August 17, 2006

To register Tessa for school I need...

  1. birth certificate
  2. immunizations records
  3. report card
  4. 2 proofs of residency
  5. social security card

I finally have the birth cert and the report card and even 2 proofs of residency (current phone or utility bills in our name at this address). I got those darn immunization records before we even left Glendive. But can I get a new s.s. card for her? Not unless I have her b.c. (to establish citizenship) and an ID, preferably her US passport. What? Like my 9 yr old has one of those! Or a current school id (umm, ain't registered yet), medical record (doesn't get sick, hasn't been to the doctor in years), daycare record (nope), or baptismal record (are you kidding me?). So to register her, I need a ss card and to get one she needs to be registered.

We are going to have sooo much fun tomorrow. Hopefully her old school's record will work. BUT, MT is on mountain time, not central, so instead of being at the SS office at precisely 8 am so that she can be registered at 9 am tomorrow.... I will get there sometime later in the day. I highly doubt she is going to get to go to school this week.

I also had to spend $200 on school UNIFORMS for both of the kids! They can wear any color solid polo shirt with the emblem no larger than one inch, plain jeans with NO EMBROIDERY. Does that include the back pockets? Know how hard that is gong to be to find? And khaki or blue skorts, jumpers, pants, skirts and shorts; long shorts that are 1 to 2 inches above the knee. Tessa is going to look so cute in her geeky outfit with awesome, shiny pink cowgirl boots on! Hey, they said nothing about the shoes, except closed toe, closed back. They also said nothing about accessories. This is the school's first year to do "voluntary standardized dress." How is this voluntary?

Help me, please. Please!!!

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

I don't even want to think about how much it's going to cost to put Jenna through school. Yikes!

Margaret said...

The SS card should only take two weeks to come in and if there is an office nearby, they may be able to give you a "letter".

It is nuts here the requirements for school. Dentist appointments are needed also!!! Kate isn't in daycare because of this and the immunizations. Although it is merely a suggestion and not a law - GA wants all kids vacinated fully by the age of 2.

However, if they are not vacinated they can't be included in daycare and many learning institutions. I have issues with Immunizations and didn't want her shot up with so many while still young, frail and an infant. I would rather spread them out and some - quite frankly she really doesn't need. Syphillis for example. Who ever heard of such a thing for a 3 year old????

Good luck with getting those things together. Keeping you in my prayers. -Margie

Oh great One said...

We first experienced school uniforms in Santa Fe. Pretty much the same guidelines you mentioned except there were to be no emblems on the shirts. As for pants nothing said about embroidery but they couldn't be cargos or baggy. We had aquired quite a selection of different colored polos. Then we moved here. Kahki pants (or shorts/skirts) and Navy blue polos. I had to start all over with her school clothes!

I will say it is so much easier in the morning. There are no discussions over what she's going to wear. I think it's cheaper than before too. I've been won over.

JBlue said...

It's one of those "you can't get there from here" things. Frustrating. I feel like a rat in a maze when that happens.

Rowan Dawn said...

Tessa is on school! I called them backand they said Icold bring in our tax returns for proof of social security! Then we got there and she doesn't have the varicella (chicken pox) vaccination! But the clinics are full- so many kids getting updated or they can't go to school! But the principle wants all the students in now, so they are giving us 30 days.

We get there, and only a few kids have uniforms on. What? When they said "we aks that students wear" I thought they were being polite. Iguess voluntary means just that! Next year it will be manditory. Tessa said its fine, she likes her new school clothes! But I could have aved A LOT of money!

Grrr Argg. Oh, and the school survey said that 70% of parents wanted uniforms. Only about 10% were actually wearing them.

DUH!

Granny said...

I despise standardized dress and I help lead the fight to do away with it here.

Our "voluntary" program meant that parents could opt out. I did with a letter every year explaining why.

The teachers hated it partly because it was voluntary and they never knew who had a letter in their file and who was just ignoring it.

They now have a reasonable dress code that I do support since it's how I dressed my kids to begin with.

Ann said...

What a catch 22 re the SS card! I didn't get my SS card until I was 15 or 16 and started working. I can't believe they require them so young now. Yay for Granny for fighting against the dress codes! Private schools can require you to have your kids wear green lederhosen with stockingcaps for all I care, but when the public schools start doing this, there's something wrong, especially when the parents have to pay for it. Part of an education is learning that not everyone can afford to buy the latest fashion, or care, and accepting.

Remember when public education used to be free? You didn't even have to buy your own pencils...they handed them out to you.