Before Jackson got sick I had been a special ed teacher in a Chicago high school. Once he got out of the hospital I had to go on leave and eventually to quit to take care of him. This was more than 5 years ago. Now that Jackson is doing so well in his school (I don't feel I have to be close by "just in case") and Zoe is old enough not to need me quite so much (ha ha!), we decided the best thing for our family was for me to start looking for a job. I had been looking since the beginning of the summer and finally found a position recently. I started last week.
It's been a big adjustment for all of us, especially Zoe. We found a great day care only a few blocks away. The director is a parent of a kid who goes to Jackson's school so I kind of knew her already. Zoe really likes going to school, but she has been a bit of a terror at home (yes, even more than normal). Plus she has had a constant runny nose since she started there which is no fun. This weekend we really had to crack down on some of her more out-of-control behaviors and it seems to be working a little already, thank goodness!
Lee has been taking on more of the stay at home role...he gets the kids ready for school after I leave for work, gets Jackson on the bus, and drops Zoe off at school. Then in the afternoon, he hurries home so he can meet Jackson's bus. We are not sure exactly what we are going to do about after school care for Jackson but until we figure it out, Lee is the man.
