preschool--our first attempt (part 1)

let me preface this by saying that i'm not one of those super crafty, creative moms who fills her children's days with age-appropriate activities to stimulate their development.  that kind of stuff doesn't come naturally to me.

but i want it to.

i knew we needed more structure in our lives.  i rely too much on getting out of the house (the gym, the park, the mall, the grocery store, visiting friends...anything), so when we're home for a few hours i find myself lost (and bored).  we play cars, we play blocks.  we play cars again.  we watch kipper.

it's b-o-r-i-n-g.  for all of us.

for months i've been pinning activities for the boys.  i've tried out several of them, but, honestly, the 5-10 minutes of enjoyment they bring doesn't quite outweigh the work, thought, and clean-up that goes into them.

(this sweetly composed little picture is a lie.  they got bored with watercolors after about 8 minutes.)

i really believe children crave order and structure.  freedom within limits.  even though it seems counterintuitive, a child is much more likely to get bored when he has free roam of the house than when he is directed to focus on a specific activity.

this is why i am a big believer in rotating toys, and in only getting one toy out at a time (aside from the mess factor  ;))  when you keep all the toys out and your child looks at them every day, they get old.  on a similar note, allowing a child to play with too many toys at once usually results in him flitting from toy to toy, without showing sustained interest in or focusing on any one thing.

this is how we do it: i store all of the toys in the boys' closet (which has been fitted with extra locks since they figured out how to get the doorknob covers off...nothing like a little breaking & entering to spice up naptime).  when it's time to play, i get out one toy (dominos, cars, blocks, puzzles, whatever) at a time and they play with it.  if they want to move onto something else, they must first clean up that toy and put it away.  occasionally i'll leave a toy out in the living room for a few days, but in general i try to keep them out of sight so they're more "exciting".

(i do, however, keep all of the books out in the living room where the boys can access them easily.)

our "system" (if you can call it that) isn't perfect, and once i can get more organized i'd like to change the way i store the toys and possibly keep a few in the living room at a time (rotated weekly or something) for the boys to choose on their own.  (i've been doing a little reading on montessori-style learning and i'd like to integrate some of the concepts.)

anyway.

our biggest problem (for months) has been too much free play.  too much free play-->wandering around-->boredom--crankiness-->fighting-->getting into trouble...you get the picture.  but i am SO NOT GOOD at sticking with things.  (remember that gym i joined?  it's a good thing they don't grade on attendance)  cleaning schedules?  yeah right.  meal plans?  please.

i was really inspired by some of the homeschooling/preschooling posts i've been reading lately.  but i was also really intimidated.  i don't have experience with this type of stuff and i just wasn't sure exactly how to start.  finally, i decided i just needed to try.

so last night found me drawing up a "lesson plan" for today.

(on a piece of ripped construction paper, appropriately titled "lesson plan".

i'm so fancy.)

i decided we would hold our first trial "play school" after naptime today.  we're usually out and about in the mornings, and the after-nap-before-dinner window is usually a stressful and boring and whiny time. perfect candidate for a little structure.  ;)

during naptime i made dinner and prepped for our play school time.  and do you know what?

i was actually nervous.

ridiculous.  i know.  i don't think i was as nervous about the boys' reaction to my plans as i was about failing.  i think i felt like if i failed at this, if it didn't go well, then it would mean i just wasn't cut out to be that kind of mom.  the fun, involved mom.

and i really want to be the fun, involved mom.

i felt like all of my hopes were riding on the success or failure of this experiment.

dramatic pause.

(and this is where we acknowledge that anxiety has no basis in logical thought.  do not put pressure on yourself over something as ridiculous as this.)

so...how did it go?

you'll find out next time.

to be continued in part 2...

i know you're all on the edge of your seats.

why you should join a gym if you have kids

my primary motivation for joining LA Fitness had nothing to do with getting my pre-baby (babies) body back.


because, obviously, i'm super smokin hot already.  i mean just look at me.

a face only a mother could love.


it had everything to do with the fact that, for $40 a month (+ $10/each kid), they will watch my children for two hours a day.

that's about 60 hours per month of childcare for $60 dollars.

are you guys hearing what i'm saying?

at first, i went to the classes.  i cycled and stepped my way into sweaty bliss, enjoying the adult socialization i got every day.  (and by "socialization", i mean that i began to recognize the faces of the people in my classes.  not that i actually worked up the nerve to talk to anyone.)

but now, i have found my true fitness love: walking on the treadmill listening to podcasts.

(i'll do another post on how podcasts are the love of my life.  you can listen while walking, cooking, in the car...it's a beautiful thing.)

am i burning a thousand calories an hour?  no.  am i increasing my endurance and building muscle and developing that super-firm and perky tush i've always wanted?  no.  am i sweating up a hurricane and feeling the burn?  no.

well, yes about the sweating.  there's something wrong with the a/c.

but, am i getting almost 2 hours to myself while i chillax and listen to stuff i like?  oh yes.

yes, i am.

and to make the most of my 2 hours of babysitting, i shower and get ready at the gym [almost] every morning, as well.

some people think gym showers are gross, and i'm not here to dissuade you of that notion.  they are.

but here's the thing.  if you've got someone watching your kids, and they're happy*, you make the most of that time!  for me, that means showering and dressing and doing my makeup and hair--at the gym.

if i shower at home, i'm on borrowed time.  i have to do it when the boys are asleep or in roomtime, when i have other things i need to be doing, like cleaning or making dinner or starting my 27th book for this year (i finished #26 today!  i am on a roll, people.)

but if i shower at the gym, i can take my time.  the kids are being supervised!  i'm free to relax and do my hair and makeup at a leisurely pace while finishing my podcast and trying not to get my straightener tangled in my ipod cord.

they're wonderful things, gyms.  and i know they can get expensive pretty quickly, but if you can find it in your budget to do so, i urge you to try it out.  especially if you're a stay-at-home-mom whose only adult interaction is with the cashiers at the grocery store.

go get your sweat on.  make some friends.  try a class or two.  walk on the treadmill.  go sit in the hot tub.  (i've been debating whether or not i would be looked down upon for bringing a book to the gym and hiding in the locker room to read for my allotted gym time.  i'm thinking maybe i could just go sit on a bike and pedal reaaaaally slowly while i read.)

you guys.

2 HOURS OF BABYSITTING.  EVERY DAY.

are you picking up what i'm laying down?

on a completely unrelated note (if you've been reading this blog for any length of time you will know i'm fond of those), silas and i made these last night.



*the happiness took about 2 weeks.  for a while, the boys would scream and cry and cling every time we walked into the gym.  i was guilt-ridden and almost about to give up when one day, magically, everything was okay.  now they LOVE it and even ask to go sometimes.

a day like this

yesterday, i decided i would try a yoga class at the gym.  i've never done a live yoga class before, so i was excited to see how i would fare.

my (rather pitiful) attempts to follow the prompts in yogadownload's free 20 minute classes pretty much sums up the extent of my yoga practice thus far.  (and in case you are getting the impression that i'm nimble and flexible, let me let you in on a little secret: i can't even touch my toes.)

so. now that we got that out of the way.

i've got the boys dressed (socks and shoes!), my bag packed, my yoga mat stuffed into it, and the dog has been let out to relieve himself.  i run to go get the car and pull it up to the apartment (for ease of loading in children, you see), and when i come back inside i notice that desmond looks...slimy.

and then i see this:

and i realize it's all over his shirt. and his hands.  and his arms.  and there is a huge glob of it in his hair.

(we're already running late by this point.)

i grab a wet rag and wipe him down as quickly as i can while dragging them both to the car.  he's still got wet, sticky stains on his shirt and "the back of [his] head looks ridiculous!"

but i am not to be deterred.  we are going.  i am doing this!

desmond the bath gremlin.

we get to the gym.  i take the kids inside.  they freak out as soon as they see the kids area.  (up until this point, tesla has been happily chirping, "is a gym!  mommy, gym!"  but alas.  reality has set in.  i will be leaving them in a room full of toys for an entire hour.  the horror.)

i bring the two banshees in and give the girl a tight smile.  "we're back!"  after detaching them quickly and making a break for it while pushing down my guilt as i shut the door on their wails, i book it for the locker room to put my bag away.  the class has, of course, already started by this point, and i'm psyching myself up to walk in late and possibly kill everyone's zen.

and then i'm being tapped on the shoulder.  

"excuse me?  did you just drop those two boys off?"

no. no. no. no, i didn't.

"...yes."

"well, one of them--the little one--is bleeding from the mouth..."

my selfish side piped up, come on lady.  are we needing to rush him to urgent care or can you just wipe him off?

hopefully she didn't notice my brief hesitation before following her back to the kids' club.

i walked in, and desmond was indeed crying and bleeding from the mouth.  (it wasn't serious, just a cut on his lip.)

i gave up and we left.  

i guess yoga was not meant to happen.

and now are you ready for part 2?

as soon as we got home, tesla ran to let the dog out of his crate, i dropped my bag, and came into our room to check my email.  i wasn't in here for more than a minute or so, but when i walked out, i found this:

they had gotten into the eggs and were cracking them into a lid on the floor, where sirius was gleefully scarfing them down.

cracking.

eggs.

on the.

floor.

i didn't know if i should laugh or cry so i kind of let out a strangled, "heh heh heh heh heh!"  (and then grabbed my camera.  i wasn't too far gone to see the humor in it.)

that's what kind of day it was yesterday.

but never fear, it ended up okay.  we did some fun things, like this color mixing activity

and then after desmond went down for a nap, tesla and i did some watercolor painting.  (i use the term "painting" loosely.  the artistic genes seemed to have skipped me.)

one of tesla's.  he did about ten; they're hanging over the dining room table.

may your day be excellent.