Walking to school

[chex]

I just heard back from the district's transportation office. They denied my request to have Froot Loop bussed in to school, because we live to close. This is upstate New York. It'll be fine until about late November, but December through March I get to bundle up both kids and either fight all the cars in the area and drive her there, or I can make it easier to fight the cars by walking her along the ice sidewalks. Possibly while I'm pregnant. Awesome. She's too young to send off on her own, as the school isn't visible from the house, and she'd have to cross two roads. (She'll be five, and she's a wanderer.)

[Yaz Pistachio]

Sounds like something wrong with the transportation department. They should take into consideration the age of the children in question.

[chex]

You'd think that. There's also a daycare across the street from my house. Last year, there were two kids FL's age. Hell, there were six kids (including FL) all within a few houses of each other going to the preschool across town last year. Maybe we can take turns walking the kids in or something.

[bella]

I wouldn't let her walk alone even if she was older. You'll never now. Any chance of putting in a veto? Maybe together with the other kids' parents.

[chex]

School starts in a week, so I'm going to talk to the other parents that morning.

If she was 9 or 10, I'd be okay with her walking on her own.

[bella]

A lot of weirdos are out there. I hope you can find a solution with the other parents.

[Shay]

Man that's crap! I remember walking to school when I was 4 to Kindergarten. Unless it was foggy, you could see the school from the house. It was a straight shot from home. But man it was still scary! There was this one time this really creepy looking lady in a very suspicious car slowly followed me and asked me if I wanted a ride, but something was just not right about it. You know when you get those instinctual feelings? I wouldn't trust it either.

[LaLou]

How long would the walk take?
I walked my kids to school until the youngest was ten. We don't have school busses here, and I don't have a drivers licence, so they had to walk. It was only 5 minutes. And the roads don't get icy oer here. Well, not usualy.
I think a 5-year old is too young to go on her own.

[chex]

About 7 minutes in nice weather. But when the sidewalks get blocked by snow and ice, it will be a lot longer. And I'll have to drag Apple Jack out too, which will take even longer.

[Moe]

Re[smurf]diculous...
they shouldn't have to walk...

[bella]

They could offer transport for certain bad-weather seasons at least.

[chex]

You'd think that. Right now, I'm looking into getting a better stroller, so at least it'll be easier to drag Apple Jack out in the cold. The umbrella stroller and mall wheels just isn't going to cut it. Oh well. It was broken anyway.

[Wesley]

You could get an old-school perambulator!

[chex]

I don't see the boy willingly staying in that.

[Wesley]

They make 'em big enough that it could be like his own little fort. He could have snacks and games in there, like a pullman mercedes. You would be Mommy the sheauffer.

[Dowster]

We don't have transportation provided by schools around here - unless it's the ones that you pay £10,000 a term to send your kids to and they bus them to and from an airport or a dorm house in a village about 10 miles away. So it doesn't seem like an issue to me, but if it was provided I would probably want it. I used to walk to school on my own from when I was about 6 (first school was about a 10 min walk away, but we moved when I was 7 and it was about 5 mins from there) and I think all of us at some point got asked by a random weirdo if we wanted to go back to their house and see some puppies, or did we want some sweets because they had some in their car

Actually I think the laste 70's and early 80's had more weirdos than we do now so it really wasn't ideal. My sister would never go on her own, so my mum used to walk both of them - even during the first year she was at college when she was 12/13, the secondary school was about 20 mins away and the college was something like 3 miles. So 20-25 mins for me walking fast, or about 30 mins for my mum and sister (or an hour if it was really icey). Unfortunately my mum didn't pass her driving test until after we had all left school, but at least it got us all used to walking. Anyways, if the service is there (presumably paid for by taxes) they should provide it until it's suitable for the kids to go on their own. Give em hell

[chex]

smurf I HATE snow! Apple Jack, who will be two on Wednesday, will not stay dressed! It's snowing out, and he will not keep on his hat, gloves or shoes. I keep him in footie pajamas, so at least he has SOMETHING on his feet. He dropped his hat today. I didn't notice until we were at the house, and I was about to take him out of the stroller. We walked back, but couldn't find it. ::) The sidewalks are covered in slippery slush, making the stroller difficult to push.

smurf BUS THE LITTLE ONES IN!!!

[chex]

And now the mother smurf on the street between mine and the school's don't keep the sidewalks shoveled, so I can't push the stroller at all! I get to walk in the road with my two-year-old and five-year-old. Oh, and the road is narrower than usual, due to the mountains for snow along the sides. Lovely.