As luck would have it -- school started. On time. And we ALL let out a collective sigh of relief and happiness. Again, not a normal start, it's certainly strange, but you're learning from your teachers who can help you FAR better than your Mom ever will be able to.
We're now required to wear a mask anywhere we go where we cannot 6ft socially distance. So stores, restaurants, etc. However, once sitting, you can take off your mask.....so I still can't quite figure that piece out. There are much stricter rules at the school about being ill, having symptoms, how many days you miss, etc. We fought that for the first time, last week....a week and a half into school. After a busy weekend and many late nights, Emmalyn woke up Monday with a stuffy nose, and tired eyes. She went to school with no fever, no other symptoms -- but was shortly sent home not feeling well. The nurse relayed to me "She can come back on Friday IF she's 72hours symptom free and has a doctors note"........we weren't told to take a Covid test, but we were now looking at 4 days out of school. For a stuffy nose. The same stuffy nose and cold we get EVERY year when we go back to school and these kids are all sharing germs again. I called on Tuesday to our doctor to get the note and she assured me 3/4 of the calls they are receiving are from parents in my shoes. She said due to her SYMPTOM, we would need to isolate for 10 days. It didn't matter if she took a covid test or did not, if she got a positive or a negative, she needed to isolate for 10 days. I was livid. It was a COLD. Multiple symptoms, I can get down with that -- but one single symptom? Not buying. (Note: At this stage in the game - when I see the news daily still grasping at straws to hang onto the plandemic and continue to scare people irrationally about a disease that I'm CERTAIN will fall off the radar in November, after the election, my patience is THIN.) So, I call a few friends, call my mother (duh) and finally decide to take a risk an dvisit med express to get that doctors note. Thankfully, Dr. Plasick was on call and his first statement as he walked into the room and saw her there...."You know, kids are still gonna get normal sick". He took her temp, listened to her chest, looked in her throat, and finally....said "she's fine. She's maybe got some allergies, but she's fine"...................and $75 copay later, we had a doctors note and she went back to school on Friday! Which, FINE, but can we (or any other family for that matter) afford to have $75 copays EVERY sniffle our kids have? I do not blame the school (they are simply trying to avoid being sued by the crazies), or the doctors (same) but I am OVER the fear mongering and the scardiness of all this. I PRAY you kids can look back on this time in history and roll your eyes!
The good news -- sports are on - Colton's playing Jr. High Football, Keaton's playing flag football on Saturday's and Emmalyn will start 5/6 Volleyball in the coming week. Life is feeling a TAD more normal -- albiet in masks and distanced atmospheres, but it's happening and we're happy about that! :)
Keaton moved on to 1st grade and was happy to have Miss Shelton. One, because Colton did, and two, because he knows Pat & Terri are Grandma's neighbors and that she would soon become their daughter in law! Sara's been a great match for Keaton -- mostly, I'm thankful that she knows us well enough to realize anything that comes out of his mouth is probably true......and we are still good parents. Or, at least she'll laugh with us about it. We think.....
Em was excited to get Mrs. Notary -- we knew they'd be a good match. She's quite sarcastic, which feels an awful lot like home! Emmalyn is transitioning through 5th grade quite nicely -- and it's definitely a transition. Not only are they back IN the classroom for the first time in a long time - 5th grade is just that much more rigorous. Looking back, I know it's worth it. But during -- it's a challenge. But, she's stepping up and we will get there.
Colton's rocking middle school. I mean, better grades that he's had in a long time - and I've hardly helped with homework. (Yes, I get it...that probably means that my help is what WAS holding him back! Whoops......#mamatried) He was happy to get back into football and practice routine. He's certainly done a great job of managing all of his time!
And they were off...masked up, distanced from friends -- but they were back. And it felt normal. And it felt GOOD.
I found that for the first time in my 4+ months with Hoosier Ag Today and a work from home job, I could actually focus. I had 8 hours a day to just be me. To start laundry, actually focus on my work without distractions, and just finally felt alive again. Like we weren't living in a constant state of chaos!
2020 has been a trip -- but this one piece felt good again. And we are BEYOND thankful to our school system, our teachers, staff, admin who worked endlessly to make this happen for the kids. They are all invaluable to helping these kids thrive in this pandemic!
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