AWWWW, Man!

This morning was uncharacteristically smooth and easy going! I got Shawn up, dressed, hair & teeth brushed and ready to go to school.  We were hanging out in the living room, where I was feeling mighty proud of myself for helping Shawn get ready before Raj was even downstairs, when Raj asked me what our plans were. I looked at him funny, "Well, school of course." "That's tomorrow. Today's Wednesday." 

AWWWW, Man!

He teased me relentlessly about the mixup and asked at least a dozen times of I felt ok.  Honestly, I felt better when I thought I was ahead of the game. Now? Not so much!

(Looking back, I'm actually amazed that mixups like this don't happen more often!)

Oh, well. Shawn and I were already fully awake, so it didn't make sense to go back to bed. Instead, we had a leisurely morning, breakfast, and played. I even chipped away at the laundry pile a bit - ooooh! Fun! 

Later, we resumed our regularly scheduled Wednesday activities at Gymboree.  There's been a high turnover among the School Skills teachers lately. Today, I think it got to Shawn. It's the only thing I could think of to explain why he wasn't himself in class. He was fine helping in Lilly's Level 1 and playing in Open Gym, but when School Skills started, he got clingy with me and then had a very hard time following the teachers directions. Everyone who knows him there made reference that he wasn't acting like himself. However, when we were heading home, he was back to himself again! 

The rest of the evening & night were great! Shawn even got an extra long story time when it was time for bed. I still don't know what happened at School Skills, but I'm glad it worked its way out of his system!

New School and then Old School Friends

Shawn and I took Raj to The Goddard School in Bloomingdale to tour their preschool program. Raj was hoping to enroll Shawn in a Montessori program, but the only accredited school in the area is +45 minutes away. Goddard is slightly more than 5 minutes down the street! Shawn and I had toured the school earlier this summer, but I wanted Raj to see it for himself before making a decision.


Shelley kept Abby home so they could spend the day together while we visited Goddard. It was a quick tour before Raj had to get to work, but we were pleased with what we saw. They have a lot of child lead learning opportunities, but still have specific lesson plans that the teachers work from. I like the guidance and structure of the lessons that Montessori was missing. Unfortunately, their outdoor play area is small and lacks almost everything that Richard Louv would hope for. The location of the school doesn’t help, seeing that it’s practically in the parking lot of a shopping mall, but still, it leaves a lot to be desired. I’ll just have to counteract Nature-Deficit Disorder after school hours! The rest of the school was much more promising: students’ work was prominently featured all over the small building, there are brightly painted murals in the hallways, the classes focus on various learning themes for a few weeks at a time (they’re finishing a summer theme ‘Passport Around the World’) to guide their lessons, lesson plans are posted outside of each classroom, lunch is provided (and breakfast, too, if the child is there early enough)… We’re planning on doing a half day program (8:30 am - 12:30 pm) on Tuesdays and Thursday starting September 4, 2012.


Is this really happening?? (sigh!)


After saying goodbye to Raj, Shawn and I picked up a few groceries at Meijer on the way home. Then, we made a fast trek around the Schaumburg Farmers’ Market for our essential crepe, some fruits that Shawn hand-picked, and some meat for grilling. We tossed our goodies into a cooler and headed to Gymboree.


Melissa and Blake met us there for a free trial of Family Music class. Again, the theme was Hawaiian music, but it was fun showing our friends the ropes. Blake was much more interested in getting out to the gym area rather than playing music, but he did very well for a first timer. He was thrilled when he finally got to explore the gym equipment after class. Melissa might actually register Blake for classes after all! We were just using it as an opportunity for a playdate, but they had so much fun that they might come back officially. (That works too, since we’d both benefit from a referral bonus.)


Though Melissa and Blake weren’t able to join us after class, Shawn and I went out to lunch to ‘the chicken restaurant’ (otherwise known as Chicks ‘n Salsa). Then it was time to go home and Shawn fell asleep in the car. He napped for a few hours – much more than I had anticipated.

It’ll be a late night tonight.

I'm a Big Boy - NOW!

Shawn didn’t want diapers / pull-ups today! He made comments like, “I’m going to give all of my diapers to a baby!”  So, I quickly obliged and dressed him underwear…

all

day. 

He went through a few pairs of underwear, but only one pair of pants.  Today was by far the most successful potty training day we’ve had.  We even left the house to go to Open Gym at the Hoffman Estates Community Center and later to pick up a few groceries. (I made sure to bring along a spare set of clothes just in case – but we didn’t need it!) 
 

He still doesn’t like me reminding him or asking if he needs to go, but when he felt his underwear start to get wet, he’d run to the bathroom as fast as he could.  Next step – realize he needs to get to the bathroom before he gets wet at all.

This evening, Shawn pointed out, “I get to go to Pre-School now!”

[whimper]