's and SJ's) activities and our work schedules.
When he came out of his session, my husband told the therapist that we were going to take a break. She seemed a little surprised, but honestly she must have be relieved. We believe that he has outgrown the speech therapy. If we feel he starts to slip, we can always start it again.
We have been going there since he was 3 years old. He will be 14 next week. Eleven years is a long time. All of the therapists that he has seen over the years have made such a huge difference in his life. It is a little sad to end this chapter of SJ's life, but also joyful that he has made so much progress. Thanks to all of you who helped SJ with his speech (both physical and social) and also to the occupational therapists who also helped him with his weak fingertips and texture issues. We are very grateful to all of you.
Friday, February 26, 2016
4th annual ski trip to Holiday Valley
As mentioned in my previous blog entry, we went on our annual ski trip to Holiday Valley in Ellicottville, NY. Again, we rented a house big enough for four families. It was us minus Bob (he had a soccer tournament and hates to ski), Topher and Mags' family, Willie and Ami's family and Meryl and Goldie's family plus one of Meryl's friends, Lulu.
On our first full day there, we went to a private resort that is open to the public during the week. It is called Holimont. Initially, we thought it was crowded (the lodge was crowded) since they were having a contractor's outing. Once we got off the lifts, it was surprisingly open. The runs were nice and long, which is similar to Holiday Valley. The weather was perfect (26 degrees) and the mountain views were beautiful! We took a break for lunch and ate in the lodge. The food was pricey, but it was delicious.
That night for dinner, the ladies made quesadillas. SJ had a gluten free tortilla quesadilla. The quesadillas were delicious. That evening, the girls decided to go out into the hot tub and the boys played video games. The girls came in after 30 minutes. Right after they came in, SJ came out of the room he was sharing with Topher and Willie. He went into our bedroom and put on his swimsuit. I asked him, "Are you going in the hot tub with the boys?" He looked at me and asked, "Aren't the girls still out there?" I told him, "No, they just came in to shower." You should have seen his face. He looked so disappointed. He let out a huff and turned around to change back into his regular clothes. That made all the adults chuckle and then Meryl and Goldie's dad said, "Another boy that I now have to worry about." We all laughed harder.
The next day, we went to Holiday Valley. We skied all day! It was a little warm for skiing (37 degrees), but we still had a great day. We took a break for lunch, but that only lasted about 30 minutes. The food was still pricey, but not as good as the food at Holimont. The kids started getting tired around 4, so we went back to the house to get ready for dinner.
We tried to go into town to eat at the Brewery, but the wait was too long. We ended up at the Restaurant Depot, an old train station that they turned into a restaurant. It was a wing, pizza and beer place. I have to say the food was incredible. Maybe the best pizza that I have ever had! It was a quirky place with knick knacks all over the walls and ceilings. The kids loved it.
After we returned home, all the kids decided to get in the hot tub. They were playing "Truth or Snow". If you didn't want answer some embarrassing question, then you had to jump out of the hot tub and do a snow angel, etc. SJ told me later that Willie asked him a question, but he didn't tell the "whole truth". Since he told "half of the truth", he didn't do the snow dare. Stinker!
Our last day of skiing, we went back to Holiday Valley. It was unseasonable warm (48 degrees), which is a little too warm for skiing. The snow was very slushy and bare in some spots. We skied for a few hours and then went to lunch at The Gin Mill. This restaurant was at best a "dive", but the food was yummy there too. We bonused out on the food on this trip. After lunch was finished, we drove home. Can't wait until next year!
On our first full day there, we went to a private resort that is open to the public during the week. It is called Holimont. Initially, we thought it was crowded (the lodge was crowded) since they were having a contractor's outing. Once we got off the lifts, it was surprisingly open. The runs were nice and long, which is similar to Holiday Valley. The weather was perfect (26 degrees) and the mountain views were beautiful! We took a break for lunch and ate in the lodge. The food was pricey, but it was delicious.
That night for dinner, the ladies made quesadillas. SJ had a gluten free tortilla quesadilla. The quesadillas were delicious. That evening, the girls decided to go out into the hot tub and the boys played video games. The girls came in after 30 minutes. Right after they came in, SJ came out of the room he was sharing with Topher and Willie. He went into our bedroom and put on his swimsuit. I asked him, "Are you going in the hot tub with the boys?" He looked at me and asked, "Aren't the girls still out there?" I told him, "No, they just came in to shower." You should have seen his face. He looked so disappointed. He let out a huff and turned around to change back into his regular clothes. That made all the adults chuckle and then Meryl and Goldie's dad said, "Another boy that I now have to worry about." We all laughed harder.
The next day, we went to Holiday Valley. We skied all day! It was a little warm for skiing (37 degrees), but we still had a great day. We took a break for lunch, but that only lasted about 30 minutes. The food was still pricey, but not as good as the food at Holimont. The kids started getting tired around 4, so we went back to the house to get ready for dinner.
We tried to go into town to eat at the Brewery, but the wait was too long. We ended up at the Restaurant Depot, an old train station that they turned into a restaurant. It was a wing, pizza and beer place. I have to say the food was incredible. Maybe the best pizza that I have ever had! It was a quirky place with knick knacks all over the walls and ceilings. The kids loved it.
After we returned home, all the kids decided to get in the hot tub. They were playing "Truth or Snow". If you didn't want answer some embarrassing question, then you had to jump out of the hot tub and do a snow angel, etc. SJ told me later that Willie asked him a question, but he didn't tell the "whole truth". Since he told "half of the truth", he didn't do the snow dare. Stinker!
Our last day of skiing, we went back to Holiday Valley. It was unseasonable warm (48 degrees), which is a little too warm for skiing. The snow was very slushy and bare in some spots. We skied for a few hours and then went to lunch at The Gin Mill. This restaurant was at best a "dive", but the food was yummy there too. We bonused out on the food on this trip. After lunch was finished, we drove home. Can't wait until next year!
how to ski with one functioning arm...
A few days after SJ broke his hand, we were due to go on our ski trip. This caused A LOT of extra stress. My husband looked at multiple stores for an extra large mitten that could fit over his bulky cast. He bought a fairly large set, but it didn't fit when SJ tried it on. We started to look online to see if there were any other suggestions (he couldn't be the first person to ski with a cast). It was suggested to use either a wool sock or an oven mitt. Hmm...how silly would he look with an oven mitt on his hand?
We decided to go with the oven mitt. My husband found a black mitt at Wal-Mart. He said he would just slip it over the cast. Sounds simple, right? Wrong! It was too small to fit correctly over the cast too. I suggested cutting the oven mitt. My husband thought about it and decided it was the only solution. He would just have to tape the mitt up after his hand was in it.
Our first day of skiing, there was much complaining when we were getting SJ ready to start. He was moaning about the oven mitt and then about the difficulty of holding the pole with the mitt. We suggested that he only use one pole. He tried that initially, but deemed it too difficult. "So, are you not going to ski?," I questioned him. "Nope. I am going to ski. Just with no poles, Mom," he said matter-of-factly. I didn't know how he was going to do that, but that is exactly what he did. He skied better with no poles than I do with two poles. The other kids also tried to ski without their poles, but told SJ that he was a rock star for skiing without poles. Occasionally, my husband let him borrow one of his poles if we had a slight upgrade to climb or give him a push when we were on a flat area.
He went down greens (easy), blues (medium), blacks (hard) and even did the terrain parks...all without poles and only one functioning arm. Obviously, if you love to ski, you will find a way!
We decided to go with the oven mitt. My husband found a black mitt at Wal-Mart. He said he would just slip it over the cast. Sounds simple, right? Wrong! It was too small to fit correctly over the cast too. I suggested cutting the oven mitt. My husband thought about it and decided it was the only solution. He would just have to tape the mitt up after his hand was in it.
Our first day of skiing, there was much complaining when we were getting SJ ready to start. He was moaning about the oven mitt and then about the difficulty of holding the pole with the mitt. We suggested that he only use one pole. He tried that initially, but deemed it too difficult. "So, are you not going to ski?," I questioned him. "Nope. I am going to ski. Just with no poles, Mom," he said matter-of-factly. I didn't know how he was going to do that, but that is exactly what he did. He skied better with no poles than I do with two poles. The other kids also tried to ski without their poles, but told SJ that he was a rock star for skiing without poles. Occasionally, my husband let him borrow one of his poles if we had a slight upgrade to climb or give him a push when we were on a flat area.
He went down greens (easy), blues (medium), blacks (hard) and even did the terrain parks...all without poles and only one functioning arm. Obviously, if you love to ski, you will find a way!
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