Pre-K All the Way

Yesterday was the very first day of Pre-K ... and just so we are clear from the beginning, no I was not on the crying mom’s list however, I wasn’t on the happy mom list either. Bittersweet. 

The Friday before the start of school, parents and kids were asked to come in to meet the teacher, play with new classmates and decorate the lockers. Yes, you read that right, decorate the locker. 

We were surrounded by pink and Hello Kitty things while my little guy put up dinosaur decals and magnets on the inside of his door. Nap mats get hung up, spare clothes go on top, backpack will go on the hook and lunches will go on the bottom (so the little guy can reach). 

Forward to Monday, we arrive and make sure everything is in it’s place within the locker and walk into the classroom. My son, told me he was going to go play and off he ran, no hug, no sad looks, no worries. I am extremely happy that he was so comfortable to be independent, I’ve been a stay at home mom for the last couple of months, but I can say a small part of me desperately wanted a little hug. You may wonder why I didn’t walk over to him and give him a small hug but I thought it may signal to him that I was leaving him all day or maybe the bigger reason, I may get tears in my eyes. No one needed that. 

Throughout the day I wondered what he was doing, if he was making new friends, all the normal stuff that goes through a parent’s head. 

I was 20 minutes early for pick-up...just in case. After the excruciating time of waiting, the little guy came out, arms crossed trying his hardest to have a grumpy look on his face. I did the normal thing and asked how school was, the teacher telling me he did really well, noticing the two good behavior stamps on each hand, so why was he trying to act like he didn’t enjoy himself. Leaning down I asked him what’s wrong and he is as serious as can be and said “they didn’t let me play.” Keep in mind they had 20 minutes of playground recess.

I played 20 questions with him on the ride home asking all about school. When I ran of out questions, he asked me to ask him more. He talked to both my mom and dad telling them all about school, who he talked to, about his teacher, what he had for lunch, etc. Then when Dad got home, he talked about it all again. As I was tucking him in for bed later Monday night, we hugged, we prayed and he whispered “mom, I really like school, when can I go again.” 

He goes Wednesday. 

No Wiggles Sleepyhead

Our son has always been great to go to bed at night and to stay in bed until the morning when I open his door. However, because he likes to have a small cup of milk right before bed I told him if he has to go the bathroom in the morning, he can certainly get out of bed to go do that. It’s been going amazing well. On the weekends, if I’m not awake by 7 a.m. he will come over to my side and pull at my covers until I either lift him up into bed or get up and start the day. Weekdays, I generally wake him up because we start early.

I should mention; he’s now 3 ½ years old. Before he was born we made the decision we wouldn’t allow him to sleep in our bed, he had his room, his crib and that’s what we were doing. About 3 months old he had a small cold and wasn’t feeling well and because he had a spare full bed in his room I thought I would sleep beside him. Yea, that didn’t go so well. I don’t care to be touched while I sleep and with a small child you become a light sleeper. The morning arrived and he didn’t sleep well because of his cold and I didn’t sleep well, solution, no more of that.

So this morning, thinking it’s around 5:45 a.m., I feel my covers tug and the little guy whispers, “momma can I watch The Wiggles?” From a very drowsy state I told him he could just lie beside me until the alarm but we have to be quiet. My husband works shift work in a coal mine and I didn’t want to wake him. When our son is awake, he moves, there is no relaxing, being still, no, he won’t have it. I rolled to look at the clock and it’s 2:40 a.m. not right before the alarm and I actually was unsure if I should take him back to his room or just hope he falls asleep beside me because in my mind he has to be tired. My mistake was not making a quick, solid decision. I went with the latter choice mainly because I didn’t want to get out of bed at that moment. Luckily he fell asleep but it only lasted about 20 minutes, then he kicked at me because he wanted more room, tugged at the covers, told me he was hot, fell asleep for a little while longer, woke up and touched my face asking if it was still night time. Okay, let’s go to your room…take him to his room. If I’m lucky, he might have slept for an hour, covers move, and he asks, “momma can I watch The Wiggles?” I pulled him up into the bed again. Yes a mistake, I should have taken him back a second time but I really didn’t want to get out of bed. Same routine as previously mentioned. At 5:30 a.m. we both started our day, getting ready for work and preschool. Which was so much more difficult to do…losing shoes (little guy), changing clothes from the plan (both of us), forgetting lunch (me), etc. As we are getting in the car, “momma you didn’t let me watch The Wiggles.” (The only time he watches The Wiggles at home is on a Saturday morning when he eats his breakfast and I sweep the house to tune it out.)

Today…lots of coffee.

Tonight…fingers crossed.

Wumper Sleigh

Just starting the new year and my son won't stop singing Jingle Bells, it was one of the Christmas Carols that his preschool class sang at their program. Santa Claus is Comin to Town, Frosty, Rudolph and Jingle Bells. Now...as I'm sure many people know or assume, the teachers work with the kids to learn the songs and dances/movements but in the end it's not easy to get 20 kids (age 3 -5) to sing four songs in front of an audience.
A quick rundown of the general program...Santa Claus is Comin to Town -the kids knew most of the words but they really like acting the lines, shaking their finger, pretending to sleep; Rudolph - they put on felt stuffed antlers, yes, adorable; Frosty - well, the teachers did a fantastic job of singing; Jingle Bells - the kids had little bells and the majority knew most of the words.
As I mentioned mine is still singing Jingle Bells...'jingle all the way, oh what fun it is to ride in a wumper sleigh.'