School starts, and Honeymoon Period is Over

So I think it is. I am worried. Should I be though? She has been in school for almost 1 whole month. And she is STILL doing well. I know, GREAT, right? Why am I worried? It never lasts. When it crashes, it's pretty bad. Is there anything I can do to keep her from crashing? I don't know but I made an appointment with her teacher.
I met her for the first time at the school's Open House this past week. Seems really nice. Not easy to read though. But the good thing is she has many years experience working as the Intervention Specialist at the 9th grade level and recently moved into the 8th grade and will have great knowledge on how to transition Penelope into High School. She said that was her primary goal for all her kids is to prepare them for 9th grade. All her teachers seemed really great. She has 3 teachers from last year teaching her this year. She likes all three of them. Her Math teacher pulled me aside to tell me how well Penelope is doing this year. Even her last year's IS saw me and told me the same thing. The low point was when I was in a class with the woman that George dated right after his second wife kicked him and Penelope out of her house and they came to live with me. They broke up because, according to George, she didn't like the fact that my Mom and I wouldn't let George take Penelope on dates with him as she has a daughter the same age. That we were judging her for allowing her daughter around George so early in the relationship. We tried to explain that Penelope was too fragile (wetting the bed, nightmares, fear of being kidnapped or murdered) to be around yet another mother figure so short after his relationship with her abusive step-mother ending. This was before Penelope was diagnosed. George didn't see the problem and didn't explain it to her either. Of course he wouldn't because it would show his inaction in the situation. She recognized me. Asked how George was doing. She said she hadn't spoken to him in a while but she saw him on TV - referring to his biker gang arrest last year. I just said " Yeah, I think he's doing fine. I don't speak to him that often." Embarassing. Right in front of other parents.
Anyway, I'm just hoping it is not all Honeymooning she is doing. She has her goal this year. To go to camp next summer to become a forensic anthropologist. She does her homework with no prompting or arguement. She does it right away to get it out of the way. She is organized and doesn't forget her assignments.
She also gets herself up on her own, most of the time, and picks out her own clothes (1st year for that) and gets herself to school on time by riding her bike. Much more independent.
The issue is, maybe a little too much independence. That is what I will be talking to her teacher about. She has set high expectations for herself and her need to be in control of her own environment also has her refusing to accept help from anyone including her teachers. I offered to quiz her for her vocab test and she refused. "I'm fine! I don't need your help!" She feels like I am calling her stupid and that I don't believe her by offering to quiz her. She also does this thing where she knows more than everyone else or can do something better than everyone else. If she doesn't know it thought, she makes it up so it sounds like she knows more. I can see these behaviors to come back and bite her in the butt. But I can't complain. If that is the only real issue going on here, we are good. I just don't want to see herself set herself up to fail. I want her to work hard and reap the rewards.
Now that she is doing well, it's given me permission to go into a deep depression. I hate it and feel very out of control of it. I've been avoiding everyone and have lost a client because of it. I get so anxious and just want to stick my head in the sand. I'm glad it was a once every great while client but still, money is money and since I only have 1 other client right now which is also small, I am financially just back to making peanuts. And my poor Dad is tapped out. I ended up returning most of the clothes I bought for Penelope for school to pay bills. I even called George the week before school started and asked him for money, since he gets child support from Harriet, but hasn't seen Penelope in 1 1/2 years. His response was "For what?!" I told him for back to school expenses. He said "I don't have any money. Maybe next month when I get Harriet's next check." I said "Next month? What happened to this month's?" He said he already spent it. I said "You know Harriet has complained to me that you get the money, not me." He scoffed and said "She owes me. I had to pay alot of money for daycare after she left." He fails to remember that my parents gave him a big raise so he could pay for it. And that she was in daycare for only 3 years and I've had Penelope for 6 now. He then asked how she was doing. I said she was doing good. He said "That's good... Yeah, when she was with me she got straight As. No problems." It was obvious his girlfriend was in the background as he was speaking like he had an audience. She didn't get straight As, she was in 1st grade. They give out Satisfactories and such. She was also being raped by his friend's brother but "no problem." He went on for a bit but I had tuned him out. I told him I had to get off the phone.