My Philly Family

Church was so much fun yesterday! Dario came!! On his own!! He even went to Sunday School and seemed to enjoy that. I REALLY love him and the man that he is becoming and I loved having him at church. Unfortunately, I had a meeting after church that lasted way longer than I thought it was going to, so I didn't get to spend a lot of time with him after church, but I think he is coming to God Squad tonight. (Luis didn't come to church because he was doing something with his mom. He did come to Teen Club last week, though, and is planning to come to God Squad tonight, yay!).
Dario wants to get his drivers' license so I think I'm going to help him with that. He's actually a very good driver (I've taken him several times), but the written test is going to be a challenge. I know he can do it though!

Today has been a little less exciting. I spent my morning at truancy court again, this time with Linda. I was actually pretty proud of her by the end. Turns out she has already gotten herself into an after-school program at her school (her last report card was BAD!) and has been going every day...and her teachers said that her grades are improving. Also, the truancy summons was actually in regards to her attendance troubles last year (remember when I had to go to their house in the mornings and make them go to school??). This year, she only has 4 unexcused absences, which is really great. She does have way too many tardies, and so she still had to face punishment. But, the judge was very impressed with how far she has come on her own (the fact that she went to and passed summer school last year helped a lot as well).

So, Linda received almost the same "sentence" as Bonita. Linda is on daily report, has 37 hours of community service (Bonita has 35), and she can't miss a single day of school; nor can she be late AT ALL. That part will be a challenge for Linda, but she can do it. I am proud that she at least goes to school...but we all know she can do better.

I have been struggling a lot recently with all this, mainly because Linda's grades were pretty good when we had after-school, but they have dropped considerably since after-school ended. However, seeing her take responsibility for herself and her grades and asking for help herself (from someone other than me), has made me realize that God is still in complete control. And, has made me even more proud of Linda.

Bonita and Linda both have to go back in 30 days, and if everything is completed then their case will be closed. Linda and Bonita will both serve their community service at an after-school/enrichment program at Linda's school; which is good because they can keep each other accountable. This is the first year that they have been in separate schools, and I don't really like it...they are good for each other.

So, it wasn't a bad ending, but not my favorite way to spend the morning. I am still in high gear getting ready for Kids Club tomorrow night (I have no lesson plan or ideas, haha) as well as trying to keep up with everything else. I think this week is going to be busy mostly because its a new routine, but once I get into this routine I think I'll be okay. I'm excited about God Squad tonight and spending some great time with the teens.

I'm also shopping around for a van!!! I will lose my current car in June, and I have recently been overwhelmed with my need for a mini van in the city. I average 7 kids in my car on Tuesdays, same on Wednesdays and now I have at least 3 teens with me on Mondays and Thursdays...and Sundays it can range anywhere from 2 kids to 9. Plus, these "kids" are quickly growing up and few are actually "kid" sizes. Needless to say, my 5 passenger Volkswagen Jetta is pretty much cramped all the time. And obviously, its not the safest way to travel. Whenever possible I try and shuttle the kids in shifts, but that isn't always possible. So, I REALLY need a van to get me and these kids where we need to go!! I have been saving money for a while and I'm in the market. I want to take plenty of time to look around...and always leave the door open for God to simply provide me with a van. :) So, I'm not in any hurry, yet, but please be praying that God would show me the right van to get...I've never done this before and I have the huge potential to mess it up. I don't want to mess this up! :)