systems

Three times this morning, I said, "Don't forget your shoes, James." I pointed the shoes out to James. I did not pick them up and hand them to him, but I had delivered his clothes to him and his socks and showed him his shoes. He is 6. He can pick up shoes and put them on. So why is it that we drive to school, already five minutes late and as I am opening the door and handing him his back pack, he says, "I don't have any shoes."?

We were then 20 minutes late. We are always late, but I pride myself in only being 5 minutes late. I really hate being 20 minutes late, because I have to get out of the car and sign James in. I am very honest when signing in, though. When I sign in, there is a space for the reason you are late. Most people leave this blank, but not me. When we were late because I showered and washed me hair AND shaved my legs, I wrote that. When I was getting the kids in the car and James and Kath were in the garage and Seth comes running out completely naked, I wrote that down. When I let James sleep in because he is not a morning person and can be a pain in the butt, I write that. I believe in honesty and the office actually enjoys seeing me when James is late because they want to know the reason.

I have developed a great relationship with the office so I don't get yelled at for having my kid late 50% of the time. Kevin wonders why when we look for property, I want to stay in this school district. The principal loves me. This is why we are staying here. I don't think Kevin understands the importance of a good relationship with the school. I have worked the system and I am not doing it AGAIN...

Now if I can figure out how to make a 2 year old get dressed and stay dressed. I have not figured out how to work that system.