Bi And Large

So after my last post: Monday I dragged my sorry butt into work. My office manager informed me that she had required a doctors note and my presence because she doubted my illness. Insert angry face here. Apparently he fact that I asked for a day off - to have my boob ultrasounded for cancer - and then called in sick - because I was in the hospital with pneumonia - was considered highly suspicious. Whatever. So I got that cleared up with a letter from my doc. I saw my boss. He registered shock on the site of me, informed me I looked like hell, and said if I could tough it out for a few hours to take the next day off. Which I did, gladly. I stayed in bed all day Tuesday and awoke Wednesday with a cough but feeling, finally, like myself again. I went back to work armed with my inhaler, some hot tea with honey and lots of Vicks, and I did fine.

So what happens Wednesday? Well let me preface this by saying, if I haven't mentioned it here already, that Amy has been tenatively diagnosed with ADD by her pediatrician. We know she shows some traits of it. She is impulsive and can have a lot of trouble controlling her body. But we are waiting to see how this school year plays out for her academically before moving forward with more testing or an official diagnosis. So one of the things that has been very problematic for her this year (at least according to Amy) is staying in the right line at school, or staing with her class. She seems to get 'lost' quite often. Which I am livid about - the kid just turned SIX for crying out loud, if you know she's prone to wandering off, you keep an eye on her. You at least do a head count once in a while. We're having some discussions with the school over this. ANYWAY so today after school, while Pete and I were both at work, apparently Amy got on the wrong bus. She ambled into the wrong line while thinking about something that was distracting her, and ended up taking the bus home instead of the bus to her afterschool care. So at about 2:30 the calls to our cell phones and work started - they've lost Amy. It seems she was dropped off at our neighborhood bus stop and that was that. I am ready to kick people in the throat at this point. I'm NOT, actually, worried about Amy... we live in the safest neighborhood possible for her to be in, and it was a warm and sunny day. She knows everyone there and everyone knows her, someone would see her if she was out and let her in and call me. No one would let Amy go off with anyone unknown, heads pop up all over that neighborhood if so much as an unrecognized car drives through. But I'm a little pissed that the school lost her and I would like to know where my daughter is. After some time, Pete actually found her. At home. He called the house and she answered. Apparently she walked home, found the front door locked, and just went around the back until she found an open door. She let herself in, kicked off her shoes and backpack, grabbed a snack, and curled up with the dog to watch some tv. She wasn't in the least bit worried. We called the school, and they sent the bus back out to pick her up. Which was fine, except that Charlotte (the 150lb normally laid back st bernard) was anxious because she was aware that something was wrong with this picture. She knew Amy being home alone was not right, and she was determined to protect her. So when the bus driver, a darling lady in her mid-60's, came to the door to collect Amy, Charlotte was NOT having it. Lois (the bus driver) and Amy stood on either side of the front door yelling for some time, trying to come to an agreement about how to proceed. Eventually Lois convinced Amy it was OK to open the door, and Charlotte ran out in a ball of bristling muscled fury. God Bless the woman, she managed to wrangle the dog back into the house without hurting herself, get Amy out, and got her onto the bus, and from there to the private school she was supposed to be at. I arrived shortly after to collect both the girls. With a great deal of relief.

Good grief. And people wonder why I don't have the energy to worry about spots on my carpet or weeds in the lawn. I'm full up just trying to keep everyone safe and healthy here.