Looking so grown up!

A beautiful third grade picture but school is not exactly Vito's strong suit. He's very intelligent and does well on tests but has no use for homework. It's no surprise early in the school year that his father and I are called in for a conference. The teacher is rumored to be very good so what comes out of her mouth is shocking to me. She tells us that Vito (our loving, honest and admittedly energetic 8 year old son) has the look of someone who can't be trusted. I ask if he's done anything wrong and she says no but leans in to tell me that even the gym teacher has told her he doesn't trust our son. She goes on to say that Vito isn't doing his assigned homework and is falling behind. She proposes that the problem is our custody arrangement which is joint, 2 days at his fathers house then 2 days at mine. She suggests that 2 weeks at his father's house and then 2 weeks at my house would be better. I'm instantly in tears at the very thought of not seeing my son for two weeks and wonder how any reasonable person could think this is better. I give a definite no to her custody suggestion but we agree to try a communication notebook between homes and school so every homework assignment is accounted for and completed. On the way out I feel so relieved to be leaving. Vito grudgingly completes his assignments on time and soon we are informed that our son "shows promise". On his last report card of the year she writes "Believe it or not I will miss you, Vito!!"