TGI Friday Randoms

[beerlover]

jinkies, I'm so sorry. That would be really hard to watch. I hope that your DD is able to make some different friends this year and has a good year.

[pinkdutchtulips]

I turn 50 today …. I’m not ready to be 50 😳😳

[picksthemusic]

Aug 23, 2024 10:19:44 GMT -5 nicolewi said:

We had middle school back-to-school night last night and I'm concerned. DD going into 6th has dyslexia and dyscalculia but is super "normal" socially and incredibly worried about looking different. I've been asking since last winter how I could find out the plan for middle school. I was told at the IEP meeting in spring that someone would contact us re: a special summer meeting to talk through her schedule. That turned out to be a group "special ed" school tour that we skipped b/c socially/psychologically she does not want to be on a group special ed tour. I think all these kids are GREAT but if you are a sixth grade girl trying to be cool in middle school, you don't want to be grouped with all the boys (I don't know if there are any other girls, which is odd) who have much more obvious disabilities/autism/behavioral issues.

So last night as we are taking the regular back-to-school tour/locker supply drop/meeting teachers I realize that her resource hour is with ALL the special ed kids in her "house". AND her locker may be grouped with all special ed kids? This may or may not be okay as she probably DOEs need the homework help. BUT I also realize she is in a "special" literacy with I think all the special ed kids and a special math!!! THis is exactly what I did NOT want to happen to her. She will be totally demoralized. I'm following up with the school today to try to figure out whether my assumptions are correct or not.

FWIW, she has always been in regular classes with pull-out help and actually she's doing really well in literacy. She still struggles a LOT in math.

I'm just so upset...yet again...at the way this was handled by the district/school. Also, WHY is DD like the only kid ever going to special ed for dyslexia??? I am quite sure there are more kids!!!!!!

Plus the lovely kids on the bus use "sped" for "special ed" as an insult frequently meaning dumb/clueless. I hate it and I hate that she's aware of it.

FWIW, my DD has dyscalculia as well and was in 'special help' math in 6th last year, and she really flourished with it. In fact, they placed her in regular 7th grade algebra for this year. She is also socially 'normal' and was in all regular classes except math. She did really well, and no one 'othered' her for it as far as I know (they are not allowed lockers except for PE so that isn't an issue for her). I will say, however, that she excels in ELA (she is not dyslexic), so that may be the difference? I would try to have a 1:1 with her counselor at school and get this straightened out, or at least a better idea of what her day-to-day will look like. I'm sorry this is frustrating and stressful!

[bbdoll]

pinkdutchtulips Happy Birthday!! I'm not far behind you. Turning 47 in a couple weeks.

[fluffycookie]

pinkdutchtulips , happy birthday!!!

[jinkies]

Aug 23, 2024 10:19:44 GMT -5 nicolewi said:

We had middle school back-to-school night last night and I'm concerned. DD going into 6th has dyslexia and dyscalculia but is super "normal" socially and incredibly worried about looking different. I've been asking since last winter how I could find out the plan for middle school. I was told at the IEP meeting in spring that someone would contact us re: a special summer meeting to talk through her schedule. That turned out to be a group "special ed" school tour that we skipped b/c socially/psychologically she does not want to be on a group special ed tour. I think all these kids are GREAT but if you are a sixth grade girl trying to be cool in middle school, you don't want to be grouped with all the boys (I don't know if there are any other girls, which is odd) who have much more obvious disabilities/autism/behavioral issues.

So last night as we are taking the regular back-to-school tour/locker supply drop/meeting teachers I realize that her resource hour is with ALL the special ed kids in her "house". AND her locker may be grouped with all special ed kids? This may or may not be okay as she probably DOEs need the homework help. BUT I also realize she is in a "special" literacy with I think all the special ed kids and a special math!!! THis is exactly what I did NOT want to happen to her. She will be totally demoralized. I'm following up with the school today to try to figure out whether my assumptions are correct or not.

FWIW, she has always been in regular classes with pull-out help and actually she's doing really well in literacy. She still struggles a LOT in math.

I'm just so upset...yet again...at the way this was handled by the district/school. Also, WHY is DD like the only kid ever going to special ed for dyslexia??? I am quite sure there are more kids!!!!!!

Plus the lovely kids on the bus use "sped" for "special ed" as an insult frequently meaning dumb/clueless. I hate it and I hate that she's aware of it.

I'm so sorry. We are in almost an identical situation for DD, going into 7th (our middle school is 7-9). Right down to them promising a meeting with us over the summer to finalize her placement, and then never doing that.

She was put in special ed math last year in 6th and I cannot overstate what a disaster it was for her. Academically they believed it was best for her, but they completely ignored how devastating it was for her self esteem and attitude toward school. It became a vicious cycle of her having a bad attitude/not putting in effort because there was no way out, which then "confirmed" with the school that she couldn't handle a mainstream class. We tried, and failed, to get them to let her try another math class. It was brutal. 

Pretty much anyone who completed 6th grade math goes into at least pre-algebra in 7th, but there is a "Math 7" option for kids who need more reinforcement first. We had asked for her to be placed there, and they tentatively agreed until DD sabotaged herself in the last month of school. Now we are in the same situation where they are putting in her special education math in 7th. 

It was really hard for her socially to be in the special ed when she "only" has dyslexia and dyscalculia. She felt like it was a punishment and did not feel like she belonged there. 

Sorry to dump all this here. I'm not trying to scare you; I am just commiserating because we are in the exact same boat.

[fluffycookie]

Our senior dog has a fractured tooth and growth in the back of her mouth. She needs to have the tooth removed and they will also remove the growth and send it to make sure it's not cancerous. She's 13 and has a heart murmur (grade 1/2) so I am freaking out about the anesthesia. She was so stressed out today at the vet that I can't imagine leaving her there. I almost just started crying while I was food shopping.

[erbear]

Aug 23, 2024 12:56:54 GMT -5 jinkies said:

Aug 23, 2024 10:19:44 GMT -5 nicolewi said:

We had middle school back-to-school night last night and I'm concerned. DD going into 6th has dyslexia and dyscalculia but is super "normal" socially and incredibly worried about looking different. I've been asking since last winter how I could find out the plan for middle school. I was told at the IEP meeting in spring that someone would contact us re: a special summer meeting to talk through her schedule. That turned out to be a group "special ed" school tour that we skipped b/c socially/psychologically she does not want to be on a group special ed tour. I think all these kids are GREAT but if you are a sixth grade girl trying to be cool in middle school, you don't want to be grouped with all the boys (I don't know if there are any other girls, which is odd) who have much more obvious disabilities/autism/behavioral issues.

So last night as we are taking the regular back-to-school tour/locker supply drop/meeting teachers I realize that her resource hour is with ALL the special ed kids in her "house". AND her locker may be grouped with all special ed kids? This may or may not be okay as she probably DOEs need the homework help. BUT I also realize she is in a "special" literacy with I think all the special ed kids and a special math!!! THis is exactly what I did NOT want to happen to her. She will be totally demoralized. I'm following up with the school today to try to figure out whether my assumptions are correct or not.

FWIW, she has always been in regular classes with pull-out help and actually she's doing really well in literacy. She still struggles a LOT in math.

I'm just so upset...yet again...at the way this was handled by the district/school. Also, WHY is DD like the only kid ever going to special ed for dyslexia??? I am quite sure there are more kids!!!!!!

Plus the lovely kids on the bus use "sped" for "special ed" as an insult frequently meaning dumb/clueless. I hate it and I hate that she's aware of it.

I'm so sorry. We are in almost an identical situation for DD, going into 7th (our middle school is 7-9). Right down to them promising a meeting with us over the summer to finalize her placement, and then never doing that.

She was put in special ed math last year in 6th and I cannot overstate what a disaster it was for her. Academically they believed it was best for her, but they completely ignored how devastating it was for her self esteem and attitude toward school. It became a vicious cycle of her having a bad attitude/not putting in effort because there was no way out, which then "confirmed" with the school that she couldn't handle a mainstream class. We tried, and failed, to get them to let her try another math class. It was brutal. 

Pretty much anyone who completed 6th grade math goes into at least pre-algebra in 7th, but there is a "Math 7" option for kids who need more reinforcement first. We had asked for her to be placed there, and they tentatively agreed until DD sabotaged herself in the last month of school. Now we are in the same situation where they are putting in her special education math in 7th. 

It was really hard for her socially to be in the special ed when she "only" has dyslexia and dyscalculia. She felt like it was a punishment and did not feel like she belonged there. 

Sorry to dump all this here. I'm not trying to scare you; I am just commiserating because we are in the exact same boat.

What's crazy is that dyscalculia is easily accommodated in a regular math class with a tiny bit of work. Sometimes, kids are uncomfortable with some of the accommodations though (specifically calculator use when they are the only ones with it), so I wonder if they decided special ed was a better placement for that reason? Regardless, if you're thinking she's misplaced, call for an IEP meeting. 

[jinkies]

erbear, thanks, we are definitely going to talk to the special ed supervisor about her placement, and call a full IEP meeting if needed. We just learned that she wasn't placed in Math 7 a couple days ago. We were promised a summer meeting and never got it-- they just placed her without consulting us.

[nicolewi]

jinkies I'm so sorry for your situation as well. It really stinks. I'm so upset with the school district for not talking this through with us in advance, even though I repeatedly asked for info. Clearly they knew what the plan was, right? Yet they told me nothing was figured out; they didn't know how pull-out services would work, etc. Seems super clear that they just lump all the kids together. I assumed she would be in 'normal' classes as usual and receiving pull-out help and/or special support during a designated time. I'm very upset that no one thought to run this by us or have a conversation, especially given that one big focus of DD's IEP meetings has been her sensitivity around her learning issues. And are all the special ed kids' lockers really together?? I may or may not have that right...but it seemed that way. Who thinks that's a good plan for every single kid who needs some services?? I also think there's a big flaw with the entire system that the person who handles kids with all kinds of social/emotional issues is ALSO supposed to service those kids with purely academic learning issues. It seems like a really hard spot for the special ed teachers and I imagine it would be hard to be trained to do well in all these areas at once.

DD will be so embarrassed when (I'm sure it's quite clear as they are in one small hallway for all their main classes) all her friends realize that she's in "special" classes.

No one was at school today so I sent an email to her special ed contact and the teacher who teaches the one unit of "special" literacy. We are headed out of town. I hope I hear something Monday and we can work out a good option for her.

[devonpow]

Aug 23, 2024 8:17:16 GMT -5 midwestmama said:

8th grade open house for DD this morning. We're going to see if we can get her switched to a different math teacher because the feedback on the teacher she was assigned is not good. I don't want DD to lose all of the progress and confidence she's gained the past 3 school years in math all due to one bad teacher.

DS's football team had a scrimmage last night. He scored 2 touchdowns, was rotated into the 1st string group later on in the scrimmage because of how well he was playing (we'll see if they change his string for the first game), and then got a migraine. DH and I think he was really stressed about the scrimmage and that is what triggered it. Hopefully he doesn't stress himself into triggering a migraine before or during the first game of the season next week.

My big plans for the weekend involve catching up on house cleaning/chores.

you have no idea how your daughter will do with this teacher until actually given a chance. Plus, as much as we want to protect our kids they WILL have teachers (and colleagues, and bosses!) who they don’t connect with as well. It’s our job to teach them how to work through obstacles, not remove all obstacles from their path.

Anecdotes: DS1’s 4th grade teacher was an awful fit for him. It was a ROUGH year. I was really worried about my friends’ kid (very similar to mine) who was later assigned her. That kid ended up having a fabulous year and says she’s their favorite teacher ever.
Also last year (11th grade) the honors English teacher DS1 got was HATED by his peers. They were all very “ugh so sorry you got her” when assignments came out. They ended up really syncing and she’s writing one of his college recommendations.

All kids are different. Don’t go to the school based on things you are hearing and have no idea if they are true.

[nicolewi]

Aug 23, 2024 12:28:35 GMT -5 pinkdutchtulips said:

I turn 50 today …. I’m not ready to be 50 😳😳

Happy birthday! I have five more months until I'm right there, too. I understand how you feel!

[Roc A Bee]

I’m turning 40 on Sunday. I went and got the fancy cupcakes to take with us to our hotel this weekend. It’s the little things.

[notsopicky]

Aug 23, 2024 12:28:35 GMT -5 pinkdutchtulips said:

I turn 50 today …. I’m not ready to be 50 😳😳

PTD, I'm 50 and it's not so bad. It's not amazing by any stretch, but the thing I have reflected on a lot this year is that shit which would have bothered me in my 20s, 30s and/or 40s just doesn't move the needle anymore. And I love that. 

Happy Birthday, and welcome to your 6th decade! 

[sadie]

My kid and her buddies made the musical! She doesn't know yet (still in school), but will be thrilled!

[So_Fetch]

Aug 23, 2024 12:57:27 GMT -5 fluffycookie said:

Our senior dog has a fractured tooth and growth in the back of her mouth. She needs to have the tooth removed and they will also remove the growth and send it to make sure it's not cancerous. She's 13 and has a heart murmur (grade 1/2) so I am freaking out about the anesthesia. She was so stressed out today at the vet that I can't imagine leaving her there. I almost just started crying while I was food shopping.

sending positive thoughts.  surgery is scary anyway even when they are young. I hope the surgery is quick and she has an easy recovery. 

[gretchenindisguise]

Aug 23, 2024 14:32:04 GMT -5 sadie said:

My kid and her buddies made the musical! She doesn't know yet (still in school), but will be thrilled!

Yayayayay!! So excited for her!

[karinothing]

I feel like since I turned 40 my hair sucks. It just dull and lifeless and frizzy (I have very straight hair). I HATE IT. I want to shave it all off and start over. I wish I looked good with a shaved head instead of like my brother

[bears]

I'm waiting at the airport for my kids. They spent the week with my parents. MH and took the weekend away in the mountains and it was glorious to talk to each other without interruption and to not worry about the kids and what they needed at all.

[rubytue]

Aug 23, 2024 14:19:13 GMT -5 notsopicky said:

Aug 23, 2024 12:28:35 GMT -5 pinkdutchtulips said:

I turn 50 today …. I’m not ready to be 50 😳😳

PTD, I'm 50 and it's not so bad. It's not amazing by any stretch, but the thing I have reflected on a lot this year is that shit which would have bothered me in my 20s, 30s and/or 40s just doesn't move the needle anymore. And I love that. 

Happy Birthday, and welcome to your 6th decade! 

As someone who just turned 50 this summer… I never considered this.

In other news, I’ve forgotten how miserable a fever is. It’s been up and down all day, reasonably controlled with Tylenol (though, at one point it was 100.4 90mins after tylonol). But the congestion is tolerable. It’s just the fever that is making me whiney. I guess it’s been 18 months since I’ve been this sick, also Covid. 

[ssmjlm]

Aug 23, 2024 15:31:50 GMT -5 karinothing said:

I feel like since I turned 40 my hair sucks. It just dull and lifeless and frizzy (I have very straight hair). I HATE IT. I want to shave it all off and start over. I wish I looked good with a shaved head instead of like my brother

My hair is so dry at 42. I’m changing up shampoo/conditioner to see if that helps.

Also, my eyelashes are so much shorter now. Even pricey serums don’t seem to be working.

[RoxMonster]

Aug 23, 2024 12:57:27 GMT -5 fluffycookie said:

Our senior dog has a fractured tooth and growth in the back of her mouth. She needs to have the tooth removed and they will also remove the growth and send it to make sure it's not cancerous. She's 13 and has a heart murmur (grade 1/2) so I am freaking out about the anesthesia. She was so stressed out today at the vet that I can't imagine leaving her there. I almost just started crying while I was food shopping.

Hope the surgery went well and your pup is home recovering (or will be soon)!

[wanderingback]

Aug 23, 2024 10:30:21 GMT -5 plutosmoon said:

I just got back from my Alaskan vacation, and am spending a few days on the Cape with my parents. I head home in Sunday and DD goes back to school on Thursday. She is moving schools with the grade reconfiguring, but got her favorite teacher who she had for part of 3rd and 4th, he's going to be teaching 6th this year with all the shuffling.

The trip was amazing, but the flight home was miserable. I have a pretty severe cat allergy and have been prescribed an EpiPen for it in the past. I broke out in full body hives and had a bit of trouble breathing about 30 minutes into the flight, I took Zyrtec and Benadryl and was able to breathe ok, but still had full body hives. Turns out the people in the seat in front of me had a cat they took out of the carrier, they were brushing and petting it. They aren't supposed to take them out during the flight. I called the Flight attendant and she told me I could move to an empty seat in the last row, she said nothing to the cat person. I had paid extra to guarantee a seat next to DD who has autism, there was only one seat in the back row, so me moving wasn't an option. But why should the person with the medical emergency have to move and not the person breaking the rules? I was very annoyed with the handling of it all.

Oh no! I’ve always wondered what people with animal allergies do if they’re sitting next to someone with an animal. Even if they’re in a carrier some people are really sensitive, esp if it’s a long flight. I’m sorry you had to deal with that and I hope you feel better.

[plutosmoon]

Aug 23, 2024 17:31:12 GMT -5 wanderingback said:

Aug 23, 2024 10:30:21 GMT -5 plutosmoon said:

I just got back from my Alaskan vacation, and am spending a few days on the Cape with my parents. I head home in Sunday and DD goes back to school on Thursday. She is moving schools with the grade reconfiguring, but got her favorite teacher who she had for part of 3rd and 4th, he's going to be teaching 6th this year with all the shuffling.

The trip was amazing, but the flight home was miserable. I have a pretty severe cat allergy and have been prescribed an EpiPen for it in the past. I broke out in full body hives and had a bit of trouble breathing about 30 minutes into the flight, I took Zyrtec and Benadryl and was able to breathe ok, but still had full body hives. Turns out the people in the seat in front of me had a cat they took out of the carrier, they were brushing and petting it. They aren't supposed to take them out during the flight. I called the Flight attendant and she told me I could move to an empty seat in the last row, she said nothing to the cat person. I had paid extra to guarantee a seat next to DD who has autism, there was only one seat in the back row, so me moving wasn't an option. But why should the person with the medical emergency have to move and not the person breaking the rules? I was very annoyed with the handling of it all.

Oh no! I’ve always wondered what people with animal allergies do if they’re sitting next to someone with an animal. Even if they’re in a carrier some people are really sensitive, esp if it’s a long flight. I’m sorry you had to deal with that and I hope you feel better.

I'm Much better now. I think I would have been ok if they hadn't been actively brushing it, and right in front of us. I think the plane filter really helps I know I've seen pets in carriers before and never had a major issue.

[pixy0stix]

Soon to be former work had a virtual skills assessment interview with a candidate. Said candidate was apparently doing badly, and just ended the interview and has ghosted, not returning phone or email inquiries to check if their internet had cut out.

[beerlover]

My DS(8) has major first week of school saltiness. I know he’s tired, but his attitude tonight is annoying. He just asked me to play basketball with him in his bedroom (he has a mini hoop), I said I didn’t want to right now but that I’d play with him at the hoop outside (it’s a gorgeous night so I’d rather not be cooped up in his room) and he said, “why did you even give birth to me if you don’t want to do any of the things I want to do?” 🙄

[spindle92]

pinkdutchtulips, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Welcome to the 50 club. After the shock of the actual # wears off, it's really not that bad.
Embrace it and kick ass.

[fluffycookie]

Aug 23, 2024 17:24:03 GMT -5 RoxMonster said:

Aug 23, 2024 12:57:27 GMT -5 fluffycookie said:

Our senior dog has a fractured tooth and growth in the back of her mouth. She needs to have the tooth removed and they will also remove the growth and send it to make sure it's not cancerous. She's 13 and has a heart murmur (grade 1/2) so I am freaking out about the anesthesia. She was so stressed out today at the vet that I can't imagine leaving her there. I almost just started crying while I was food shopping.

Hope the surgery went well and your pup is home recovering (or will be soon)!

The surgery will be scheduled soon. We had gone in for an ear infection and when doing a once over the vet saw the tooth and took a closer look. They want the ear cleared up first

[ny96]

We were taking a much needed break from Amazon and I was so proud of all the purchases I was not making and the fact that I haven’t ordered from Amazon in weeks. I broke the hiatus tonight when I discovered that I have been putting laundry detergent pods in the dishwasher for weeks. In my defense the packaging for the Seventh Generation pods looks nearly identical and the cupboard I keep the pods in is quite high so I always just reach into the open bag and grab one. I haven’t noticed a difference 😹.

[basilosaurus]

Aug 23, 2024 7:51:20 GMT -5 lavenderblue said:

I went to see The Indigo Girls and Melissa Etheridge last night. We got the tickets mainly to see The Indigo Girls but Melissa Etheridge was absolutely phenomenal. At 63 years old she absolutely rocked. She just had such an amazing energy. 

I saw some viral thread talking about Chappell Roan being a vist lesbian musical sensation. lolforever. Someone was just born yesterday and knows nothing about musical history of the 1900s. Add in k.d. lang, Tracy Chapman. I'm sure there were many many more that were maybe married but due to time, place, and culture weren't out. 

Kids these days, acting like they invented the world. They can't even claim counterculture because it's just not in usa 2024.