I'm Trying...

I've taken on this new year with a positive attitude. Believe me when I say that it takes a lot of work. I am focusing on sending out good Karma, not because I expect it back, but because it just feels better that way. But there is something very negative going on and I'm trying to be nice, but it is starting to get the best of me. I don't know what I should do.

For school, we carpool with 2 other families on our street. The dude next door drives in the morning, then I pick up. But there is this other family that we only drive home. Their mom gets them to school in the morning. While for the most part it isn't bad, today pretty much hit the nail on the head. On more occasions than I can count, the parent of the pm riders, has forgotten to tell me that they were not coming home with me, thus leaving me standing out in the cold with a Gregsicle, waiting for people who aren't even coming. I have told her about this more than once, asking that she notify me about this.

Today the kids got out at their usual time. One of the two pm riders showed up. "Where is your sister?" I asked. "I don't know". He gets in the car. 15 minutes later, I am still standing outside the car. The crosswalkers have left, all the other parents have left, and no one is coming down the catwalk from the school. "Are you sure she is coming?" I asked again. "yes", he replies. We wait. Finally we leave. Her mother will have to go get her.

We come home and unload all 5 kids from the car. I come in, to find the voicemail light blinking. It is the school. Frantic. Where is the boy from across the street? People are all over the school, the grounds and surrounding areas frantically searching for the boy (whom I might add is a very large, tall 4th grader). I call the school. "I have the boy. He is sitting on his front porch, waiting for the older sister as always". "Can you bring him back to school?"

Of course I'm not going to let him sit out there and freeze. We load up the car again and head off to the school. We arrive in the office to find everyone taking off their coats from the "boy hunt". After he goes to Latch Key, they ask, "What happened?" I proceeded to tell them that his mom never called me to tell me they weren't coming home, and that he "forgot" he had to go to latch key. Apparently the mother forgot to tell Latch Key that they were coming too.

Stick a fork in me.... I'm done. Like I mentioned before, I am trying to be positive. I am trying to help this woman out. But she is inconsistent in way of letting me know when they will be there and when they won't. Our normal 5 minute ride home took over a half hour, and additional trips back to the school.

I don't know whether to brush it off AGAIN or just end it right here. I'm sick of being a doormat, and a positive one at that.