This is a big week for our little family!
Yesterday Joshua started preschool, which was very exciting for him. And tomorrow my little Claire is turning 1 year old!! I can't believe it. My babies are growing up so fast.
Yesterday Joshua started preschool, which was very exciting for him. And tomorrow my little Claire is turning 1 year old!! I can't believe it. My babies are growing up so fast.
So.... Joshua's first day of preschool!
Here he is standing on the porch for the proverbial "first day of school" picture. My plan is to have my kids hold up a sign for each year they start school...it will make a cute scrapbook one day, if I ever get around to scrapbooking my gazillion pictures!
Here he is standing on the porch for the proverbial "first day of school" picture. My plan is to have my kids hold up a sign for each year they start school...it will make a cute scrapbook one day, if I ever get around to scrapbooking my gazillion pictures!
Josh was VERY excited to go to school! He told me the night before that he was "feeling a little nervous" about it, but he was fine in the morning! And yes, he did give an apple to each of his teachers. Kinda poetic, don't ya think?
We hung a giant felt letter "J" on Josh's backpack, as well as a felt apple that has a little picture window in it for his picture. I'm pretty sure he won't be mixing up his backpack with anyone else!
We got some wiggles out....
and headed off bright and early at 8am! I am still definitely not a morning person, but I guess I soon will be!
Here is Josh's preschool.
Well, it's actually the teachers' offices. The preschool itself is in an outbuilding down a pathway beyond the gardens.
Here is Josh's preschool.Well, it's actually the teachers' offices. The preschool itself is in an outbuilding down a pathway beyond the gardens.
School starts at 8:30am, but it's good to get there early...the kids sign-in (to practice printing their name), hang up their stuff, then they sit on the round blue rug to read stories with their teacher and parents while the other kids arrive. They then have a message board where they tell the kids what they're planning on doing that day.
The kids then "slither like a snake" or "hop like a frog" or "gallop like a horse" - and this changes daily - to their small group tables. This is where Claire and I cut out. This is also where I started bawling the second the door of the school clicked shut behind me on my way out, even though I swore I wasn't going to cry! My baby is so big!!! And I cried for a solid half an hour!
So the upside to Josh being in preschool all morning is that Claire is still very portable, so we get to have all kinds of fun just the 2 of us! Although I kept looking for him subconsciously. When I went to pick Josh up at the end of the last couple of days I practically had to DRAG him out of there!! He was having way too much fun. And he met a new friend: DJ. The entire first day of school Josh apparently referred to his new friend simply as "my friend"..."where's my friend?" "My friend, come here!"Josh's teacher's told me that he and DJ followed each other around all day long and bonded over their love for trains. Every day the kids have "work time" where they "plan" what they're going to do during "work time" (it's really just play time), and then they go do whatever they planned. Well, the last couple of days Josh's plan has been to play with the trains of course! He likes painting too, and today he mixed ALL the colors together to see what they would make...which was a brownish-red that I will be washing out of his clothes, shoes, socks, and hair for DAYS! Good thing it's washable!
Here is Josh with his new friend DJ.
Oh yes, and I should tell you all how Mom kinda got in trouble today at Josh's school...
When I went to pick Josh up today, he showed me
some pop-bottle hourglasses used to teach math in the school, and said "these are just like our hourglass at home for when I have a timeout", and his teacher turned to me with a questioning expression so I explained that we have an egg timer like this one:
and it is a 3 minute timer, so we use it for Josh's timeouts -"because he's 3 years old and isn't that what they say - 1 minute of timeout per year of age of the child." But I was completely shutdown by Josh's teacher..."Actually, we don't agree with that. We'll be having some parenting workshops coming up."OUCH!
So I guess I'm doing it wrong. And I will be very curious to see what they want us to do instead! So more to come in a future blog I'm sure!
Anyways, when we got home Josh wanted to ride his tricycle and eat tomato soup...in that order.
Then it was time for some down time....er, I mean UPSIDE DOWN time!
Yup, no hands and no feet!!!
At least he took a nice long nap after.
15 comments:
I can't wait to hear what the teacher says about discipline. Everyone has something different to say. don't feel too bad! It looks like Josh is going to have a blast this year!
I can't believe his teacher said that to you! Trust me, Josh will turn out just fine with his egg-timers. In fact, when you get him raised YOU will be able to write a parenting book.
He is a beautiful little boy, and it appears that you and Jason are amazing parents.
okay, I commented but I don't know where it disappeared to - so here goes again: He is way too grown up for his own good! Love the sign idea with the school picture! And the pear wreath is awesome - did you make it and how do I make or get one?! The green chair is awesome - what is the paint color. I'm so copying everything (out of adoration to you of course!:) Wish you were next door, but sooo glad to have blogging and be part of your life!
YYYEAH! I can't tell you how stinkin excited I am that you posted.
Those pictures made me tear up. He is so big! It's just so crazy how fast time flies. I whine about having to wait to get one of my own, but I know very well it will all go so fast.
And Boo to the teach who scolded you. Time out works just fine. You don't beat him, right? It would be interesting to find out what they have to say,though.
Josh's friend is so cute, and it's cute that he made one so quick and that they follow each other around. I remember my kindergarden friend. She moved away after that year, though.... :(
HAPPY BIRTHDAY CLAIRE!!!!!
I can't believe the teacher said that! I think you've done a pretty good job so far and if I were you I wouldn't start changing it because some crazy preschool teacher tells you otherwise. Different things work for different kids. I wonder what they want you to do, use hypnotic techniques?
I can't believe the teacher said that! I think you've done a pretty good job so far and if I were you I wouldn't start changing it because some crazy preschool teacher tells you otherwise. Different things work for different kids. I wonder what they want you to do, use hypnotic techniques?
Oh my goodness, time sure does fly! Preschool, how exciting! Dagan just turned 1 yesterday, and seeing how fast the first year went, he'll be in preschool in no time. BTW I like your egg timer for time out. Parenting classes my left foot. I had plenty of time outs, (just ask my mom) and I turned out just fine.
Yup, Misti pretty much grew up in time out! (wink)
Yeah Vicki! I loved those pictures, and when I called tonight for Claire's birthday, Josh told me how much he liked pre-school and how he got to paint. He sounded so excited, then of course he was done talkin on the phone and went back to playing.
I agree with everyone else, your time outs are just fine, everyone has different ways of parenting, so even if they do have a different way, if your way is working, then keep on doing it. :)
I can't wait to see Claire's birthday party pictures. :)
So cute. I love the preschool sign. I am going to copy that tomorrow and make one for Thomas. So cute. I love his felt letters. I should do that for Tommy since he loves apples and the letter T for Thomas. Before school his teacher asked him to write down what he wants to learn in preschool he said, "apples" because that is what he saw when looking at a school postcard his teacher sent him.
Time outs are just fine. Crazy teacher. What else are you going to do YELL!
I personally subscribe to duct tape and peanut butter, but I can't get my cats to hold still long enough to apply them. Vicki and Jason, you two are doing so well with Josh. I remember mom putting a big letter C on the back of my backpack just this morning and that's the only way I was able to find my way out of the office today.
I can't believe that my grand-niece is already one. I can't wait until her favorite word is "why?"
Auntie Lori said...
Tell the teacher that you appriciate their SUGGESTIONS but my husband was raised with an occational time out and now he is an astro physisist (among other things)so we'll stick with what we know works. ((you don't need to mention his childhood hood nick of Stan*W*))
Lori and I have experience in knee capping those who try to thwart us, and Grnadma says that she can now dance a jig and she'd be happy to help with the knee capping.
Aunti Lori said... don't tell the teacher that Jason's Mom used to say, "Do you want me to beat you black and blue bloody" I used to tell my kids that I'd use the wooden spoon with the hole in it because it would suck their bum up through the hole and sting all the more.
HAHAHA, Lindsey and I were just talking (I think it was Tuesday) about how mom used to tell us she'd beat us bloody. We all knew she really wouldn't beat us till we bled. I can't remember if she used it as a threat or as a joke. I bet she did it both ways. A threat when we were really young, you know, to traumatize us. And as a joke when we were older and she stopped with the beatings.
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