Ben and Delaney have now been back at school for 2 weeks, starting back up on 2 September. So far they are really enjoying it, but the logistics have gotten a little more challenging. Ben has now moved on to middle school, and because he was selected to attend a specialty school with emphasis on math and science, he no longer has the ability to catch the school bus at our house. Instead, we have to drive him to the elementary school where he is picked up by a bus for the ~10 mile drive to his middle school. This isn’t so bad, but the bus picks up at the school at 7:20AM, over an hour earlier than Delaney needs to catch the bus to school at our house. Since I usually leave the house for work well before 6AM, Karen ends up having to bring Ben to the school to catch the bus, which means Delaney has to get up early and go along for the ride. On the other end, Ben gets dropped back off at the elementary school at about 3:15PM, which is about a half hour before Delaney gets out of school, Karen then picks him back up (if she is not working at the school). If she is working, Ben stays at the elementary school until it lets out and rides home with Karen.
Ben is excited that he will be able to join band this year and is currently contemplating which instrument he will play. He thinks that he would like to play the trumpet, but he is also considering the saxophone and the trombone. He seems to have a real interest in music, and would eventually like to learn to play guitar. At the end of last year, Delaney was identified as a gifted student and selected for the SIGNET program for gifted learners. This is the same program that Ben was in, and he loved it. She begins her SIGNET classes this coming week, and she is really excited about it. The program is offered at her school and takes her out of her normal class for one day a week for specialized instruction. It focuses on spontaneous and creative problem solving, as well as independent learning. The county does a nice job on this program and we are glad that both kids were selected and had the opportunity to participate in the program.
Karen has been volunteering at Delaney’s school and is on the substitute teaching roster for Delaney’s school. Her first day as a sub comes later this week, but she has already spent a couple days doing volunteer work in Delaney’s class. Unlike last year when she worked as a teahcer’s assistant, she will have more flexibility and control over her schedule this year as a sub. What we have found is that she can work as much as she wants as a sub, as there are usually plenty of opportunities.
Less than 2 weeks in, Ben has already missed 2 days of school. Last Sunday he got sick and was running a fever of 103. We thought he had strep because of his history and the fact that his throat was inflamed and had white spots, but the culture came back negative. It turned out to be viral. The good news is that he recovered fairly quickly and the rest of us have managed to avoid it so far (at least the fever). Usually when this happens, it flows through the family.
I attended a Transition Assistance Program (TAP) seminar held at Bolling AFB a couple weeks ago. It was a good first class in prep for my planned retirement next year. It focused on the financial realities of retirement and on resumes, interviewing and salary negotiations. I still have other classes to attend and a lot of work to do to get my retirement plans in order, but I have about a year to pull it all together.
In other news, I started a regimen of walking and have a goal of walking 20 miles a week. I have mapped out a few routes from the house that range from 3.5 to 4.5 miles in length. I have managed about 16 miles a week so far in thefirst 2 weeks, as I have been hampered a bit by my schedule and some weather. I try to average about 4mph on my walk, so I am usually moving at a good pace. Idieally I would like to do some during the day at work (lunchtime), but it is usually hard to get away from the desk for that long. We’ll see how it goes. I also have an eliptical trainer, recumbent bike and a treadmill in our finished off basement. These will come in handy during hockey season which starts in about 3 weeks.
how’s that sleep ware working out?
watch the weight gain while working out… think of it as a positive… watch the inches…