Friday, July 30, 2010

the lazy river...

Yesterday I was able to get a trip to a small water park around 45 minutes from here. Because of budget cuts these trips are rare and when they do happen more senior drivers scoop them up. My group was small 25 kids with 7 adults. We took a country route as too many of the main roads in Illinois are under construction. My group was both mellow and well behaved...making the ride a pleasant one.

Two other drivers were there, one is friend so she and I took advantage of the break and headed in the pool for free!

An hour and half on the lazy river was an awesome treat...plus we got paid too!

I love my job!

Sports trips are around the corner...with golf, volleyball and soccer up first and football at the end of August...hopefully I won't have too many driver steal my thunder!

I've got a vacation in Florida to save up for!! :)

Monday, July 26, 2010

yippeee!

I booked our flight to St Petersburg Florida for December ! Got the car too. Tried Orlando first, but the car was 3 times the amount ($1200 for two weeks). Must be because of the holiday and Disney.

This will be our first lengthy trip without children...going to see my dad, but we are there for nearly two weeks so we can be free to do whatever we want!

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Dayton is 4!


Dayton is 4 today. He finally agrees to be 4 instead of 8.

Saturday, July 10, 2010

wedding weekend...




A coworker of mine got married this past weekend. She married a great guy and I wish her all the best. Our boss let her use the school bus to transport her to the ceremony. I got to run the lift...mostly because I know how to shut the bus down properly ... if not the horn honks until you do it the right way!




me & the bus gang!

Thursday, July 8, 2010

crying kids...

The summer has been a long hot one for this bus driver. The past few years I watched my grand sons so I shared a route, which meant I only drover ever other day. This year because my grand kids spent most of their time here, and I am helping support them I am working instead of babysitting.

Normally I have a smallish route with no more than 12 kids, maybe a few car seats/booster seats or a wheel chair...this year 20 kids under 7 most under 5 and 12 of them in some sort of harness/booster or car seat. Nice that they are tied down, BUT most of them have a reason that they are going to summer school. Either it's not following directions, being nonverbal or just plain having behavior issues. It's me, the driver and my trusty monitor. E is a good kid, but she tends to complain about the kids, her life, her boyfriend, other drivers, having no time left on her cell phone or worse she wants to "hang out" between routes. I fixed that we have lunch once a week.
Oh and no air conditioning.

This week has been a loud, soggy, fit throwing screaming mess of children. Today especially so...but we survived. Everybody got home in one peace...one kid broke his glasses, but nobody puked, one of the twins punched the other, the girl that freaks when she hears all the screaming fell asleep before the bus got to nuts and I feel like I did a good job by them.



TG tomorrow is F!! After that only 9 days left of summer school and I even have summer left to have a nice break!


Wednesday, July 7, 2010

just when you think---> :)

Thank you all so much for the encouraging extraordinary words ... I always feel like journals are my place to vent, get a hug or a kick in the shorts and go on...

I've said this before nobody in my world comes here, no one can see my blabbings here... they can't call me into their office (like work) "bad bus driver", or roll their eyes at me, or tell me to grow up, or zone out and then change the subject to something they want to talk about=themselves...or worse "don't tell people our problems!!"

You all are the **best**

Monday, July 5, 2010

3 day weekend...

The kids came over on Saturday for an unscheduled visitation and we all had a good time hanging out in the back yard. Built a fire, threw water balloons until somebody cried and it was time for going in...dark is 9:00 pm here so it's late by the time kids have to be talked into giving in for the night. But crying makes this all null.

My two stepsons have been living here since October 2009. We have been tolerating the ignorance of my oldest stepson. He is not working, will not be working for a while (construction, no work...messed up something with the union, etc) so we are putting up with his erratic behavior...the grand kids spend at least 1/2 the week here so we try to work with my stepson and his self center ways. Put it this way if I made a list I could evict him for a load of reasons. He isn't much of conversationalist so we settle for baby steps...

The other one has been working in Wisconsin so he's gone most of the week. He at least pays some rent.

Someday we will both retire, downsize and then the grown kids will have to figure out life for themselves.

I actually think I am reaping my karma...in 1985 I moved into my parents house with my two sons, had another kid, my daughter and stayed for 5 years!

9 months down a bunch o' years to go!

I love the grand kids and some how some way this too will pass....and I will someday be sitting on the beach smiling at the memory...

there I feel better...


Sunday, July 4, 2010


Let freedom ring!