*For all the gossipers, drama mamas & troublemakers reading this (not that there are any – but I’m sure you know who you are if you are) – before you completely take what I just said out of context & turn it into an old fashioned game of telephone- let me clarify what I mean by this:
I am NOT at all mad at the school or school officials, teachers, counselors, gym teachers, watchdog dads, librarian, lunch people, tables, chairs, and so on. I’m only mad at the roaches. (That was a joke). I’m actually not mad at anyone at all – and believe it or not – I’m not even mad at my kids! (Insert shock & awe and loud gasps here).
*Before I go any further, I want to add a disclaimer here for all my pissed off offended friends who think I’m talking about them right now: rest assured – I am not – there have been literally hundreds of you posting stuff – and I’m sincerely proud of your babies!! *
As a mother, you tend to invest a lot of yourself in your children, and it is absolutely fantastic when your kids do well & are recognized for their efforts. But when they do poorly – we tend to get embarrassed and blame the dad, the teacher, their friends or the dog. LOL. Ok not really. (Well…maybe really).
Perfect Parents: Go ahead & give yourself a pat on the back & grab some popcorn because ima bout to say a whole bunch of sh*t that I’m sure don’t apply. When your child struggles – with anything – it’s really easy to think that you are the absolute worse parent on earth. Well – I do want to give all the normal parents a shout out to let us know that this is absolutely not true….I mean, seriously – have you watched the news?? We’re good. Oh, also – people only post what they are proud of and want others to see about their lives – and of course that is mostly happy positive things about their self, family or food (bc let’s face it – we ALL want to know what was for dinner and I don’t care what you say). I guess what I’m getting at is that no one should use what is seen on Facebook, or any type of social media, to compare their lives to because all these posts are just an illusion. Everyone struggles. No parent is perfect (don’t spill your popcorn). Every kid will not get recognized for their achievements or get an award for being awesome because the schools can only hand out so many awards and they pick based off of what benefits the school. All A’s is a standard that all schools should recognize – because it is difficult for most students to achieve. So kudos to the kiddos who achieved that!
Now that we have established that this is not an angry blog – and that I am not an angry mama – and that I am not bashing proud parents, or anyone from the schools – let me get to my point.
I know my kids won’t get an award for their types of accomplishments this year because their achievements are not traditional. In fact – their achievements are so extraordinary that the schools don’t yet know how to process their type of awesome & have yet to invent appropriate certificates for them! I like to pride myself in the fact that I’m not fake – and I don’t have anything to hide. So please, gather round as I recognize my kids for their achievements this year (snaps & drumrolls):
ASHLEY: Where do I begin??? ADHD seems to be a trend popping up nationwide in children everywhere, regardless of whether or not they have true ADHD. It seems like if a child learns at a different pace, in a different way, has a lot of energy or just doesn’t grasp the material taught in class - they are put on ADHD medicine. In fact, it happens so often that the children that legitimately have the issue are being compared and measured up against the others & thought abnormal that they don’t have the same successes with medication as “this child” over here - who went from A’s B’s & 1 C to straight A’s! (True Story). Well, we moved from Cy-Fair to Klein ISD for her because we heard that it was better for kids with her issue - & where medication is concerned, Ashley has gone through more than any child should ever have to. She has been put through every medicine known to man, and has experienced all their fabulous side effects, (mood swings, temper flares, crying, extreme weight loss, drug withdrawals, anxiety, depression, etc.) – Oh & please note: none of these side effects included straight A’s. In fact, she was such an emotional wreck, that she had a hard time relating to people, which made making & keeping friends very difficult because she was teased and picked on by the way she acted when she was merely having bad reactions from medicines & had so much going on in her little body & mind to process, I mean seriously - how the hell could she focus on grades?? (I will also say that Parents can be just as bad as kids.) Anyway – I forced you to relive that nightmare with me to bring you to her major accomplishment this year. When Ashley was entering middle school, we made the decision to TAKE HER OFF ALL MEDICATIONS, despite what the teachers and doctors recommended to us. BEST. DECISION. EVER. Over this past school year, we have watched Ashley blossom back into the cheerful, happy, sweet, un-complicated child she was before we started medication. Ashley has done better this year academically than her dad or I could have ever imagined possible – and all without the “help” of ADHD medicines. Did she make straight A’s? Hell no. But her report card contains the most beautiful A’s, B’s and C’s I have ever seen AND she passed both STAAR tests on the first try (which didn’t happen last year). She has worked her butt off this year because she CARES and that is all any parent should want from their kid. She made the school cheer squad, lots of new friends, and had a great year & I want to recognize her for EXCELLENCE IN LIFE & NEVER GIVING UP.
RYAN: (Probably the only one of my kids that might have actually gotten some type of award at school – I don’t actually know yet because I have a job and can’t take off work 3 different times this week to go to 3 different awards ceremonies – so I didn’t go to any – that why no kid will feel slighted). Ryan has always done fairly well in school – but has been having a hard time with math lately – and I’m thrilled that he also passed all the STAAR tests on the first try!! This boy makes us proud everyday & we love him dearly. Ryan hasn’t had the obstacles in his path like his sister has – and for that I’m grateful. Ryan will be starting Fifth grade next year!! Ryan is “that kid” in our house that everyone gets compared to – “Why can’t you be more like Ryan!?” or “Ryan didn’t do that”. Or “Well Ryan doesn’t need toilet paper”. You get it. Ryan – to you I give the EXCELLENCE IN MAINTAINING SANITY IN A HOUSEFULL OF GIRLS award. (you too Jason).
SUMMER: Lordy lordy. This little wild child is a pistol. Not everyone know quite how to take her at first because even though she is little, when she enters the room – she commands the attention of everyone else in the room. She is witty, hilarious, goofy, & incredibly infuriating *but* of all 3 of my kids – even though she is an independent, free spirited & energetic child that looks like she isn’t paying attention to anyone else around her - Summer is the most thoughtful of the bunch and would do anything for anyone. Although Summer gives her teachers a run for their money, she means well – I mean, trying to keep her in a classroom is like a trying to tell a bird not to fly. I’ve actually been somewhat disappointed this year that no one seems to recognize all she HAS achieved this year. No – she is not a straight A student – but that child ended the school year last year barely even able to read a sentence. She could pick out the words individually – but wouldn’t recognize it when it was in a sentence to save her life. Well – now she is reading independently and I don’t even have to help her with any of the words. She reads street signs – IS PISSED THAT PEOPLE KEEP LOSING THEIR DOGS & POSTING SIGNS ABOUT IT – and reads to me in the grocery store. This accomplishment – of all the things she has done this year that *do* come easily for her – this one is my favorite. No she isn’t quick at math - which is how they test your fluency – but dang it – she can do it. I don’t even have to help her anymore with 3 digit addition or subtraction and reading a clock!! No she didn’t catch on quickly – but she did catch on – and for that – I am proud of her. All she can do is improve and keep working at her own pace and learning in her own way – she’ll get there because she is not a quitter. Summer receives the EXCELLENCE IN HARD WORK, DETERMINATION & PERSEVERANCE award.
Ok. I am done.
