New teachers for Megan

Our kind girl is making a major change in the last half of third grade because of the unkindness of a teacher. It has been a tough decision and it was not done lightly. 2nd grade was a great year with lots of learning in a positive yet challenging environment. Megan was still having difficulty with reading though. We ended Megan's 2nd grade year with a conference and her teacher assured us Megan would be placed in 3rd grade classes that would fit her personality and educational needs. We got the assignment before school got out and were happy. We put the teacher issue aside and began the process of doing a psycho-educational assessment to see if Megan had a learning disability.

We scheduled the assessment for September and then we got a letter right before school started that due to increased enrollment they had to rearrange the class assignments. Megan wound up with completely different teachers. We were concerned about the math teacher, Mrs. Smith, who is known to be harsh and intimidating, but Megan started the school year smoothly, liking her classes and doing well. She complained about how Mrs. Smith spoke to kids but Megan is a good student and got through the classes. Megan's assessment process went well and we discovered Megs has a learning disability, and a few areas that are well above average. Megan handled the process and diagnosis so maturely. I think it helped to know there are lots of intelligent and gifted people in the family that also have a LD. She was one of us and was looking forward to whatever needed to be done to become a confident reader. 

Megan got strep throat in November and missed 2 days of school. Math class went downhill from there. Mrs. Smith began making comments to Megan in front of the class about her missing sooo many days and she blamed any error or topic Megan didn't understand on the absence. Megan came home confused as to why Mrs. Smith was exaggerating her days off and feeling responsible for not understanding lessons. We thought this would pass but instead intensified. Mrs. Smith began warning other kids that their performance would slip like Megan's. Months later "slipping like Megan" was still a common class phrase. 

All along Megan was uncomfortable with the way Mrs. Smith spoke to the children around her and this became more pronounced as trouble vs. favorites were established. Megan was dreading having math class, worried about minor details, cried at bedtime, and it impacted her grades. The lower Megan's grades got the meaner Mrs. Smith got. Jim and I both determined that Mrs. Smith is a bully and uses her authority to bolster herself, and when a child doesn't understand something it must be their fault. She belittles kids regularly and it was clear to us that Megan shouldn't be subjected to her meanness.

We started the IEP process for speech and reading, to see if she qualified for services in school. Megan was tested again and scored well above average for math aptitude. It certainly wasn't matching her performance. So we began the process to move Megan out of the negative math experience. The classroom environment needed to change.

Megan and I met with the principal to discuss the class. It is difficult to talk to the principal because it feels like she puts spin on every statement. Megan represented herself well. At the end of the meeting the principal Said she would meet with Mrs. Smith. She asked Megan if she could explain what made her uncomfortable to Mrs. Smith. Megan said she would go to the meeting as well so things got explained correctly. I was really proud of Megan and impressed that she seemed to know that the principal might not accurately represent her. They met and went over some changes to make Megan more comfortable. Megan knew if she left Mrs. Smith's class her whole schedule would change and she might not have the reading teacher she had grown really fond of. After the meeting the only change that seemed to happen was Mrs. Smith avoided commenting about and to Megan. After two days Megan recognized that Mrs. Smith wasn't really going to change. We got back to the principal and requested to change teachers.

The administration made a quick change to have the new schedule in effect for the start of 4th quarter. All of her academic teachers changed, so there is a little transition to get used to the new routines. Megan braced herself for change, she was worried about a number of unfinished projects but with a few emails to teachers we worked out the details. I am pleased with her new teachers and excited that they are encouraging, welcoming and also have high standards. The shock hit when we found out that Megs would have a different recess. She was seeing her best friend only at recess and now not even that. Megan was so sad about that part.

We are now in the 2nd week and I couldn't be prouder of Megan. She is amazing, and so willing to sacrifice and do the work to do her best. The pain of not seeing her friend was lessened by her friend's mom who set up a regular weekly play date.  Megan did qualify for speech therapy to get those "r" sounds and she also gets to see the special educator to work on some reading skills. Megan is now surrounded by professionals who seem to have a genuine affection for her and are thrilled to work with her. There may be mean people out there but God has blessed Megan with more good people in her life, and a resilience that is inspiring. 3rd grade will end on an upswing.

Easter Break

It is such a short break from the craziness of our daily schedules but Easter break is savored in our house. The girl's break began on Good Friday and we took the time to remember Christ's sacrifice. Jim and Rachael attended services at 3 together. Then in the evening Rachael went with a friend to her church's youth group and I brought Megan and Emma to the Tenebrae service. Holy Saturday began the fun and celebration of the Resurrection with Easter egg dyeing. The girls really got into it and came up with some creative designs.

There was much discussion amongst the girls as to the logistics of Easter basket discovery. Our new bedroom arrangement means that so if not all of the girls will be able to see the living room when they come to wake us up. The solution we settled on was to just ask them not to look too closely. That was as creative of a solution as Jim and I could muster. Easter morning was a joyous event. The baskets were modest but with plenty of treats and they all enjoyed delighting over Hanna's first Easter. Holidays are so much more fun with a baby.

We shared a big breakfast together, got dressed up in Easter outfits and then headed out early to church in the hopes of finding a seat. We got there just in time to get a pew big enough for our whole family. It was packed so we adjusted and squeezed as more families came in. Then we were asked to bring up the gifts and we were all thrilled. Jim and the big girls each had something to carry and followed up with Johanna. Father Gene thanked us and asked if he got to keep Hanna too. We got a kick out of that and the sweet words after Mass.

After Mass we relaxed and watched Rachael's new movie "Wreck it Ralph". The girls packed plastic eggs for the Easter egg hunt while they watched and I made food to bring to dinner. It began to rain so we determined when we got to my parent's house that the egg hunt would be inside. There were over 500 eggs and it didn't take the cousins long to amass a huge collection. Emma being too old to hunt on her own, took Hanna around for her first hunt.

Easter week was overcast and chilly but it didn't stop us from enjoying a trip to the Maryland Zoo on Monday. Another first for Hanna was celebrated by the whole family. Em and Rae were going with their scout troop so we made it a family outing. They split off for the 1st part of the day and then we met up to share treats before heading home. Jim, the 3 youngest and I strolled through the zoo watching the animals. It was great family time. The rest of the week had a relaxed casual flow for the girls with lots of friends to go visit or have over.

We ended the Easter break with Easter Egg Salad sandwiches.

Five for Five

Our fifth little wonder is five months old. Johanna gets more and more playful everyday. Jim discovered that Johanna thinks it is funny to touch her feet to her face, so Hanna is regularly stretching her tight hamstrings as well as giggling. The big sisters have a ton of fun holding Hanna and making her smile.


Emma is quite gifted at snuggling with Hanna when she is doing her tired crying and Em shows such patience as she continues to sway until Hanna gives into sleep. Rachael is actively seeking time with her little Pumpkin and enjoys scooping her up and getting Hannah's eyes to twinkle. Megan loves to walk around the house carrying her and then sitting her in her lap so they can face each other. Bridget loves to get close to Hanna's face and talk to her and offer her stuffed animals. Bridget also requests to have Hanna sit in the bouncy seat so they can watch a kid's show together. Hanna loves all of this attention.

We moved our furniture into our new bedroom a few weeks ago and we set Hanna's bassinet and changing table up as well. Her room had the old window replaced with  drywall. Jim primed the walls and I began cutting in with a gray shade of lavender. We will move her to the crib when we move her to her own room since she is growing out of the bassinet.

Our babies have all been roley poley chubby babies but Hanna feels much trimmer. She is still chubby thighed and big cheeked but in comparison smaller. Hanna rolled over mid March and caught me by surprise. She is going to do things in her own time. Jim has nicknamed her Fountian Face for the drool that gushes from her rosebud mouth. The girls all claim to have felt a tooth but I think she is still a little ways off from popping one through.

It was so much fun to share Easter with her. Hanna got a stuffed bunny and feeding spoons in her basket. We will be starting her with cereal soon, but we aren't in a hurry. We are enjoying every stage and don't want to rush to the next.