a new school/a new bus!

 

School officially starts Thursday, August 31st.  My old bus 30, was retired this year!  Her replacement is a shiny new 2007 model.  Electric doors and everything!  I did not get my old friend's replacement, and since I am in the middle of the seniority list I knew I would not.  I could have picked a 2006 or even a 2005, the newer type buses with their electric doors and parking brakes.  But I chose bus 60, a 2004 model that was lovingly taken care of by a girl that started when I did.  She quit this year, but I chose her old bus knowing it is the style I am used to and perfer.  It has the manual type service door and emergency brake you set with a long rod type thingy (thingy is that correct??!!). 

I also picked my daily routes, they are sweet too, I will dry run tomorrow and let you all know if my choice was a wise one.  Oh course I won't know for sure until school starts!

On Thursday I will pick my midday routes.  I am hoping to get an Early childhood route again and of course my same monitor as last year.  Working with good people is alway a big plus!

It's good to be back!   Much more to come!

 

2006 --- 2007 will be a great school year!

I drove by our department's shop the other day and saw my old friend bus 30 sitting with the other buses that are going to be retired.  I felt a tug of sadness when I saw the old girl.  Like anyone who drives for a living or owns a vehicle that they depend on you feel a certain bond.  I will miss that bus. 

I subbed the other day and drove a brand new van style bus, with an electric service door.  I really perfer a manual door, but I guess I should progress with the future.  I tend to be an old timer when it comes to change...I don't care for it!

We got our schedules for the upcoming school year.  We start our training the middle of August.  So I have over 3 weeks of freedom!  School doesn't even start until August 31st.  So I am going to enjoy the rest of the nice, hot summer!

buses buses everywhere

I know, I know I swore I wasn't going to work this summer, but I did.  Buses just seem to be following me around too!  I ended up subbing a route which was easy, four hour day.  Then last Monday I moved buses from one school to another.  No children involved easy enough. 

Today was just plain freaky though.  I pop over to my local grocery store to pick up a few things and there's two of our buses on a field trip!  I stopped by long enough to give the drivers a hard time and then on with my summer!

school's out!!!

 

Today is the last day of school!!  I resisted the urge to put my name on a summer route too, it was put up after the rest had been bid on.  NO! NO!  I am NOT working this summer!  I need break!  Here comes summer!  I am ready!

took my drivers test

My driver's license was up for renewal on the 6th of June.  I had to take ALL four tests too!  Including the core knowledge test you take when you are 16!  I just got my permit for driving a school bus 3 years ago too.  Along with the core knowledge test I had to take the CDL, the passenger endorcement and school bus endorcement, 4 test in all.  I was very, very nervous as the test is now computerized and if you miss a question it tells you right away.  I did study and made sure I skipped any questions that I wasn't sure of.  I was able to go back to them, or if I had enough questions correct the computer stopped the test with a passing grade.

AND of course I pass all four the first time!  Now I am good for 8 years!

School is winding down, the high school kids take their finals Monday, the Junior high is going to the pool (I am driving), and the grade school kids only need to be tolerated for 1 and 1/2 more days.

It hailed on me yesterday, but the cooler temperatures have been  welcome.  It gets super hot on a school bus!

3 day weekend!

3 day weekend is here!  School is almost out too! 

 

RAIN!

During my grade school run the skies got dark and lightening began to light the sky.  One of the kids got on the bus and even crossed herself!  The big kids were trying really hard to scare the little ones but they were having none of that.  When we arrived at their school they held them on the buses until the normal let off time, instead of letting them in early so needless to say they got soaked.  

And as for me I left all 3 of my umbrella's in my car!

At least this afternoon the rain is gone!

   7 1/2  more days until summer break!

School is out in 11 more days and boy are the kids getting nutty!  Along with my town ripping up the roads and digging ditches for new sewers (makes my job all the more exciting!) not much else new.  My new junior high route is going fine.  They all stay seated which is a big help.  The old driver had assigned seats which I am not a big fan of.  I told them that I was now their driver and I my goal was to get them home in a safe manner, if they can behave and stay seated we'd all get along great.  So far so good.

After having a few issues with my methods of discipline I will take a look at how my year went and do some things different next school year.  For instance I will NOT give a ton of warnings to kids.  I will let the schools handle this, some kids do not respond to being nice, especially junior high with their raging hormones.  Grade school kids I WILL assign seats, many of these kids use the bus as a gym, they argue with me and assigning seats will help with crowd control!

 

 

Last week was a very rough week for me.  I had some incidents on one of my routes.  It was best thought that I give this one run up and trade with another driver.  I ran the route yesterday and so far so good.  There's only 20 days of school left.  Hopefully things will calm down so we can all get through it in a safe manner!!!

24 more days!

The break room at my base (my work) has a black board (it's green) and on it says 24 more days of school.  The kids sure are acting like it's the last month of school.  I did rearrange my grade school route, and assigned some of the kids seats.  The good kids in the back can sit wherever, the 4th & 5th grade girls the middle of the bus so the "little" kids won't bug them, and the seat jumping kids in the front.  Every single day I get an argument from a 5th grader who is too big for his boots (his parents are going through a divorce), and a 3rd grade who loves to copy the other kids.  It's actually worked as fair as bus management goes.  That and giving them a written referral, let them argue with the assistant principal. 

Everybody has been coming into work too, which means we have extra drivers.  So I have had ride along standby drivers and monitors go with me.  I'd say half of them think that it is their job to tell me how to do mine.  Or they sit and scream at the kids to sit down.  The ones who are good usually just sit and talk to my kids and keep them busy.  Thank God somebody knows how to deal with kids.  Makes mine easier.

This will be the last month with the OLD bus 30.  She's a good old girl who's time has come to retire.  The bus has a side door, which they don't make anymore because kids were opening it and falling out.  Thank God that's never happened to me!!  Hopefully, next school year I'll get the NEW bus 30!!

 

 

 

evacuations

I have been super busy at work with bus evacs.   We have over 20 schools to do which adds up to a lot of kids.  I enjoy it though.  The kids really pay attention, which is great because they really need to be safe and prepared.  The rear door of the bus is really high off the ground so I have to lift the little ones down.  The bigger ones usually can get down by themselves unless they are showing off and try to hop down, then I make them go back inside the bus & redo it.  Basically I tell the high school kids to not dive out or they will smack their heads.  First I have to explain to them that a bus has no Park only a parking brake, and that the new buses have electric doors.  If the driver passes out they need to know how to stop the bus.  AND I tell them to not be dumb and try and smoke on the bus.  These are things they don't think of when they are riding to school.

 

I can tell it's near the end of the year.  The kids are going nuts.  AND some of my co-workers think they are the law and must police the rest of us. 

 

Oh well!

Good Friday

I am off for Good Friday.  This week we started Bus evacuation drills with the school.  I always particapate.  It's a great way to meet the teachers and the kids from the area schools.  This year was the first time I did a High school gym class.  Basically they know the drill, but I did explain how to open some of the doors on the newer buses.  I also reminded them to NOT smoke on the bus.  Most of them did not know how fast a bus can burn.  Plus they tend to try and dive out the back door. 

Spring is here, so is spring sports.  I am bidding on Saturday trips now and I have a soccer game next Saturday.  Extra money is always a GREAT thing.

Otherwise just big time spring fever for the little ones!

 

Have a great Easter Holiday!

Whooo hoo, I am off tomorrow!  Doing the happy dance!  Going out of town tomorrow first thing!

This week was actually a good week.  The junior high kids were their normal loud selves.  My girl who constantly is bad has been scared straight so to speak.  She tries to act like she doesn't understand why I wrote her up so much, but when I tell her my reasons why each time that I did it, she goes...."OOOOOOOOOOOh!".

I did write up two other girls for standing up every single day.  The one I know does it because she thinks I am afraid of her mom, sorry, NOT!  She should be the one who is afraid she has 3 daughters!!! 

My routes are all still under major construction so I have to reroute all over the place.  My sub rode with me yesterday and I told him all my short cut secrets, hopefully they won't be too rough on him.  Although I did have to stop today to break up a girl spat.  And I say spat because girls can be so mean to each other and this is only 4th and 5th graders.  ISH!  I even had a mom sitting on the side of the road waiting for her son, who also can be bad.  I made them wait while I told them all to quit being so mean, and play nice.  That'll last about a day!

A bus behind me today heading out of the Junior High had a goofy kid hit his bus with a rock.  He thought that he broke the window, but it didn't.  The kids on the bus gladly gave this kid up too.  Don't kids know that their classmates will turn on the in a heartbeat??!!???  They can be so naive'!!

I am off to enjoy my mini-vacation!

Thanks for commenting you all!

back to school tomorrow

Back to school tomorrow.  It will be a short week for me as I took Friday off.  Mark and I are going out of town to celebrate our anniversary.

~gotta go enjoy the last few hours of break!

school's out for spring break!!

SCHOOL'S OUT FOR SPRING BREAK!!!

 

My grade school route has become a lesson in determination.  Seems the village has decided to tear down the old water tower and they are blocking my path.  Huge cranes and large trucks.  No worries I just re-route.  Then later on down the road I get to try and get around workers building a new house.  This while I turn around in a cul de sac, try and get through a parking lot filled with people going to work out, and then try and turn on to a highway across the street from a convient store at about the time people are buying their beer on the way home from work.  Fun stuff!

big wind

We are having huge winds today.  Makes for interesting driving.  All school buses have a crossover gate in the front of the bus.  It's a long stick that keeps the kids from getting too close to the front of the bus.  It was so windy that a couple of people had theirs blow off their bus.  I made sure I pushed the over ride button so mine stayed in. 

I did have a scary moment though.  I was heading down the highway on top of a hill and my hatch on top of the bus popped open.  Made a HUGE noise, made me jump.

A driver hit a mailbox, another one got stuck in the mud and a third had a parent run into her.  Hopefully tomorrow will be better!

At least the little darlings haven't thought of doing this yet!!

 

Actually been a nice week.  Grade schoolers are a bit nuts but that's spring fever for you!

a note to kids

I'd LOVE to put this sign up in my school bus!!!!  Or better yet pass it out to some parents.

Things have gone from bad to worse with my 2 problem children on my PM route.  These girls are in fact foster kids who I have tried very hard to give them a break, listen to, and be understanding.  After getting cursed out by one, and having her try to jump out of the bus at a bus stop (on a highway).  I had enough.  She was written up for each offense and then suspended for 2 weeks.  After coming back last week she started up immediately.  She and her sister were given a warning and then written up again.  I blame the lack of discipline at home for this.  I truly feel that a household needs to have 2 parents or at least a parent that is willing to actually parent, which in this cause isn't!  As I went by their stop Friday the one girl raised her newly purchased Wendy's frosty (mom was standing right there) and said, " I am not off because of her!! (ME)"...

Hope she's off for good, I don't need the grief!

Thanks for listening!

When I came back from my illness on Tuesday I was met by Junior high afternoon route kids by these words..."Where were you?????????  Don't EVER leave us with THAT witch again!!"  They were speaking of the sub.  Gotta appreciate the LOVE right?

big hearts and a sugar buzz

The nice thing about holidays is that the kids have parties.  And they bring gifts, usually candy and they bring it to me!  YUM!  At these parties their mom's usually come that means they take them home with them and they don't ride the bus.  Which means fewer sugar stoned kids on my bus.

Today was like that.

Also my naughty foul mouth girl got suspended from the bus for 2 weeks.  Her sister is mad at me and blames me, she says I got her kicked off the bus.  I tell her that her sister got herself kicked off the bus, and would she like to join her.  That shut her up.

At least this is the last sugar filled holiday for the year.  YIP-PEE!

 

When you spend your days with kids you begin to see things from their viewpoint.  All they really want is somebody to pay attention to them.  They love their friends, their hobbies, their sports, but they really love their parents. These are the adults that not only put a roof over their heads, but make them feel safe or not so safe when things are rocky on the homefront.  Whether it be job problems, relationship problems or just plan sickness, they know it and it effects them.  I hear about it everyday...I am like their mini therapist.  But for me my job is just let them know it'll be ok.  I don't judge, I don't give advice but I listen.  That's my job. 

I listened today to an old boy who is now forced to be a monitor, his driving days are over.  Old Ed is retiring today.  He sat eating his cake.   He had that look, that look in his eye of a bit of sadness of days gone by.  He gave me a gift today.  He made me realize that I need to appreciate my days with these little ones.  They'll be over before I know it.  I need to be thankful for the problems, the chatter of little kids and the smiles they bring me.  Before too long it will be over.  And as I've said before they'll be prying that bus key out of my grip, forcing me to retire too soon. 

I am thankful today...going back to work with a smile and a better attitude.

Be safe!

sick & aggravated

  Well the germs are running through my school system.  I have a nasty head cold.  But I'll get over it, thanks to kleenex and cough drops.

I am having problems with the junior high kids and have resorted to using our conduct write up reports.  I hate doing it but getting cussed out by a 11 year old just isn't something I can excuse.  Also the kids in the back of the bus think they can stand up walk around the bus while I am driving 55 down a busy highway.  They are going to find out that this isn't happening anymore.  They too will get a warning (which they got today) and then they are going to get a write up.  Kids usually behave when faced with a 5 mile walk home in 20 degree temperature for being kicked off the bus.

Otherwise, there just is a lot of kids out with colds.  ICK!  at least it's not barfing!

sick & aggravated

  Well the germs are running through my school system.  I have a nasty head cold.  But I'll get over it, thanks to kleenex and cough drops.

I am having problems with the junior high kids and have resorted to using our conduct write up reports.  I hate doing it but getting cussed out by a 11 year old just isn't something I can excuse.  Also the kids in the back of the bus think they can stand up walk around the bus while I am driving 55 down a busy highway.  They are going to find out that this isn't happening anymore.  They too will get a warning (which they got today) and then they are going to get a write up.  Kids usually behave when faced with a 5 mile walk home in 20 degree temperature for being kicked off the bus.

Otherwise, there just is a lot of kids out with colds.  ICK!  at least it's not barfing!

I spoke too soon

My morning went great!  Kids were a bit wound up because it was warm and sunny, no problem.

Then my midday...I have a early childhood route that is made up of a bring home from am -- 8 boys ages 4 and 5.  After I drop them off to their homes I pick up 7 more and take them in to the pm session.  During my bring him route I am driving along and my monitor Julie says, "Rose!  K just threw up!"  This poor little guy was in what is called a star seat, which is booster type car seat.  And boy did he barf!  Luckly for me and him he was the next drop off.  Oh yeah poor Julie!  That girl does an awesome job. 

After that some goofy people decided to hit each other and block our way to the school.  The police had our road closed.  We were late and I went to the door that you go to when you are late, guess that door wasn't the right one TODAY and I got the 'look' from the teacher.  But no worries, they all got taken in to school safe and sound

Fortunately, my afternoon went better.  Plus the lovely cleaning lady helped me clean up the puky car seat.  She doesn't speak English.

Thank God I wasn't the poor bus driver in Florida who had their bus hit by a car that was hit by a semi.  So sad.  Bus drivers worst nightmare.

TGIF!  tomorrow that is!

having a good week

For some odd reason all the lectures seem to be working on my bus load of kids.  The other day I had them just start at the front of the bus and fill it up from the front to the back in order.  Which in itself is no small feat for this group. 

They have been good ever since, even though I've let them sit where ever they want.

 

Weird...hope it lasts!

 

DO YOU THINK I'D BE THE COOLEST BUS DRIVER EVER IF I PULLED UP TO THE SCHOOL IN THIS BEAUTY!!!

The sun came out!

The sun finally came out AND it was 50's today.  So yesterday knowing it was going to be warm today, I told my kids to just stay home, call off school for a nice day...But did they do that?  NOPE!  And I was only 1/2 kidding!

This morning my grade school kids went nuts!  But by afternoon they were better.  I have a couple of them who's parents are going through nasty divorces, the kids know it, they feel it and they are telling me all about it.  So folks if you think your dirty laundry stays at home, it doesn't, your children will talk about it.   Thankfully I've been there, I went through an ugly divorce, I wasn't a nice person for awhile, my kids were young, Tim was the only one in school.  But my children are scarred because of me, some of this they have used to be better people, some not.  You can only do the best you can, but believe me, kids know, talk about the bad stuff when they aren't around. And don't bad mouth your ex...it never, ever is good especially for the kids.  So my job as their bus driver is listen, tell them it's not their fault and tell them it'll be ok.  That's all I can do.

Ok I am off the soapbox, I have a three day weekend coming up and I am not ruining it.

 

Have a great weekend!

It's Monday

It's bad enough that it's Monday, but where's the SUN!!!

back to school, oops tomorrow's friday

It wasn't so bad going back to school.  The kids were much more like their normal less than naughty selves, you know the pre-holiday jitters?  Well they were over that, so much so that they couldn't even remember what they got for Christmas.  Although the first afternoon at the grade school my really naughty boy tried to stand on the seat and all it took was for me to say, "ok (blah blah) you're off the bus!"  "I am calling the assistant principal over."  He sat still for 5 wehole minutes with his face against the window.  Then he proceeded to tell me that his mom and grandma had bought him four snakes for Christmas and he fed them baby rabbits.  Which after asking his Grandma who is a monitor if this is true, I found out it was not.  Oh well at least the story kept him busy for the whole ride home.  This kid can do no wrong according to his mom.  I feel bad for him, because he has no discipline.  So he's in the front seat, along with his cousin who's mom drives a bus.  I have a feeling it's going to a long 2 1/2 months until spring break....

I gave up these-------->

From my trip to Florida last week.  Which I took with my husband and daughter.  My father/stepmom moved there last summer.  At first I didn't want to spend 20 hours in a car with my husband and 17 year old daughter, then I found out my hubby was off work so then I KNEW I did NOT want to spend a week with those two locked up in my house!  So we went to St Petersburg for a week....very very nice!

 

for this-------->

After getting back to school and my routine I realized why I love my job, and I do have great kids!

 

Be safe!

back to school, already!

Tomorrow is back to school, already!  After being barefoot in Florida all last week I do not look forward to putting big boots and socks on, but ah I must.  At least we are having a warming trend, 40's...much better than the freezing stuff we had last month.

Hopefully the little darlings will come back ready to behave, I will have amnesia and forget all their pre-Christmas trangressions.  Well, at least the kids that are normally good, the others?  Well they have assigned seats in the forcast...NOBODY is going to take away my post-vacation shine...NO-BODY!

Not even if they bat their little blue eyes and say, "ohhhhhhh busdriver!  I'll be good!"