Watch as your carefully-constructed safety net disintigrates around your child

When I tok my new position I was under the impression that I would in the near future be able to work from home. I NEED to work from home, at least Fridays, because my son gets home from school an hour earlier than the rest of the week. Suddenly my boss is not budging. She isn't going to let me work from home and she is having difficulty trying to decide if I can work an hour later on Thursday and leave early on Friday.

I wrote her a very nice email and told her, I have no place to put my son Friday afternoons. I have nobody to watch him. No place within bussing range will take him, because of his behavior issues. This is why I requested intermittent FMLA, so I would be able to be there for my son when he needs me (she talked me out of it when the request got to her. She claimed she'd work with me and that I didn't need it).

Two days ago I get a phone call from my parent advocate. She wants to let me know she is leaving in two weeks and she's going into teaching. I ask her, is someone going to be given Monster's case? And she says, well, nothing is really going on right now, right? Right. I haven't called her in weeks. Months, even. So she isn't giving my case to anyone, but I can call any time and they will put someone new with me if I need it.

Yesterday I get a phone call from the people who manage Monster's PCA hours and pay B. Well, whoops, they tell me. We weren't supposed to be allowing people under 18 be PCA's. It's this new federal law and we put in B's request right before it went into effect and guess what? They denied her - NOW - at the end of summer, and we aren't going to charge you - don't worry about that - it was our mistake - but B can't be Matt's PCA after today. Sorry.

I say fine, I'll pay her out of pocket. It's four more half days and three more whole days. Not the hugest deal.

But the plan has been that the week before the last week of August Monster would spend the whole week at this place, in respite care, because the day school is closed those two weeks, and B doesn't want to watch Monster all day for two weeks. So one week at respite, and then two days there the next week, and then respite closes so B watches Monster the last three days of August. Then school starts.

Except that the woman who told me it would be fine for M to spend the full week there (he goes there every Friday, as it is) wants me to get together with M's aide to "discuss strategies" for when M "loses control". I know what this means. I know. They won't keep him the whole week. They'll tell me they can't manage him. I'll get stuck staying home with him because a whole week is just too much for M to handle and he's getting to stressed and respite can't handle him.

Nobody realizes how transparent that request is. I've been asked to discuss strategies so often that I know exactly what comes after that. This is the "we did everything we could to work with the parent" step that they need to feel okay about kicking your kid out.

I feel as if I am slowly unraveling, just like Monster's net.