I wake up really early on Monday (6:30ish) although I had not slept very well the night before, being very nervous. Today was the big day. I woke up Aidan and told him it's time for school, he said "again?" I smiled and said yes Aidan, everyday, 5 days a week for the next 13 years (plus college). He turns over and puts the pillow over his head. :) He gets up and I let him pick out one of his new outfits we just got him. He's excited, so I'm excited! Today is daddy's last day of vacation so we could all drive him to school and take him to his classroom. The school is only 5-10 minutes away but we leave at least 30 min before school starts because I'm sure there would be traffic. We get there & have to make a parking spot off road in a field with every other Kindergarten parent wanting to walk their child to their classroom. I keep telling Aidan, so you remember where your classroom is? I get a blank look. Oh brother (mental forehead slap) He's 5 and has NEVER been on any school grounds before. This is all VERY new to him, and I'm sure for a lot of other parents as well.
We walk him to his classroom only to find that the light is off and no one is inside the classroom. After a few minutes of standing there puzzled, someone walks by and informs us that all children must go to the multi-purpose room (inside the lunch room) where they will meet their teachers & walk back to the classrooms with them. I'm upset. No one told me this. Is this just today for the first day? Is this everyday? This was important information I think I should have. I showed Aidan where to find his classroom from the bus ramp not to the lunch room. Plus I had a vision of walking him to his classroom and showing him his cubby hole & where to put his backpack. I wanted to peer in through my glass window. Now I'm sad. (I grab a few quick photos of Aidan and of Aidan with his sister and daddy in front of his classroom door) Then we head off to the lunchroom. Aidan is now sitting with a group of children in his class with his teacher. I'm trying to get her attention to give her some of the paperwork I filled out and tell her I only have paper folders, no plastic. :( It is very crowded and loud, very chaotic. Parents are lined up against the walls with cameras waiting to see their kids walk by. We take our position along a wall, so I can wave goodbye (trying not to cry). I look up and I barely see his teacher walking out of a doorway on the other side of the room and disappear. I missed it. My baby has gone to school and I missed it. Apparently there is another doorway to the classrooms on the other side of the lunchroom and the Kindergartners are so small I never saw them get up and leave. Now I'm not sad, I'm sick to my stomach. This morning has not gone to plan. But I'm ok, he's going to be ok. We walk slowly out to the car and I check to make sure my phone is on the loudest ringer possible.
And now we wait. I try to do laundry and play with Skylar and make lunch, but the clock is always on my mind. I wonder all day what he's doing at that moment of the day in school. I check my phone a million times and say to daddy "well I haven't gotten a phone call yet so he must be ok". We are letting him ride the bus home today so he can get use to it early. Both of my sisters show up so we can all walk down to the bus stop with our cameras, I must document everything! The bus doesn't come for another 20 minutes but I'm too anxious to wait any longer, I'll just walk really slow past the next 4 houses to his bus stop.
3:37 and I see it. Wow that is one of the larger buses. I watch & wait as all of these children get off the bus and then the last one walks off the bus. I have a sick feeling in my stomach again. I walk up to the bus driver and look down the aisle of the bus, this is the last bus stop, there are no more kids on the bus. I frantically ask her where my little 5 year old is? And she asks me his name & tells me to call the school, he might have gotten on the wrong bus. I'm beyond words!!! I'm crying, I want to puke and punch something all in one emotion. We all run back to the house while I'm trying to get through to his school. It is busy. I get a busy signal the entire way to the school. We run into the front office and there is about 10 other parents wanting to know where their children are as well. I see daddy cracking his knuckles in anger and Maybe one of us is leaving here today in a cop car. We tell the lady at the front desk who is already making phone calls to the bus dispatch, Aidan's name & description. She can't pronounce his name over the phone and instead of spelling it just says "Aidan G...Whatever" I want this lady's job for this! Other frantic parents one by one in the next 90 minutes get confirmation that their children are on the wrong buses also and the bus drivers are bringing them back to the school (my eyes are tearing up now remembering this)We still haven't located Aidan. He could have been on the wrong bus, he could have gotten off ANY bus stop with any children and be in ANY neighborhood in Orlando. I want my child found and then I want some freaking answers!!! My biggest fear has come true. His teacher tried to speak to me about how sorry she is this has happened and I'm sure he's ok. I can't even look at her and she knows I'm beyond furious. My next call is the sheriffs department. Ironically as I'm thinking this a sheriff walks into the front office looking for a child as well. Apparently a working mother was told by her babysitter that her child never arrived at the bus stop either so she just called the police. The same lady making the phone calls about my child earlier that couldn't say his name correctly laughed and said "HaHa must be a first time mom, she should have never called the cops and given us a chance to at least find her kid first" I'm floored again! Lady she gave you the first chance when you lost him! It took every ounce of strength to not punch that lady and I'm not a physical person.
Finally after about 2 hours we get confirmation that Aidan is on a bus headed back to the school.
I'm now wanting answers. Was this not the questions I asked on Thursday? Was I not reassured that this would never happen? What happened to the bus driver checking wrist bands? What happened to the adults stationed outside to make sure every child gets home safely on the correct bus? What about the other child he was to be paired up with that rides his bus? A young blond girl with a walkie talkie (apparently it was her job along with another group of adults) comments "well it is chaotic, there are lots of children riding the buses and we cannot possibly check them all) I'm thinking how about the Kindergartners and the First graders? Or is that just too much to ask of a public school? All of us waiting parents are told that a new better system will be in effect tomorrow and that this won't happen again. They needed to "work out some kinks" I'm sorry why are there kinks? it is not a new school. Didn't they have kids ride buses last year? I'm done. I'm considering home schooling as we walk a scared little boy out to the car. He apologizes for getting lost, he says he's sad & that it was his fault. I hug him and reassure him that in no way possible was it his fault. He's 5.
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