We have settled in more this week, set up our patio with some sun shades and plants, started using our ‘workroom’, and played some games like we used to. We didn’t make any special trips anywhere except for a visit to the library, we just had some home days after the kids’ overwhelming week last week.
We went to the homeschool tennis that happens every Friday. Arley loved it (surprisingly!) but Carmie was so sad! There were so many kids there (more than 20 - apparently there are 55 homeschooling families signed up for tennis alone - so many homeschoolers!!). They were broken into two groups, and in Carmie and Arley’s group there were twelve kids, which was too overwhelming for Carmie. She said she felt lonely because no one was talking to her, and she missed her old tennis lessons and her old coach. She was even crying out on the court, poor thing. She cheered up right afterwards when we went to the mall to buy new sneakers, and she said she would try again, so we are going back tomorrow. We also are starting horse riding again tomorrow, which we are so excited about!
The kids went to Alithia for three days this week. On Tuesday they came back all smiles. On Wednesday when I went to pick them up, I was told that Arley was quite standoffish for most of the day. Apparently one of the boys who he thought he was quite friendly with wouldn’t let him play, and told him to go away and shoved him. This made me super sad for him. It is hard enough for him to make friends, and his self esteem is so low. He went back today, but fell asleep in the car on the way there. He told me he was cold last night and didn’t sleep well. I left him there, but luckily I stayed up in Bellingen to do some work in the library, because two hours later I got a call from the mentor at Alithia saying she held off as long as she could, but could I come get Arley because he is just so sad. He perked up as soon as I got there. I took him out to lunch while Carmie stayed a bit longer at Alithia. I feel bad for Arley. He wants to play with the older kids, because mentally and academically he is right there with them, but they think he is just a little kid. The younger kids seem to be too young for him, even when they are the same age (and it doesn’t help that they are all girls) so he hasn’t really found someone to hang out with. He just needs one person to gel with, and he will be right as rain, but it hasn’t happened yet. I think I will stay with him there next week to give him a bit of emotional support. I want him to love it. However, if it doesn’t work out, we aren’t too phased, as there are so many homeschoolers around here that I’m sure finding friends in the long run won’t be a problem. He must have been really tired, because he fell asleep again on the way home, and when we got home, he was so out cold that it took me minutes to wake him up. I was actually shaking him and got quite scared. He is fine though.
Arley had a bad night last night too. He definitely is more stressed than usual, which is understandable. He was really mean to Carmie, and got into a big fight with me. He got pretty nasty, and it went on for a good long while, but afterwards he was sobbing, he was so remorseful. He has had such a great run, but he always ebbs and flows - I think he is at a little bit of a low right now, but he’ll pull through.
Carmie is doing great. She loves Alithia. She has made a few friends, she loves bush club, and Thursdays are drama days, which is right up her ally. We have been having competitions at night to see who can ‘become king’ by winning three matches of the game Gobblet Gobblers in a row. The first night, she was easy to beat. Last night we were 50/50. Tonight she totally kicked my butt! I’d better watch out!
The kids and I also had our hair cut this week, which was also stressful for Arley, because he is so used to getting his hair cut but my friend Nikki who understands him. He did it, because I bribed him with a donut, but it was hard!
Jeffrey took a course this week and passed an exam to get his forklift license. It was not too easy to get (we thought it would be a breeze), but he passed with flying colours. We’re hoping this helps him get a job in the hopefully near future!
Despite the lows from this week, we are still overwhelmingly happy to be here! I have found a great grocer where I can get amazing fruit and veggies, we have about a million new places to explore, the weather is fantastic, even though it was slightly cooler this week, and this house is starting to feel a bit more like home. The kids are missing their Lolo and Dida terribly, but they will be here for a visit in a few weeks, so that is cheering them up.
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