Thursday marked one week since we started at Jenks West Elementary. It has been an interesting week full of changes and new routines.

My biggest downfall in evaluating this process is, the only thing I have to compare to is what I would consider the best school (for our family): Metro. Even though we home schooled for a semester, we were still able to stay connected through soccer and play dates. Unfortunately, we had to give up our spot on the soccer team, since Jenks gets out of school much later. At MCA, I was previously paying for a lot of things I'm capable of doing myself: Bible lessons, character building, etc., but with that, I feel like we really got the whole package: wonderful friendships, really well behaved children, and really involved parents. Is that worth $8K/year? I guess that depends on a lot of things if you have it, but I honestly couldn't think of anything else I'd rather spend my money on than my children.

With that being said, here is a recap/eval of our first week at Jenks:

Thankfully for us, class doesn't start until 8:50. That is plenty of time for everyone to wake up on their own, eat, and get dressed. Minimal rushing in the morning is always a plus. I drive Ady to school and the boys and I walk her in everyday. I am in the minority by doing so, and I haven't yet figured out why. I'm hoping to be enlightened on that very soon. I couldn't fathom dropping my kindergartener at the curb, although I have the luxury of not having to. It's faster anyway!!! I don't mean to be judgmental -- I think I am not as understanding as I should be regarding other people's circumstances. I'm trying to work on that. I know, I am so fortunate to have the time to walk my child to class everyday, and until she tells me she's ready for that to stop, it won't. For this reason, I haven't met any parents (except for a couple Metro mom friends from our K-4 class -- they are "walker-in-ers" too). So in addition to embracing these changes, I had another not-so-welcoming experience this week....

Tuesday morning Cade woke up very sick. He was coughing like crazy, running a fever, and really crabby. He coughed so hard he projectile vomited all over my back seat on the way home from dropping Ady off. That afternoon, I woke him up from his nap and put him in the car -- he was still running a fever, and he wouldn't even let me put his shoes on. This led to my next decision, which I still stand by...

Upon Cade's request, I left the boys buckled in their car seats (with the car locked, snack in hand) while I ran in and met Ady as she walked out of her hallway. They were content, it was 59 degrees outside, and I'm talking less than 5 minutes. In that time, the dad parked next to me called the campus police. When I came back to my car with Ady, he proceeded to yell at me and tell me what he had done. I politely told him I was doing HIM a favor by not contaminating the whole school. As it turns out, the police called our building Principal. What a great first impression I made :( I was mortified. Yesterday, the Principal pulled me aside and reassured me it was okay, I had nothing to be worried about -- even she had done that before. Whew! I was very relieved and thankful she was so kind and understanding.

At Metro, we all watched out for each other. If you were going to run inside real quick, you could be assured that the parent you parked next to would willingly keep there eyes on your car. We would take turns going in, and there was never a crisis. Everyone said, "good morning" and greeted you when you came in. The teachers communicated what your child did each day. I could go on, but I won't.

Thus far, besides a reading folder, I have received zero completed worksheets or assignments. I open Ady's backpack and a litter of art doodles fall out. I ask Dave, "Is she doodling all day?" He reminds me that she is very fast and can produce one after the other. I realize that with nearly 30 kids in a class, I should not expect the amount of productivity that I was accustomed to, and when I ask Ady what she does all day, I don't get the full story. I insist that she does her homework (not a ton, but mostly assigned by me) each night, because she was quite a bit ahead of everyone else, and I want her to be challenged.

Here is HUGE lesson I am learning: It's not about me, its about what is best for Ady. <--- that one is a bit hard to swallow. My complaints are trivial really because, Ady LOVES school. On the first day she came out of class and said, "Jenks is so fun! I never want to go back to Metro." She is so happy. She fit right in, and made friends instantly. The girls fight over who gets to be her reading buddy and sit by her a the lunch table. That I am so thankful for...well, not the fighting part. I am doing my best to be patient and supportive of this adventure -- I have offered my time and support to her teacher. I am trying my best to be patient and positive. That being said, today, all I want to do is go to Mi Cocina and have Mambo Taxi's with my favorite MCA moms.