Changes

Saintly Babysitter is looking for another job. I just can't pay her enough. She deserves all that she's requesting, but I can't do it. So it looks like after four years, she'll be leaving. Who knows when that will happen, and I have back up child care, and DG is now in preschool, but still. This makes me sad.

Sadder than any breakup of a romance. This is actually important and will affect my life (and obviously, my daughters' lives). I'm feeling slightly heartbroken here.

Nonetheless, next year, both girls will be in school full-time and it only makes sense that Saintly Babysitter move on before then.

TG has chess club, environmental club, karate lessons, and an after school activity to be named later (probably next week) keeping her at school until 4:30 two to three days a week. DG goes to preschool (for three hours a day) four days a week. The hours Saintly Babysitter works are shrinking and I'm not able to pay her the same amount I did last year as all these extra activities cost more and transportation for DG also costs a bit.

I don't like this, but it's reality.

On the more cheering note, my meeting with the G&T advisor at TG's school included her showing me TG's scores (from 2nd grade, three years ago, mind you). At seven and a half, TG scored a 51 on the Raven Progressive whatever test (this means something to somebody), and all the other G&T kids scored in the 40s. The teacher told me that any adult would be very pleased to get a 49 or 50 on the Raven, so a seven and a half year old getting a 51 is pretty amazing. She wouldn't give me percentiles for that, or the reading and math tests (but her score was the highest in her grade for each test she took). I just hope that losing the security of her babysitter doesn't cause some sort of slump (it won't, but I still worry).

DG did a running hug and a ballet hug for me in front of the woman who drives her to preschool. She was pretty amused. Then DG gave her a ballet hug. It was cute, but I felt a smidge, er, jealous. I need to get over that. It's wonderful that DG is affectionate and is happy and trustful with the people who take care of her during the day. She also kissed all her preschool teachers (high school students in a child care class, several of whom she already knows).

At skate night, DG followed around after a group of second graders who were actively trying to avoid her -- they were too cool to hang out with a preschooler -- but didn't seem to notice. "I need to find my fwiends." She would state this and set out off after the girls fleeing her presence. She's not easily thwarted.

Tomorrow, I'm off to my vaccine research study, and in October, I'll start a sleep and weight study that looks interesting (and reasonably remunerative). It beats committee work, that's for darn sure. And I have to start preparing my class on Moses and the Ten Commandments.