So...first up...Lillian!
Oh, you guys, after that first wonderful day of preschool, Lily has slid back farther and farther into insanity. Here's a time-line:
Sept 16: First day. Lily doesn't look back and at the end of the day comes running out full of happy stories.
Sept 21: Second day. Lily cries hysterically when it is time to get into the car to go to school. She cries the whole way to school. But as soon as we pull into the parking lot, she gets excited. Runs in without looking back and at the end of the day comes running out full of stories.
Sept 23: Third day. Lily cries hysterically when it is time to get into the car to go to school. She cries even more hysterically when we pull into the parking lot. She begins SCREAMING as we enter the school...to the point that I am actually holding my hand over her mouth so the windows won't shatter. After succeeding in getting the other 11 students amped up and also crying, I carry her kicking and punching and screaming at decibels that humans can hardly tolerate. The teachers whisk her away from me, and I can hear her screaming as I walk through the two hallways and out the front door. Let me repeat: I could hear her screams through 3 sets of doors and down two long hallways. When I went to pick her up, she ran out full of stories...but she also mentioned that Mrs. G had to calm her down.
Sept 28: Fourth day. Lily cries hysterically upon waking up...because she knows it is a school day. She cries and screams off and on for the rest of the morning (she was also very tired because of our busy weekend). I gave her the option of school or in bed for the entire school time. She chose bed...and never complained to get out.
Sept 30: Fifth day. That would be today. She isn't even awake yet, but I think I'm going to force her in. Goodie.
I don't know how much to push her. This is supposed to be fun. It is a *bonus* year of pre-school. Now that I know Kindergarten is really just another year of pre-school, that means this is the first of 4 years of pre-school. It is unnecessary. It is a pain in my tooshie to take her and entertain the boys for 90 minutes while we drive around and kill time. But at the same time, she has a great time once she's there. But at the same time, her little dramatics have a domino effect of the rest of the class.
Ugh. Totally didn't have this the first time around.
Other Lily stories?
--- We were standing around waiting for the school bus, when a neighbor drove by and stopped to talk. She asked Andrew and his friend Lauren how they liked school. Lily cocks her hip, puts her hand on her hip and says (with attitude), "Hey! I go to school too!"
---We were walking back home from the bus stop and Lily asked me what Andrew's teacher's name was. I explained that the bus driver wasn't his teacher, that the bus took him to school where his teacher was waiting. Lily said, "Well, I have LOTS of teachers. Mrs. Wood, Mrs. Gulla, and...what's that teacher's name? I like Mrs. Gulla the best because when I was crying and crying she gave me a hug." All in one breath.
---Lily is quite disturbed by the fact that it is dark when she goes to bed at night now. She likes to read books in bed, and it is too dark now to even see the pictures at all. So she regularly cries and calls out, "Mommy! Daddy! Please come turn my window on!"
---Her new phrase is "That is crazy." Except she says it, "Dat is Cw-azy!" Find her shoe under the table? "Dat is Cw-azy!" Michael hair blows in the wind? "Dat is Cw-azy!" You get the idea...
---We have recently introduced 2 new CDs into car rotation. Elmo is officially out of rotation (yippee), although Michael's infatuation with all things Sesame may bring him back in soon (boooo). Our 2 new CDs are the They Might Be Giants ABC's and 123's. Jeff and I enjoyed TMBG in college, and their kids CDs are fantastic. But one of my favorite parts is that Lily sings them now. We were hiking in the woods and Andrew pointed at a tree and said, "Mommy that is a conifer." To which Lily started singing, "C is for conifer...more than 900 kinds..." She sounded really smart as we walked through the woods ;) I also love it when we are in the grocery and she breaks into, "One plus one is two. Two plus two is four. I can add...I can AAAAAAddddddd!" Or when we point out the geese and she sings, "Flying V! Flying V!" Makes me look like such a freak-a-zoid parent...except the songs are really really good...TMBG stayed true to their song-writing and making style.
---Lily is fast approaching 3 (next Tuesday!), and so we are getting the, "How is potty training going?" Um...it is going nowhere. She has zero interest. She also has zero interest in sleeping in a big girl bed, eating new foods, or playing new variations of pretend games. This child seriously likes what she likes and has no interest in broadening her horizons. I guess I'll start encouraging the potty more. I guess. But those of you crazies who purposefully had kids this close together...honestly, what did you DO with the younger when you were in the bathroom. Lily doesn't want to be alone while she tries, but Michael is constantly getting into the toilet/unrolling the paper/crawling behind the toilet/emptying the trash/tickle-tickling Lily's naked legs. I can't leave him alone outside the bathroom. I can't bring him in with me. I can't leave Lily alone in the bathroom. Solution? Lily can either learn to go to the bathroom three times a day (before Mikey wakes up, during his nap, at bedtime), stay in diapers, or I can potty train Michael now too.
Lily, on the first day of school telling her Daddy about her day. Happier times...
6 comments:
Ah, the potty training... O is 2.5 and C is almost 1.5 and it's frustrating. We've had many rolls of TP unrolled, the little potty spilled many times, lovey in the potty, etc. I usually have to sit in there with him and/or shut the door.
Sorry about preschool! Maybe she'll just get used to it and then won't cry anymore. If it goes on a long time, I'd probably pull her out but that's just me!
Joey stands outside the door either banging on it and screaming or sticking his fingers under the door and laughing (the preferred status). He just has to be alone. he flushed once while Rachel was on the potty and she didn't sit on it again for 3 months *sigh*
TMBG are doing family concerts at kids' museums this fall to promote their new kids' science cd--they're doing one in Pittsburgh, so they're probably doing one in Philly, too.
Love the Lily stories...she is such a character! For potty training (since my kids are just over a year apart), it wasn't so much of an issue because we don't have a downstairs bathroom and so we were forced to use a potty chair. So I just had to keep the potty accessible but not right in the middle of everything- that eliminated the problem at home but I DREAD the times I have to take them into a public restroom by myself- unless there is a stroller involved! Wishing you luck in that department!!!
All dat blogging stuff you write is cw-azy. This is going to be my new catch phrase, although it is much cuter coming from her.
Quit worrying about the pot-training. She will do it when she is ready, and you've got better things to do than run back and forth to the john. Am I right?
The potty training thing is so frustrating with the 1 year old in tow. David does all that stuff you mentioned, and it's annoying. Now that Katy's (FINALLY) going by herself, I keep the door closed all the time, and it's closed when she's in there, etc. But if I have to go in to help her with something, he's into everything. It's one of the down sides of kids close in age, I guess.
I hope preschool gets better. Is it only 90 minutes because it's pre-preschool?
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