Al's first day of school - high school!!

 No, this isn't a mug shot, but I couldn't get him to smile.  He's a big sophmore in high school now.  No time for fun and games, I guess.

 He looks so small in such a big school!  I love the fact that his backpack is a Transformers one. 

And here he is with some of his friends and some peer tutors.  Mike and I take him to school because the bus drops kids off an hour before school starts and then the kids get breakfast there at school.  That would mess up his sugars in a serious way, so we just get him there with about 20 mins before school starts so he can still shmooze but not be there too early.

 

 

His teacher is Miss Heather, and so far so good!  They are doing well with his sugars - well, as well as can be expected.  He's a tough one when it comes to his sugars, and even though the docs would disagree with me, I know his sugars do wild swings with the change of seasons.  So they are having to learn real quick what to do for him.  And since his thyroid has been so wacky he isn't as able to tell you when he's low or high like he used to.  I think he just generally isn't quite himself, so it's hard for him to tell.  AND I've always said he doesn't regulate his temperature well (he gets cold so easlily and doesn't do well in heat) and their classroom hasn't been above 60 degrees this whole time.  Needless to say, he's been wearing lots of layers to school.

 

 

When we drop Al off (he's called Al at school because there is already an Alex and an Alec) we just call the classroom and a teacher comes and gets him at a certain door.  I walked him in the first day of school, and Mike took him the second day and the class phone wasn't working so Mike had to take him in.  First of all, Mike was appalled at how skimpy girls dress nowadays!  He said he had wished he had blinders on.  But he followed Al up to the classroom, hoping Al knew where he was going, but Mike said all the way in Al had groups of girls saying, "Hi Al!"  "Hey, Alex!"  "Good to see you Al!"  Second day of school and EVERYONE already knows his name. 

 

I had emailed the wrestling coach to see if Al could 'earn' going to wrestling practice once in a while.  That way he had something to look forward to AND it would hopefully cut down on his wrestling everyone he comes in contact with because I can say, "Nope. It's not wrestling practice."  Surprise, surprise!  The coach wants him on the team!  When I told the coach I didn't know if that was such a good idea because he didn't know anything about wrestling or the rules, moves, etc.  Coach said, "That's what practice is for!"  What a nice guy!!  Wrestling starts in November.  We will have to see how that goes. 

 

So Alex is a sophmore in high school!  I'm very proud of him and how he is trying to be a big kid.  I miss him around the house all day, but it is so good for him to be with other people other than just mom and a bunch of 3 year olds!

 

When he gets home from school - if he has earned it - he always wants to go next door and play their video games for 20 minutes.  Kelsey, his friend next door, is a sophmore, too and is becoming a busy high school kid so she's not home for his beck and call as much anymore.  So I texted her the other day to see if she was home and if Al could come over.  She wasn't and then I had to laugh; How many sophmore in high school get a text from their friend's mom asking if they can play?  I think these 2 are it!  Sure glad he has good friends!  One of the boys in our ward (Nash) is in Al's basketball class, and he is so excited to play against / with Nash because Nash is "real good!" 

 

Just for info sake, Al's classes that are integrated are basketball, art (drawing which he calls coloring), choir (he hasn't sang a note, yet), and ballroom dance!  His vote isn't in yet on dance class.  At first he loved it, but now that they are actually dancing - and much faster than his little body can move - it's a bit overwhelming!

 

Good luck Al!  Class of 2015!