Jaxon's 1st Day of PreSchool

I asked myself first thing this morning, while fixing blueberry pancakes... "where have the last four years gone?" As excited as I was to send Jaxon off for his first day of PreSchool, I was also a little sad. Mommy's little boy is quickly turning into Mommy's big boy!

He picked out his outfit, dressed himself, brushed his teeth (w/ a little help), ate his breakfast, grabbed his backpack and posed for a few pictures. I was told my limit was two... pictures, that is! "I don't want to be late, Mom!" As we walked out to the car I got a little misty but managed to hold it in until I left the school parking lot.

On the way to school we discussed what they might do on his first day, who would be in his class, what they might have for snack and the usual, "be nice, use your manners and listen to teacher" speech! When we arrived, I managed to talk him into a few more pictures before heading inside. He got really excited when he saw the bus and told me how he and Aunt Sam were going to ride it together... too bad Aunt Sam doesn't go to Linn Lutheran anymore and can now drive herself to school!

As we walked into his classroom, he was greeted by his teacher and immediately discarded his bookbag onto the floor. He raced right over to the train table he's been raving about since his PreSchool Visit in May and began ignoring his mother w/out hesitation... I thought that wasn't supposed to happen for a few more years!

He was totally at home and had no worries about me leaving. I kissed him good-bye and made my way back out to the car, images flashing through my head of the day we brought him home from the hospital. (That's when I lost it!)

When I went to pick him up, he was the first one out the door, (not to greet his Mom but to play on the playground!) Mrs. Amy, his teacher, had a talk w/ him about opening the door by himself... she's the only one allowed to open it. And then Mom had a talk w/ him on the way home about listening to his teacher!

He asked to play for a few more minutes on the playground, I agreed to a few minutes and when time was up, I of course drug him off reassuring him that he'd get to go back on Wednesday! He didn't have much to say on the way home, he was tired and about fell asleep. He helped make lunch when we got back. We had his favorites, Mac n' Cheese, corn and grapes and he filled us in about his day.

From what he can remember... they sang a song about Jesus, read a book about a bear, had Cheerios and chocolate milk for snack and played in the sandbox on the playground. He informed us that he loves the train table and got a yellow bear instead of a green one, he was really glad he didn't get a pink one! Not too sure what that all means, but in a nutshell, he had a "great day and can't wait to go back!"

And as for Mommy, I'll be fine! I forgot how good a little "me time" feels and look forward to Wednesday almost as much as Jaxon!

PreSchool Prep

PreSchool starts on Monday. Jaxon is so excited! We had a home visit w/ his teacher the other night and he has asked every morning since, "Is today the day I go to school?" We've been counting down the days on his calendar since the first of the month. At the end of each day, before bed, he gets to mark a big black X over the day to show how much closer we are to the first day of school. It's amazing how slowly time goes by for a young boy so excited about starting a new chapter in his life.

Jaxon's teacher informed us that the theme for the first few weeks of school would be "Hungry Bears", so we went to the Clay Center Library a hunt'in for bear books!

We then headed over to the Zoo Park to visit their black bear. We talked about what he likes to eat, where he would live in the wild and about his shedding coat. Jaxon's really looking forward to Teddy Bear Day on September 9th when he gets to bring his own teddy bear from home to share with the class.

I am so excited that his teacher will be working with themes... I am a BIG theme lover myself! I have decided to follow along and base Jaxon's ArtBoard on the theme that he is learning about at school. Each month we will take a field trip of our own and pick out books related to the theme. Reading is so important, I hope I can keep up when Baby arrives!

Be sure to stop by each month for a look at what Jaxon's learning at PreSchool & at home!

When Little, White Lies Are OK

I read somewhere recently that you shouldn't lie to your children... not even little, white lies! So I ask this... is telling my son that if he plays in his poop, he will have to get a shot, a bad thing?! I think not!

I suppose I may have been under the impression that once I finally got my child to poop on the toilet that I was done toilet training... WRONG! There are a few tiny details left that at the time you think nothing of, because you are so excited that after almost a year of bribery you have succeeded in this battle between boy and bowel movement! Those tiny details include the act of wiping one's behind and redressing oneself because oneself refuses to leave his pants dangling at this ankles!


School has been my #1 bribe since day one w/ this child. "Jaxon, if you poop in the potty you can go to school!" And eventually it worked, he did poop on the potty, but was a little upset to find that school wouldn't be starting for another year! So as the school year approached I decided that we needed to start working on the process of wiping, dressing and washing... w/out assistance!

Things were rocky at first, I'm not gonna lie. Like another man I know, he had grown accustomed to me simply doing it for him. The process has been slow and we are just now getting the hang of it. Today was the first time ever that he went in (unannounced), did his business and came back out (buns wiped and pants on), he even shut the door!!!

Back to my little, white lie, you know, the one about the shot! So last week I go in to do my usual check of the buns. He hasn't called me in which is unusual, and it had been quite some time since he'd announced his departure to the throne. When I walk in he is still seated so I ask, "Are you done?" He looks at me rather startled and says, "NO!" I let myself out, tell him to call when he's ready and go about my business.

Five minutes later he comes darting out, pants sort of on and announces that he's headed outside. I am beaming! He did it! I head in to check and see if he's flushed, I don't remember hearing the toilet. I walk in and everything seems normal. The toilet seat is still up and the roll of paper is lying on the floor but then I notice that something's not quite right. Horrified at the sight, I run outside yelling for Jaxon to come back in. He slowly makes his way up to the house looking rather guilty.

I first ask to see his hands. He of course doesn't want to show me so I ask again. This time he takes them from behind his back. He has come from the sand pile so of course the evidence is covered by tiny grains of sand but still visible to this mother's eye. I then ask (in a calm voice), "Jaxon, were you playing in your poop?" He looks at me knowing he's been caught and says, "No! I not play in poop!" I ask if he's lying, he replies that he is... good answer!

I look at him and ask if he liked getting a shot last week for his school physical. He of course replies, "No Mommy! I not like shots!" This is where the little, white lie came into play... "If you play in your poop it will make you very sick! So sick, that Mommy will have to take you back to get not just one shot but several SHOTS!"

When Kent came home from work that evening I told Jaxon to tell him what had happened that afternoon. He was embarrassed and didn't want to tell Kent but eventually did. He then went on to say that he'd not do it again, he didn't want to get another shot! Kent looks at me (w/ a smirk)... I'd been caught in my little, white lie!

Mommy Blogging

Every month I look forward to one little piece of mail, one of which can brighten my day in a stack of bills! Every month that piece of mail is Parenting magazine! In their September issue I was delighted to see an article devoted solely to "Mommy Blogging". And while I will admit that I don't always read every article, this one left me wishing for more to read!

One blogger imparticular had me laughing and crying all in the same post. Her honest words gave me hope and made me feel as though I am not alone in this sometimes lonely job of staying home to raise my kids. Her son, who she writes about frequently, reminds me so much of my own. And w/ a quote this classic, you'll understand why!

"My mom had my sister... and her penis falled off!"

Eve Kuckuck, the writer of a blog called Impersonating Normal, makes a mental note to re-explain the difference between a penis and an umbilical cord! To read the rest of her hilarious story check out her blog, it's a good read!

http://infertilityrocks.wordpress.com/

Dreaming Big

I'm always asking Jaxon what he wants to be when he grows up. He always has the same answer and lots of questions about how he can learn to do just that. When we went for his school physical last week, the nurse asked him a similar question. Here's his response...


Nurse: "Jaxon, are you going to be a football player for the Linn Bulldogs some day?"

Jaxon: "No, a train conductor!"

I don't think that's the response she was expecting! But hey, it just goes to show that there are bigger dreams than becoming a high school football star! I just hope he remembers that when it's time to start playing for the Linn Bulldogs!

Color Cookies

It's been awhile since we've had a rainy day. As good as it felt to open windows and air out the house, I had forgotten how frustrating being kept indoors can be for a young boy! We were lucky to have a few hours in the morning to do our chores, take out the trash and play in the sandbox before the rain started. But once the rain came, the attitude switched from euphoric to down right depressed!

Everyday last week the temps were well into the 100's which made going out almost unbearable. We spent lots of time spraying each other down w/ the garden hose and even more time at the pool! Sunday morning was like a breath of fresh air... literally! It felt like fall! We caught up on some much needed yard work and overhauled the overgrown sandbox. Monday was spent cleaning out our garden shed or "Daddy's Office" as we like to call it and a trip to the park in the afternoon.

After lunch yesterday, I knew I was going to have to get creative and come up w/ something to entertain for a few hours until the rain let up. Jaxon's been asking to make "color cookies" for a few weeks now so I thought it would be a perfect opportunity for us to do just that. For those of you asking yourself, "What in the world are "color cookies"?", allow me to explain. Last year for Jaxon's 3rd birthday we had a Planes, Trains and Automobiles theme. For the goodie bags we sent home w/ our young guests, we made colored sugar cookies or "color cookies"!

I let Jaxon pick our color scheme. My choices were few and far between as you will see, this is what he came up with...

I know we are experiencing cooler weather this week, but it's pretty bad temps in the 80's get your little ones in the mood for Christmas!

Dust If You Must

I love Saturday mornings when Daddy's home! While the boys stay in bed and catch up on some much needed cuddle time, I get up early, make a pot of coffee (which I know I shouldn't be drinking, but one cup isn't going to hurt anything) and spend time hunting for inspiration from other blogger moms. As I was searching for ideas for my Back to School ~ ArtBoard, I came across a cute little quote posted by The Mom w/ Brownies.


"Dust if you must but I believe, a house becomes a home when you can write "I Love You" on the furniture!"

I don't know about you, but I absolutely hate dusting and most days it shows... literally (as seen here)! I would rather clean the toilets than dust, and in this house, that's not a real fun job either!

But I guess I'm doing something right because at the end of the day, when my house is a disaster and the dust's so thick you can write your name in it, at least I can take comfort in knowing that it may be filled w/ dirt and grime, but it's also filled w/ love!

Things I Missed While Being Schooled By Nick Jr.

I thought I had been doing a pretty good job of getting Jaxon ready for preschool. I've always tried my best to create an environment where we are not only having fun but learning as well. And while there are some areas which could use some improvement, I always felt as though we were on the right track. That is until last week when I received the paperwork I was to fill out for the health department!

Upon setting up an appointment for Jaxon to have his school physical done, I was under the impression that we'd go in, get weighed and measured, have his eyes and ears checked and be on our way. But after receiving the paperwork in the mail, I had a feeling there might be a little more involved!

It started out pretty simple. I was to ask him questions such as, "What's your first name?", "Where do you live?", "How old are you?", etc. But by the time I got to the end of the "simple questions"... I was asking, "What's your phone number?"! I don't know about you other moms out there, but teaching my child any phone number is dangerous business! And while I understand the necessary reasons for him knowing that type of information, I don't think that at 3, teaching a phone number would be real easy! And if he knows his own, of course he's going to want to know Grandma's too... that's when it gets dangerous!!!

As I made my way through the rest of the paperwork, I started doubting my ability as a SAHM(Stay At Home Mom). This whole time, should I have been spending less time perfecting the ArtBoard and more time teaching the importance of the stick figure? I mean really... do any of you have a child (3 years or less) that can draw a stick person w/ a face that includes eyes, nose and a mouth?!

As it turns out, his scores ended up being good except in the "fine motor skills" category or the "draw a stick figure" category (as I like to call it)! Never once did they ask if he knew his ABC's or if he could count to ten and or up. They weren't concerned with whether or not he could sing any songs or knew any colors. I need to do better research w/ Baby #2 but I still feel confident that Jaxon will do beautifully in school. I guess it goes to show that Nick Jr. can't totally prepare your young ones for his/her preschool experience!

After all, Moose A. Moose forgot to mention that there'd be a shot at the end of the physical!!! And that ended up being more traumatic to this SAHM then any stupid skills test!

Name Calling

I've asked Jaxon countless times what we should name the baby only to hear that he'd like to name Baby after himself! I've tried to explain to him that Jaxon is his special name and that he wouldn't want to share it w/ his little brother, after all, he'll have to share everything else!

Recently we've been throwing a name around that we are pretty sure will be Baby's name. Jaxon has told me that he likes it but thinks that "Jaxon" is a better choice! I guess at least we know he likes his name!

I asked again this morning, "Jaxon, what should we name the baby?" And for the first time he responded w/ "------" (The name we've been throwing around!) Excitedly I asked, "What about his middle name, what should it be?" He asked what his middle name was and I told him Kent, after Daddy. I then said, "Blank What Welch". He looked at me sort of puzzled and said, "Mommy, "What isn't a very good name!"

I guess we'll just keep it simple and ask for first name suggestions from here on out!