You know how I love my kids in my class. This last week was a toughie. What these kids have to deal with.....

One had to be removed from school because he has a degenerative respiratory disease and an immune system that can't even fight off the common cold. We're hoping he can come back in the spring. We were all crying.

One had to choose whether he wanted to live with his grandmother or his mother. He chose his grandmother because she can take better care of him and his disabled brother. He won't be seeing much of his mother because she and his grandmother get in fistfights.

One lost everything in New Orleans.

One lost her dad last year and sometimes cries all of a sudden.

One cries for his mother, who took his sister and moved out, leaving him and his baby brother with the dad. The dad is great, don't think he's not, but he wants his mom.

One has a brother who had a severe head injury and will be going into surgery in two weeks.

One has ADHD so bad the medicine doesn't help.

One can barely read, and was denied special ed because he's soooo low.

I love being a teacher, but I'm also a mother, tutor, social worker and friend to these kids. Some days I'm the only stability they have.

But heaven help them if they don't pass the state test :P