Sunday, August 30, 2015

We Got Schooled

Twas the night before school started and all through the state, cousins were playing at their Auntie's estate. The food was delicious, cooked with great care, and the children had the time of their lives playing there.
The families all nestled in close for a pose.
Then the boys hit the boat to try a few rows.
The children ran home to get snug in their beds. As visions of alphabets flashed in their heads. The alarm clock rang out, bidding summer farewell. A boy jumped out of bed named Eli Excell. Donned in new clothes, hair brushed, looking cool. One little kindergartner headed to school.
Alright enough with the rhyming. Did you realize I was rhyming? Go ahead and reread it a little more singsongy if you missed the cue. Turn it into a storybook for your kids if you'd like. Send me the proceeds.

Kindergarten! Eli LOVED his first week of Kindergarten! I went with him for the first day to fill out paperwork and get to know his teacher a little bit. (I wasn't the only parent there, you weirdo. We were all invited.) His teacher is super cute and fun and energetic and darling with the kids and says cute things like, "Now give your brain a kiss" when they follow instructions and calls all her students her friends and she is seriously a dream. I foresee a happy year provided she doesn't hate us for ditching two weeks for a vacation in a few weeks. *scared face*

Eli was super excited to get to go to school all by himself on his second day of school. I was walking him to class and he was really concerned about recess. He was telling me he didn't get recess on the first day (the day all the parents were there) and he was really hoping he'd get recess on the second day. Meanwhile I was just thinking...but how do you even know what recess IS?!? Do kids just go to school knowing recess is their favorite subject? Well he did get to go to recess on the second day and he was thrilled.

Meanwhile on day three he didn't get his "going-home treat" because someone at his table was "crabby." That was all the details he'd give me. He wouldn't tell me which kid was crabby or what crabby kid did that was so crabby. I'm just keeping my fingers crossed it wasn't him.

In other news. I psychotically giggled as I grazed Lincoln's feet against grass for the first time in his life a few weeks ago, certain he'd shrivel up, gag and snarl his face up at being prickled. I don't know why I expected anything different, but angel baby smiled and giggled and squirmed his toes and fingers all around the grass loving the feel of it!
Eli had a few days off school for Kindergarten testing, so we used one of those days to meet up with the old roomies. Where the peace sign will forever live strong.
Too bad we picked the hottest day of perhaps the summer to meet at 1:00 for lunch! And there was a total of one splotchy tree to shade us while our poor kids quickly turned rosy scurrying around in the heat. But it was fun and always a treat to see my 49ers.
I escaped a play date with Leslie without a single Leslie selfie on my camera. Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?
I escaped a play date with Kenz without a single flash of her double-jointed/missing-jointed thumb. Whaaaaaaaaaaaaat? Adulthood has ruined us.
Eli is a man of many bribes. He pretty much doesn't listen to a thing we ask him to do until a bribe is attached to it. But once you give him some motivation, that kid does great things. Great things like get ready for school without whining or dilly daddling. Our deal is if he gets ready for school quickly and happily, he gets to play computer when he gets home.

And then there's Carson. Carson is a man who beats to his own drum. For approximately 6 months we have been RACKING our brains trying to figure out how the heck to potty train he-who-is-unmotivated-by-anything-resembling-a-bribe. We tried positive reinforcement. We tried lots of attention for every minor success. We tried treats, candy, rewards, everything in the book.

Sadly, the turning point is when I had the thought, "I'm going to make Carson's life as miserable as he's making mine to see if that "inspires" him to start using the potty." I starting making a distinct effort to show the similarities between a diaper-wearing three-year-old and little baby Lincoln. And I made a big deal of showing the differences between big boy Eli and Lincoln. I made him wear diapers all the time instead of the occasional underwear he'd try to slip on before. And the kicker -- I made him go to his room for a "nap" during TV time because babies don't get to watch shows and they have to take naps.

So poor Carson would be stuck in his room -- hearing his favorite TV shows playing while he was "napping." Two days of that and what do you know? We have a little boy who has had no accidents whatsoever for a solid week! He just started going like he's always known how. Little turkey.

Anyway. Long story, dumb picture, Carson also earned his computer time back now that he's such a big boy! Hoooooorrrrraaaaayyy! I loved the day Eli was playing some alien robot fighter game and I walked in and saw Carson playing "Doll, Doll, Dolly." Carson's never been ashamed of his feminine side!
Lincoln is 7 months old! Everyone always asks me what milestones he's been up to. To which I have to say, "Nothing? But we like him that way." He is Mr. Immobile and I wouldn't mind if he stayed that way for another couple of months! This is his best attempt at sitting:
He doesn't roll around. He doesn't crawl. He doesn't sit. He is chill and happy and chill and happy with being chill and happy. So are we. Here's what he does do:

  • He can scooch. As in, if you put him down with his head one way, you may walk in and find his head where his feet were, but that's about his range. 
  • He has yet to roll back to belly, but he will bring those little legs up and collapse them on the floor next to him almost like he's going to attempt to roll but then finds himself content enough to just lay bent in half on his side instead.
  • He can still fit in 3-month clothes and size 2 diapers. But he's more comfortably fitting 6-9 month clothes. 
  • We've started dabbling in "solids" with him. He's had oatmeal (not a fan), sweet potatoes (not a fan) and applesauce (fan). 
  • He still wakes up once at night. Usually around 4-5. 
  • He goes right to sleep when you put him in his crib as long as he's been awake for at least an hour and a half and no more than two and a half hours. 
  • Doesn't love his binky. Does love his thumb.
  • He finds anything his older brothers do absolutely hilarious. 
  • Great traveller. Stroller, carseat, baby carrier. He doesn't care. He loves it all. 
  • He smiles any time anyone is looking at him. If you make eye contact with him, he grins from ear to ear. 
  • We can't get enough of our sweet, sweet baby!

Eli and Carson helped me make cookies one day. We *did* have this great system down with lemon crinkle cookies where we'd make the dough together and then I'd roll the dough balls and they'd dip them in the powdered sugar. They were surprisingly clean and helpful last time they helped me with this job, so I entrusted them again. They turned on me.
Their hands were all over the powdered sugar the entire time, Carson squeezed half the dough balls he handed me into an unrecognizable goo. And the powdered sugar/cookie ratio was alarmingly off this time around. But, the cookies were made with love and that's all that matters, right? And by love I mean germs.
One day the boys were out in the garage as Jeff came home from work. They raced up to him telling him all about the "movie theater" they had built for their tractors. I love to see little imaginations create things out of unexpected items.
That was our first week of school. With less school in it than I would have hoped. This week is our first full week. Gulp!

3 comments:

Kim said...

Brilliant poem, you clever girl! Great way to start this post! Loved it!!! I am impressed you snapped a shot with 4 kids on the slide. Great job!

Cute notes on your darling baby. So glad he is so angelic. Let's hope that never changes!

Love the photo of Eli's powdered-sugared-hands heart.

Rebecca said...

You HAD to go and do such a delightful post on the same day as my super lame one, didn't you?!

The rhyme at the beginning was genius. Loved it. Next time I want the whole post to rhyme please.

School Eli is so grown-up and adorable. I'm glad his teacher seems awesome. All children should have a super kindergarten teacher to get them excited about school!

I thought I was jealous of your lemon cookies when I saw them on Instagram but now that I know about the secret ingredient, I'm glad I wasn't around to share with.

LC said...

I LOVED your twas the night before school rhyme. SO clever. I am sort of mad that the entire post wasn't done in the rhyme. But whatever. Eli looked so dang cute on his first day! I love him. Also hooray for pooping in toilets. Miles has caught his bug and the past two days have been poop city for me and I am already sick of it so I don't know how you have kept your sanity for so long.

I love you.

.....and i took selfies on Kenz's phone. They have yet to surface. Surprisingly.