Oops. It's been a while. Oops. Really didn't mean for that to happen. Son started school last week. Figured that would make for a good post. But nope. Not really. He likes school, or rather he loves school. He's in the best mood in the morning and when I pick him up. He gets his homework done right away (4th grade seems to be a completely different ball game - reading, math and writing assignments from day 1!!). No major meltdowns (where is some wood to knock on?!?). Now, don't get me wrong it hasn't been absolutely perfect. But it sure has been nice. Best start to a school year we've had so far.
On the 3rd morning he said he didn't want to go because it was all so overwhelming to be with so many people. And I thought about it. He's right. He's stuck in a room for 6ish hours with 25 other people right next to him being told what to do all day long. When he does leave the room there are other groups of 25ish people walking around in the hallways with him. Recess - the whole grade - probably 150 kids. Lunch - the same thing. For all that working people complain of having cubicles instead of offices, at least they have SPACE - even if it's not much, it's still space. That got me to pondering about how we expect kids to function like this and learn. No major thoughts on it - but got me to pondering about it.
The afternoons have been pretty good. We stop at the playground across the street from the school before heading home. There is a tire swing (he loves a good long spin) and the thing where you hang on this thing with your hands and you're feet don't touch the ground and it glides you across. At home we're seeing a lot more stemming. He repeats things a lot more and for longer times. He spends more time in the basement (which has a ball pool, trampoline, futon music, loud music of his choice and some other sensory stuff). He's tried playing a few times with the neighborhood kids, but hasn't been that interested and has been a little moody with them. But he says he thinks he'll be ready for some play dates in the afternoon next week. Weekend was nice - he played with neighborhood kids, slept in, played Playstation, read, took some Tae Kwon Do classes and played with his cousin. Normal kid stuff :)
I have no idea how he has been doing at school - academically or socially. Tonight is Back To School night. Although not a time for conferencing hopefully I'll get a chance to ask for a quick update. On the other hand, his teacher hasn't contacted me, so no news is good news right?
As for me, I'm just chugging along with my assignments for class. It's a full 3 credit grad level class, but it's 8 weeks long instead of 16. I'm taking 2 this semester, but because it is 8 weeks, there is only 1 class at a time. And wow is it moving at a fast pace! But I'm loving it. A lot. House projects that have been put on hold for way too long are getting done. Cleaned out our storage area and found some boxes that haven't been opened since we moved here (um, like 5 years ago?). I do need to say it's been really weird not doing work. I've never not worked - started in high school, put myself thru college and have continued ever since. I miss it because of the money (lets be honest) and the adult interaction. But on the other hand, it's been really really quiet here during the day and I'm not minding the free time to read, surf the net and just get caught up on things. Son and Husband are loving that it's just me after 3:30 - no planning, grading, making stuff for school (most curriculum for low incidence students is hand made). I too, am really enjoying it. I feel spoiled. I feel guilty.
On a completely different topic I think Husband and I are going to finally have a night on our own. For various reasons we've just haven't done this yet. But I think I'm ready. Actually that's not true. Twice last year Son went to sleep over. But I didn't sleep all night wondering how he was, if we were going to get a call, etc. So, I don't really count that as a night on our own. Yea it was, but we certainly didn't take advantage of it like we should have. But I think this weekend we are. My sister who lives in the area now has a kid of her own. She has offered to take my Son for a night. And I'm surprisingly ok with it. And Son is ok with it. He loves hanging out with my brother-in-law playing video games. Husband has been ok with it for quite a while. So I think this weekend we are going to take her up on the offer and send him there and have a real night alone. A movie out. A nice dinner out. Back home to a kid-free house. Some parents do this often, some never. My sister has spent quite a few nights away from my niece (some social out of town stuff, some business). It's amazed me how she was able to do this from the start. If you've ever had a night without your child, how did you come to the decision? Was it a tough one or a no-brainer?
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