From Kindergarten to Grad School!

What could be a bigger difference… I mean kindergarten and grad school, seriously come on people! It’s going into school to making it all the way through… to making the choice to go into again and then graduating and then going into it AGAIN and then trying to make it through the next four years!!!

I mean… can you imagine this little guy graduating from high school and then college?! Because I know that I can’t!!! That sweet little face growing up and becoming a man! NO! I refuse to believe it! I refuse to let him get any bigger than he already is! He better like kindergarten because he will be in it FOREVER!!!

That said… I suppose we should just concentrate on making it through the first week of kindergarten. We almost had one mishap today, but it was a good thing that mom got to school just in time. Ayden was about to take the bus home! AHH!

I sent a note with him on his first day of school noting that he would be getting picked up from school until further notice. Apparently the teacher didn’t get the until further notice part because today he had no note in his folder saying someone would pick him up and assumed that meant he would ride the bus. So, she tells him his bus number (which was correct) and sends him with the rest of the kids to get on that bus. Thankfully, I intercepted them on the way to the bus and took Ayden home myself. Maybe 30 seconds later and I wouldn’t have known where my child was! But you know what that means! Ayden gets to ride the bus tomorrow! He wants to ride it both to and from school! And… I’m okay with that! I’m a bit nervous, I won’t deny it, but I’m still okay with it. It has almost been a full week of school, okay three days so far, but he’s doing great!

His experience with the before and after school care program was great, getting dropped off in the morning… going good… all is well!

He has started complaining that it is too long, but it’s school…

My adventures as a first year grad student have been pretty great as well! I’m excited to say that my first three days have gone well too.

Tuesday was orientation for the Stevens Point grad students… both speech and audiology. It was pretty much a waste of a day. We got fed, which was nice, but didn’t really learn a whole lot. I met a lot of the speech students coming in from other schools, but don’t remember a lot of their names because it was a long day. We did a lot of those ‘ice breaker’ things as well and I’m not really a people person. Anyways, made it through that day…

Yesterday was our first day of actual class and it was long! I have class from 8am thru noon with one ten minute break and one five minute break! Ugh! And three of those hours are through the distance education classroom. That means… I get to learn through a TV screen! It is pretty weird, I will admit and it will take some getting used to, but I think we can make do. It also sucks that there are only three of us in the class because then it really puts the pressure on us. We survived though! And our first lab was cancelled so that was great too!

Today was orientation for the AuD students from Point and Madison and we got to meet in Point which was nice! We got to meet the first, second, and third year students from Madison. There are seven first year students and they all seem pretty nice which is cool! We got fed again and played more ‘ice breaker’ games. I’ve had just about enough of those get to know you games, but it didn’t end there!

Late this afternoon we had the annual grad picnic at one local park. Families and kids were invited so I brought Ayden along. Well kind of had to because Jay was working. Anyways, we got fed again and the food was good and had more get to know you games. I didn’t participate in this one because I was just plain lazy. I had just about enough socializing for one day. I don’t mind hanging with friends and what not, but I’m a naturally shy person so it is a big step out of the box for me to be so social with people I don’t know very well, you know? Well maybe you don’t… maybe you are a social person.

So, Ayden and I chatted for a while, ate, and then played on the playground equipment and then left. We needed to run to Walmart anyways because I needed some more body wash and mousse for my hair and Ayden needed new gym shoes (which I found a super cute pair for really cheap!). By the time we got home it was already 7pm and he needed to finish his birthday thank you notes and shower and then it was off to bed!

Now I’ve settled into the couch, laptop on well where else, my lap, books all around, making sure I have everything saved I want to print (because believe me… when they make me pay an $8 printing fee on campus and then another $20 one in the clinic, I am sure as heck going to print EVERYTHING I can there!), planner being filled out with readings that need to be accomplished, papers that need to be written, and binders that need some organization… it’s all good!

Oh… and I had my first ‘conversation’ with my grad mentor today and definitely doesn’t seem as bad as I thought he might. It didn’t help the other day when I told someone that I was so and so’s mentee that they responded with ‘Now why would they go and give so and so someone to mentor?’ Made me feel really confident. Anyways, I think it will be a good semester. Not one that will fully prepare me for next semester as most of the second years said that first semester isn’t even a taste of the real life, but not to stress to hard.

I have to admit that I’ve fallen in love with the second years, lol! Honestly all five of them are so nice! We had quite the clinic meeting today as well! I haven’t talked to really any of the third years yet, but they seem pretty nice as well! I’m really hoping for a fab semester!

CIAO! LOVE ME!