First evening not alone & report from the boys

Note: I published three posts at once. It would be best to read them in order...so scroll down because this one is third.

So...careful what you wish for and all that.

Actually Georgia is fine. She is going to be 18 in a couple of months, and kids all melt down shortly before emancipation. Though Mandy sometimes works out exceptions, she normally does not allow kids to stay past their 18th birthday. It is not that she wants them to go (well, it is not always that she wants them to go), but there are great big kinks in the system that do this.

Anyway, Georgia is a candidate for staying at least through the summer even though she will be 18. The problem is that she does not have a job and is not looking for one. She is not in school anymore either (finished her GED program). Georgia does not understand that Mandy cannot allow her to stay if she is not working and saving money. (I have to write a whole post about emancipation problems in the system, at least here.) So Mandy says they are beginning to fight and Georgia is undermining her with the other girls.

Georgia says that Mandy wants her to be independent, but then tells her what to do. Then Georgia asks me if she can spend today hanging with her friend. Georgia clearly is hearing "indepenent" (meaning do what I want) when Mandy is saying "responsible".

Georgia also says that the case worker recommended that they take a break from each other. Georgia said she was relieved when Mandy said she was coming here. I agreed. If she wanted to punish her she could have sent her many other places. Instead she sent her to a place where she knew she was loved and comfortable. I could not resist pointing that out to Georgia. "Even when Mandy is pissed at you she was still thinking about what was best for you." Georgia agreed and after a couple of hours called Mandy. They agreed she would go home on Thursday.

All evening Georgia had watering eyes. She wasn't crying though...must have been dust in the air.

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The boys called. They are visiting college campuses. The first scheduled visit is today. Yesterday they stopped at a wonderful liberal arts college just because it was on the way. They hadn't planned on it because that school is also on Spring break, but they changed their minds and just looked around. They happen to fall in with an official tour, so they got to see a dorm room and computer labs. Andrew was very, very impressed.