~Snowbird Chat~

[snykymom]

Hey Gals!

I just dropped around to see what was happening! My eyes nearly bulged out of my head when I saw Disco Dale dancin' up a storm! My oh my wouldn't Peaches be alarmed!

It HAS been quite a while since we had a party for no real reason at all! Anybody want to volunteer to host a party? Maybe a 4 week countdown party for Sarah? Anybody? NO!

Okay, I will then!

WHAT!! Sarah gets a 4 week party, but I don't get a 3 week party??? I'm so sad; nobody loves me on this thread anymore. I'm going to run away!
























OK, I'm back. Let's party!!

 

[Dancegrl624]

It's sad that none of the best friends are in her class.
Our teachers were always posted at the school a couple weeks before classes started. That's when a lot of the parents started calling to get their kids switched into other classes, because they didn't like what they had heard about certain teachers. Many times some of my friends would be in my class when the list was posted, but their parents would get them switched out. It was sad. My Mom never cared which teachers we got, and we never had any problems.

We have good news! Madison's friend, Maya, called today and they are in the same class next year!!! We didn't have her current phone number, so we couldn't call her in all our frenzy on Tuesday. Madison is very excited! Plus, Maya invited Maddie over for a playdate tomorrow. What a great day!

I heard from another parent that the principal doesn't like to send out teacher assignments too early because she doesn't like parents calling and asking to switch teachers. She won't do it and she doesn't accept any parent requests. I don't see the harm in trying to accomodate a request (big brother Timmy had this teacher and now little Suzie wants her too). I don't see why it's such a big deal.

Does anyone have any fun plans for this weekend??? We're going to a surprise 30th birthday party for a friend of ours on Saturday. On Sunday, my dance team is having an end of the year get together and I can't wait! I haven't seen most of my teammates since our last game back in May. Two of the girls have gotten engaged over the summer and I'm just dying to see their rings!

 

[snykymom]

We have good news! Madison's friend, Maya, called today and they are in the same class next year!!! We didn't have her current phone number, so we couldn't call her in all our frenzy on Tuesday. Madison is very excited! Plus, Maya invited Maddie over for a playdate tomorrow. What a great day!

I heard from another parent that the principal doesn't like to send out teacher assignments too early because she doesn't like parents calling and asking to switch teachers. She won't do it and she doesn't accept any parent requests. I don't see the harm in trying to accomodate a request (big brother Timmy had this teacher and now little Suzie wants her too). I don't see why it's such a big deal.

Glad to hear that Maddie will have a friend in class! And she'll make new ones, too.

Regarding parents' requests: It may not be a big deal if you're talking just about Timmy & Suzie. But once you allow a request for Suzie, you'll then get the request for Johnny ("Johnny hates Joey, so please be sure not to put them in the same class") and Cindy ("Mrs. Smith is a better teacher for Cindy than Mrs. Jones; please make sure that you put Cindy in Mrs. Smith's class") and on and on. For 1 kid, it's not a big deal, but for 2 or 3 classes of 20 kids or more, it does become a big deal. If you do it for one, you have to consider doing it for all. It's much easier to just say, "No requests."

Our school district allows parents to send a letter detailing their concerns, but once the class is set, it's finished and there are no changes.

 

[Northern Disney Girl]

WHAT!! Sarah gets a 4 week party, but I don't get a 3 week party??? I'm so sad; nobody loves me on this thread anymore. I'm going to run away!

OK, I'm back. Let's party!!

So sorry! My tired mind didn't realize that you were leaving so soon! Please forgive Me?



Hope you have an Amazing Trip Snykymom!

 

[Monny2AE]

Did someone say party!!!!! Woo Hoo!!!!
Gosh I love that dancing banana!
I can't believe some of you are only a few weeks out

Meghan- I'm so glad Madison has a friend in her class! How sweet they are getting together for a play date first. Parent requests can get out of hand so I can see why they have the "no requests" rule. We had parents requesting to have their child in a certain class based on their adult friendships -and sometimes adult tiffs- rather than their child's needs.

 

[danceintherain]

We have good news! Madison's friend, Maya, called today and they are in the same class next year!!! We didn't have her current phone number, so we couldn't call her in all our frenzy on Tuesday. Madison is very excited! Plus, Maya invited Maddie over for a playdate tomorrow. What a great day!

I heard from another parent that the principal doesn't like to send out teacher assignments too early because she doesn't like parents calling and asking to switch teachers. She won't do it and she doesn't accept any parent requests. I don't see the harm in trying to accomodate a request (big brother Timmy had this teacher and now little Suzie wants her too). I don't see why it's such a big deal.

Does anyone have any fun plans for this weekend??? We're going to a surprise 30th birthday party for a friend of ours on Saturday. On Sunday, my dance team is having an end of the year get together and I can't wait! I haven't seen most of my teammates since our last game back in May. Two of the girls have gotten engaged over the summer and I'm just dying to see their rings!

Yay! That's so great!

It shouldn't be a big deal to accommodate requests, but my friends parents were weird about it. It was more about the rumors about the teachers than anything. It was like they thought if their kid was in the wrong class, then they'd be scarred for life, because the teacher would use the wrong method for multiplication, or something.
I like to think about the poor teachers that got stuck with those kids!
I used to imagine that the teachers would all have a meeting over the summer where they sat there picking kids - kind of like a football draft. They'd all get to pick a kid, then another...
Of course in my mind, I was always the first kid picked, because I was a perfect angel.

 

[sarbah77]

It HAS been quite a while since we had a party for no real reason at all! Anybody want to volunteer to host a party? Maybe a 4 week countdown party for Sarah? Anybody? NO!

Okay, I will then!

I'm always up for a party!!

OK, I'm back. Let's party!!

Did you get ice cream on your drive? Because that would be awesome for the party!!

Did someone say party!!!!! Woo Hoo!!!!
Gosh I love that dancing banana!
I can't believe some of you are only a few weeks out

I am pretty excited!! My massage therapist (who has never been to Disney and isn't a hater) asked me why I was going and I said "to make up for a lousy summer" and she agreed then asked if she could come along!! HA!! I should find something to bring back for her!

My knee brace sleeve thingies shipped today! One item closer to Disney...

And I went to the mall and JC Penney had one pair of shorts that fit me, my knee brace, and that I'd wear. Eddie Bauer had one style. Why is it that the size at JCP was a tad large and the same size at EB was a tad snug? (Never mind that I tried on 3 different styled and all 3 fit differently at EB!) Anyway, I'm patting myself on the back for dragging my knee brace in to the mall to wear while trying on shorts!

I posted to a knee forum (there's one for everything, isn't there?!) and found out that my fears, stresses, and keeping myself up at night are perfectly normal. It's kind of a relief, but I miss sleep. However, yesterday at work (work isn't all bad!) I had half a glass of wine. I was out by 10:15pm and had my usual "mind won't stop racing" a little later in the pre-dawn hours than I have been. Tonight, a little Bailey's!

Thank goodness tomorrow is Friday!!

 

[Disney Mommy 3]

Yay! That's so great!

It shouldn't be a big deal to accommodate requests, but my friends parents were weird about it. It was more about the rumors about the teachers than anything. It was like they thought if their kid was in the wrong class, then they'd be scarred for life, because the teacher would use the wrong method for multiplication, or something.
I like to think about the poor teachers that got stuck with those kids!
I used to imagine that the teachers would all have a meeting over the summer where they sat there picking kids - kind of like a football draft. They'd all get to pick a kid, then another...
Of course in my mind, I was always the first kid picked, because I was a perfect angel.

Becca! me too!!!! Now, my brother.......


Sarah...bravo for draggin that thing around!! I hate shopping for me...I can shop for my kids or Mike all day, but not for me!!!!! Nothing seems to fit 'just right'---if it does....I get several in different colors!! Boring, but functional!

 

[sarbah77]

Sarah...bravo for draggin that thing around!! I hate shopping for me...I can shop for my kids or Mike all day, but not for me!!!!! Nothing seems to fit 'just right'---if it does....I get several in different colors!! Boring, but functional!

Yeah, I'm terrible at shopping for myself. Generally the husband is much better at shopping for me than I am, so he usually comes along to make sure I buy SOMETHING. But, you know, trying to find shorts in late August in Michigan could be a real chore... I'm just happy I found two pairs!

(I think 2 will be okay, because I can wear pants/capris/no knee brace when I travel!)

When we were on vacation, at an outlet mall, I found this really pretty shirt. The fit was cute, it made me look really slim... but it was Way Too Much Money. He growled, grabbed it, and marched to the register and bought it, anyway. He's so funny!

 

[Pluto_fan]

Hello Snowbirds!

I hope someone remembers me! I've been around since Part I, before we even settled on the name Snowbirds...but I've been off the DIS for several months as we moved to Belgium. Now we're here! I'm glad to see the Snowbird chitchat is still going strong. I left off somewhere in Part V and have no hope of catching up on what I missed, but I'll try to pick up from here. I'm so excited (and jealous!) to hear about your upcoming trips to WDW! I think I have a DLP ticker, but that's just a guess as we don't have any real plans for it yet. I thought the kids would have a holiday for Memorial Day weekend next May, but as it turns out they don't so I'm not sure when we'll go. We did go to London last weekend, though, so that was cool. Anyway, I'm happy to be back and see all your familiar names!

 

[Dancegrl624]

Regarding parents' requests: It may not be a big deal if you're talking just about Timmy & Suzie. But once you allow a request for Suzie, you'll then get the request for Johnny ("Johnny hates Joey, so please be sure not to put them in the same class") and Cindy ("Mrs. Smith is a better teacher for Cindy than Mrs. Jones; please make sure that you put Cindy in Mrs. Smith's class") and on and on. For 1 kid, it's not a big deal, but for 2 or 3 classes of 20 kids or more, it does become a big deal. If you do it for one, you have to consider doing it for all. It's much easier to just say, "No requests."

Meghan- I'm so glad Madison has a friend in her class! How sweet they are getting together for a play date first. Parent requests can get out of hand so I can see why they have the "no requests" rule. We had parents requesting to have their child in a certain class based on their adult friendships -and sometimes adult tiffs- rather than their child's needs.

I know it's a big pain to change classes around (my mom used to be an office worker at an elem. school), but I wish they would at least look at requests. There is a 2nd grade teacher I really wanted Madison to get. She has a very thorough bio of herself and her teaching methods online. I've heard nothing but wonderful things about her. She sounds like a perfect fit for Madison, but that's not who we got.

I guess I'm so concerned about the whole teacher thing because last year she got bored. I talked to the teacher and the principal about my concerns, but no one listened. She just wasn't being challenged enough. So, we had to take matters into our own hands. We always read a lot at home, but we started working on harder Math skills. She would beg us to write down Math problems for her! Now, Madison is at about a 3rd or 4th grade reading level and is already doing multiplication. They have a gifted and talented program at her school, but it's only for 4th and 5th graders (how is that fair?). Last year really made me miss her school she went to for Kindergarden. They were always challenging the kids. I mean, they did units on Dinosaurs, Non-fiction books, and Outer Space in Kindergarden! She came home rattling off these names of Dinosaurs that I couldn't even pronounce!

Ok, sorry about my long rants. When I'm home all day with just Madison, I need some adults to "talk" to sometimes!

 

[Disney Mommy 3]

meghan...sorry you didn't get the teacher she wanted.We had that same problem with Saylor in 2nd grade....bored to death. I even asked the teacher if I could bring a workbook with extra work for him, she said no. Hopefully, this teacher will see how smart she is & give her special stuff to do.
Pluto Fan...of course we remember you!!! Glad to see you again!!!!!! How was London? I want to go there sooooo badly!! How is your new homeland??!! tell us all about it!!!

 

[letthewookiewin]

Meghan, I'm sorry you didn't get the teacher you wanted. I know how that is. We had that problem with John when he went to Kindergarten the first time. He wanted the teacher his brother had the year before. He totally loved the teacher and wanted to walk Joey to class every day just to see her. Our district, at the time, only had half day Kindergarten. While John went through the first time, we were trying to figure out which ADHD meds he needed to be on. (A few years later we learned that it wasn't that we couldn't find the right ADHD meds to put him on, but we were medicating him for the wrong thing. He was misdiagnosed with ADHD when he really had Epilepsy and mild Autism Spectrum Disorder.) He ended up missing a lot of school so we opted to hold him back a year. Then the 2nd year, since he was repeating he had to do all day. It just so happened that the teacher Joey had decided to go to take one of the all day classes that year, and he got her. It made all the difference for him to have her.

We had "Meet the Teacher" night last night. We didn't go to the one at John's school b/c he is going to have the same teacher. Then I was able to perform a mini-miracle last night. I was able to confince David to take Joey to the one at his school. I hate going to those things. I love being able to meet the teacher and drop off the school supplies early. However I hate how crowded the hallways are.

 

[Monny2AE]

Pluto_Fan- Welcome back! I hope you get to make that DLP trip happen!

Meghan- It's a shame the few rotten eggs ruin the ability to make a request for the rest of us. I'm not too happy with who Andrew got for K but I'm hoping all will be well. I worry that he's going to get bored too. I've worked with him since day one and he's on a grade one level with many things so I don't want him to be bored. When he gets bored he gets in trouble. DH and I have already talked about homeschooling if things don't go well in school.

 

[Disney Mommy 3]

Pluto_Fan- Welcome back! I hope you get to make that DLP trip happen!

Meghan- It's a shame the few rotten eggs ruin the ability to make a request for the rest of us. I'm not too happy with who Andrew got for K but I'm hoping all will be well. I worry that he's going to get bored too. I've worked with him since day one and he's on a grade one level with many things so I don't want him to be bored. When he gets bored he gets in trouble. DH and I have already talked about homeschooling if things don't go well in school.

That was one of the many reasons we hsed!! We love hsing!! I hope he has a good time in K and you have a wonderful year!!! Some teachers turn out to be soooo much better than what you think at the beginning!! My first grade teacher was sooo wonderful! She is my favorite teacher to this day...my brother got her as well....we just loved her!!

 

[Lil'Mermaid75]

Pluto_Fan- Welcome back! I hope you get to make that DLP trip happen!

Meghan- It's a shame the few rotten eggs ruin the ability to make a request for the rest of us. I'm not too happy with who Andrew got for K but I'm hoping all will be well. I worry that he's going to get bored too. I've worked with him since day one and he's on a grade one level with many things so I don't want him to be bored. When he gets bored he gets in trouble. DH and I have already talked about homeschooling if things don't go well in school.

Do we have the same kid?! Nick is the same way. He's such a smart little guy and has a tendancy to get bored. When he's bored he gets in trouble, usually by trying to be funny. We struggled all last year in K with his behavior. They used a stop light system for their behavior - starting on green all day, yellow for a warning, red for loss of provilege, black for a note sent home. I think we had black the first week of school and then a couple other times throughout the year. We had a LOT of yellows. This year is a complete opposite (even with the 28 kids!!). I think he might be being challenged a bit more. Our school has a gifted program that starts in 2nd grade. Meghan -you said your's was 4th? That's crazy! My niece was in 2nd grade last year and was in a 4th grade math class. I think it boils down to the teacher, I honestly do.

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Hello Snowbirds!

I hope someone remembers me! I've been around since Part I, before we even settled on the name Snowbirds...but I've been off the DIS for several months as we moved to Belgium. Now we're here! I'm glad to see the Snowbird chitchat is still going strong. I left off somewhere in Part V and have no hope of catching up on what I missed, but I'll try to pick up from here. I'm so excited (and jealous!) to hear about your upcoming trips to WDW! I think I have a DLP ticker, but that's just a guess as we don't have any real plans for it yet. I thought the kids would have a holiday for Memorial Day weekend next May, but as it turns out they don't so I'm not sure when we'll go. We did go to London last weekend, though, so that was cool. Anyway, I'm happy to be back and see all your familiar names!

Welcome back Plutofan! Of course we remember you! Sounds like your life has been very busy and exciting. I hope you get to go to DLP!

 

[danceintherain]

Hello Snowbirds!

I hope someone remembers me! I've been around since Part I, before we even settled on the name Snowbirds...but I've been off the DIS for several months as we moved to Belgium. Now we're here! I'm glad to see the Snowbird chitchat is still going strong. I left off somewhere in Part V and have no hope of catching up on what I missed, but I'll try to pick up from here. I'm so excited (and jealous!) to hear about your upcoming trips to WDW! I think I have a DLP ticker, but that's just a guess as we don't have any real plans for it yet. I thought the kids would have a holiday for Memorial Day weekend next May, but as it turns out they don't so I'm not sure when we'll go. We did go to London last weekend, though, so that was cool. Anyway, I'm happy to be back and see all your familiar names!

I remember you! I hope you're enjoying your new home.

I guess I'm so concerned about the whole teacher thing because last year she got bored. I talked to the teacher and the principal about my concerns, but no one listened. She just wasn't being challenged enough. So, we had to take matters into our own hands. We always read a lot at home, but we started working on harder Math skills. She would beg us to write down Math problems for her! Now, Madison is at about a 3rd or 4th grade reading level and is already doing multiplication. They have a gifted and talented program at her school, but it's only for 4th and 5th graders (how is that fair?). Last year really made me miss her school she went to for Kindergarden. They were always challenging the kids. I mean, they did units on Dinosaurs, Non-fiction books, and Outer Space in Kindergarden! She came home rattling off these names of Dinosaurs that I couldn't even pronounce!

Ok, sorry about my long rants. When I'm home all day with just Madison, I need some adults to "talk" to sometimes!

Your concern I can totally understand. My friends were the kids that never finished their work, because they were too busy paying attention to other things. I hope the teacher she got is just as good as the one you wanted her to get. I didn't usually get bored in school, (I usually had a book with me) but I almost always got done with my work waaay faster than the rest of the kids. I was tested for the Quest program (the gifted program at my school) I think when I was in 3rd grade or so, and I scored one point short of getting into the program. My brother came along the next year and got in. He didn't enjoy it, because it meant he had to do more work than the rest of the kids. (my lovely brother almost entirely stopped doing his work when he hit high school)
What your doing is hopefully keeping Madison up at the level she deserves to be at, and it might even be better that you're working on it with her. It's amazing how different school is now than how it was just when I was in it.
They just stack worksheets up, and expect the kids to learn that way.

 

[Disney Mommy 3]

I have a BIG problem with the G&T classes here in Texas. Or at least our neck of the woods. All that means around here is tons more work for the kids, plus extra homework. Another reason I didn't want to stick out our ps. I know my boys would have definitely been candidates for that. A family that we go to church with, but is in the school district right to our north all have super smart kids, and they are all GT. Well, the kid that's going into 5th this year has been in a GT class for several years now, and the mom is reallllly getting fed up with all the extras in/out of the classroom. And she's a school teacher at that Jr. High. Said she was going to talk to the admin about what they are putting on these kids. I know several people with kids a little older than mine from our district that did the class and said they were literally falling asleep at the table over their mound of extra work!!

If you kid is smarter than grade level, I dont' know why they don't just put them in classes together, challenge them IN CLASS and then go from there. Why 'punish' them by giving them more homework than any of the other kids in school!!! Okay, time to get off my soap box I guess!!! Hope that didn't offend anybody..I just think the schools are going about it the wrong way...and our school board doesnt' give a HOOT what anyone around here thinks about it...if they like it, it stands. No matter what.I have been tempted to run for school board!! I am a hser, so I don't see myself gettin any support!! Ha!!!!

 

[Momto2PrncChrmgs]

UUUURRRGGGGHHHH!!!!
I have to confess my sins to my Birdie Buddies! I usually try to be only positive on these boards because so many people are so cranky and flame everyone for everything, but I just couldn't take it anymore!!

I was on one of the threads with people complaining about Disney LYING to them, that free dining isn't really FREE, blah blah blah...
Free dining is FREE, 40% off room rate is 40% off the normal room rate. You can't combine discounts. So people thinking that Disney is lying to them and it's some big bad conspiracy because they'd have to pay MORE for free dining for 2 people than they would with 40% deluxe. I basically just said we should all just be thankful that Disney is offering so many different choices for deals for us to find the one that suits our families needs the best. They don't HAVE to offer us anything, and alot of us would probably still go. I had to open my mouth, let the flaming begin...I can take it!