Working Mom

We flew through our first week as a dual-income family. Whoo hoo!!! I'm so thankful that Oma was able to be here to help us keep Bennett on his "normal" schedule. I think that having the support of our families is making all the difference. We had zero tears today when I left, which made me so happy.

Bennett wore unders all day today - even at naptime! He watered several trees this afternoon, pulling his clothes down and back up all by himself. I was worried that he would have a lot of difficulty with the potty training since there were other big changes going on, but he's a champ!

I didn't feel much "mommy guilt" this week either. Sure, I missed him, but I wasn't constantly worried about whether or not we were doing the right thing for him. It will feel even more right when that first pay check arrives in two weeks, but for now, I'm just loving being surrounded by other professionals. I was asked for my opinion several times this week, and not just about kid related things. Don't get me wrong, I love it when my friends ask me how I feel about some behavior or milestone or whatnot that their kid is experiencing that Bennett went through . . . but being asked whether or not I would choose one particular assessment over another based on curricular criteria got my heart all aflutter.

One thing I've got to remind myself is that this is a temp job. I'm a sub and will be a sub for the entirety of this work experience. I can not allow myself to get too attached to these people or this building or the process. I will be leaving it at the end of June. As sad as that it, it's the truth.

But Bennett will be waiting for me with open arms, open heart and slobbery kisses. :)

Preschool Anxiety

So it seems my little guy has a bit of anxiety about school. He has learned that music class is on Wednesday. Furthermore, he has learned that Wednesday is two days after Monday, which does NOT play host to music class. This morning, he looked up at me when I got him out of my bed and after declaring that he couldn't find his daddy, he wanted to know what we were doing today. I tried to beat around the bush about the fact that it was a school day, a Wednesday school day for that matter, but he wouldn't let me avoid the issue.

B: "Mama. What we doing today?"
Me: "Well, honey, Daddy is going to work. And I'm going to run some errands and do other boring things while you're at school."
B: (with tears in his eyes) "I no go school, mama. I go errands wiff you. I no go school."

It's so hard to be the parent at times like these. I know that he knows what's coming. I debate with myself about what's the best plan of attack for him. Do I protect him from the things that upset him or do I make him follow through because I know that it's important for him to learn how to deal with situations that are tough for him. Then, I'm reminded that although he has the vocabulary and articulation of an older child, he is still just two and a half years old. He should be protected.

We took him to school despite his protest. I went in an hour or so later and sat with the director to talk about the best plan (already, it seems like he's got a mini-IEP!) for making him comfortable with school. She simply clarified that the goal of ECRC is that kids learn that school can be fun! She doesn't want the students to be stressed about school - seriously, they're tiny little people! They can't handle that much stress!!! So, we ultimately decided that Bennett will simply change the days that he goes to school. Music is only provided on Wednesdays, so his new schedule will be to go on Monday and Thursday mornings. Bennett is still being exposed to music at home and through our Music with Mar classes at least twice a month. I don't think he'll miss out and I believe that he'll learn to love his time at ECRC even more!