Monday, August 29, 2011
School Days ...
Sometimes school is hard, but today was not one of those days for Sawyer. His teacher Ms. K brought in a fun tent for her classroom, and Sawyer made himself at home. Tight, enclosed spaces are some of his favorite kind. Ever. (Special thanks to Ms. K for sharing the photo).
Friday, August 26, 2011
School Days
Some days, school can be really fun. All of Xander's teachers have been telling me that he is doing incredibly well with the transition. He has good days and bad days, or more accurately good days with a few bad moments. But overall, he is doing really well.
Today he enjoyed some serious sensory time, which both of the twins love. He particularly liked this little hand scooter in the gym. (Special thanks to his aide, Ms. G, for snapping and sending the photo).
Though I know that in a lot of ways it must be a difficult transition for the boys - so many changes all at once - they have both been doing remarkably well. There are no complaints in the mornings when I say "Time for school!" and no real issues getting out in car line. They are always happy to come back home at the end of the day, and they come out of school smiling and in a good mood.
You can't ask for much more than that.
Today he enjoyed some serious sensory time, which both of the twins love. He particularly liked this little hand scooter in the gym. (Special thanks to his aide, Ms. G, for snapping and sending the photo).
Though I know that in a lot of ways it must be a difficult transition for the boys - so many changes all at once - they have both been doing remarkably well. There are no complaints in the mornings when I say "Time for school!" and no real issues getting out in car line. They are always happy to come back home at the end of the day, and they come out of school smiling and in a good mood.
You can't ask for much more than that.
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Self-Style by Connor
Yes. Yes he did.
Connor has been talking for a while now about how long his hair was getting. He has been wanting a hair cut, but we have been disagreeing over how to get it done. Daddy prefers to just buzz all three boys in the summer here at home. It's easy and cheap. Connor likes the top of his hair left a little bit longer, but neither Josh nor I cut hair very well, so we simply can't do it and have it look like anything. The $15 barber shop trip wouldn't be so bad, if his hair didn't grow so darn quick. Plus it's hard to find time now that school and baseball have both started.
So Monday night, as best we can tell, Connor decided to take matters into his own hands. He took a pair of children's scissors from the desk in his bedroom and cut his own hair. He even very neatly put the clippings into his trash can. There may have been a few stray pieces on his carpet, but he apparently tried really hard to be neat.
The picture does not do it justice. There are huge gaping holes where hair should be growing, but where it has been chopped off at his scalp. It's especially bad over his ears, which I sort of understand. It's terrible on top of his head, which baffles me. I thought he liked it longer up there, and yet he cut several handfuls off the top of his head. Clearly the power of wielding the scissors was too much for him to resist following even his own style request.
Now you might be wondering how this managed to escape our attention for a day and a half. I will only say that Tuesdays are ridiculously crazy in our house these days.
Yesterday, Josh was going out on a job-related meeting, so he agreed to drop the boys off at school on his way. He helped me get them all ready, so I wasn't paying as much attention as I sometimes do. The boys were in school from 8 o'clock until just after 3 o'clock. I picked all the boys up, and we immediately headed across town to the twins' weekly speech therapy appointment (where I also conveniently forgot college was back in session and I have to cross the large state university campus to get from school to therapy). We were running a little later than normal, and we also had to stop at McDonald's for dinner. At 3:30 in the afternoon. Because speech therapy would last from 4 o'clock until a little after 5 o'clock, at which point we would need to head directly to the baseball field for Connor's first scrimmage game of the season. It started at 5:45, but we had to get there in rush hour traffic on a very heavily crowded commuter road. We managed to make it, get him dressed and up to the field just in time to start (no practice for him today). The game lasted two hours. We didn't make it home until 8 o'clock (good thing we ate at 3:30, huh?). Then it was a mad rush of removing dirty clothes, getting showers and baths started, then finishing up with teeth brushing and homework. All by a little after 9 o'clock.
Did I mention Tuesdays were a bit hectic?
Or that we also noticed Connor's hair sometime in between speech therapy sessions. So once we got back home last night, he had to get his hair buzzed (which still did nothing for the gaping holes where he cut it off at his scalp) before he could shower, brush his teeth, do his homework, and go to bed. At which point I also noticed the stray hair that needed to be vacuumed, the pajamas covered in cut hair, and the sheets that surely did as well. I managed to clean up the floor and get some clean pajamas, but it was too late for new sheets.
Sigh.
At drop-off this morning, the boys' teachers commented on his new hair cut. Apparently he had told them about it yesterday at school. His hair was getting too long, and Mommy and Daddy wouldn't cut it, so he took care of it.
Indeed. How nice.
Connor has been talking for a while now about how long his hair was getting. He has been wanting a hair cut, but we have been disagreeing over how to get it done. Daddy prefers to just buzz all three boys in the summer here at home. It's easy and cheap. Connor likes the top of his hair left a little bit longer, but neither Josh nor I cut hair very well, so we simply can't do it and have it look like anything. The $15 barber shop trip wouldn't be so bad, if his hair didn't grow so darn quick. Plus it's hard to find time now that school and baseball have both started.
So Monday night, as best we can tell, Connor decided to take matters into his own hands. He took a pair of children's scissors from the desk in his bedroom and cut his own hair. He even very neatly put the clippings into his trash can. There may have been a few stray pieces on his carpet, but he apparently tried really hard to be neat.
The picture does not do it justice. There are huge gaping holes where hair should be growing, but where it has been chopped off at his scalp. It's especially bad over his ears, which I sort of understand. It's terrible on top of his head, which baffles me. I thought he liked it longer up there, and yet he cut several handfuls off the top of his head. Clearly the power of wielding the scissors was too much for him to resist following even his own style request.
Now you might be wondering how this managed to escape our attention for a day and a half. I will only say that Tuesdays are ridiculously crazy in our house these days.
Yesterday, Josh was going out on a job-related meeting, so he agreed to drop the boys off at school on his way. He helped me get them all ready, so I wasn't paying as much attention as I sometimes do. The boys were in school from 8 o'clock until just after 3 o'clock. I picked all the boys up, and we immediately headed across town to the twins' weekly speech therapy appointment (where I also conveniently forgot college was back in session and I have to cross the large state university campus to get from school to therapy). We were running a little later than normal, and we also had to stop at McDonald's for dinner. At 3:30 in the afternoon. Because speech therapy would last from 4 o'clock until a little after 5 o'clock, at which point we would need to head directly to the baseball field for Connor's first scrimmage game of the season. It started at 5:45, but we had to get there in rush hour traffic on a very heavily crowded commuter road. We managed to make it, get him dressed and up to the field just in time to start (no practice for him today). The game lasted two hours. We didn't make it home until 8 o'clock (good thing we ate at 3:30, huh?). Then it was a mad rush of removing dirty clothes, getting showers and baths started, then finishing up with teeth brushing and homework. All by a little after 9 o'clock.
Did I mention Tuesdays were a bit hectic?
Or that we also noticed Connor's hair sometime in between speech therapy sessions. So once we got back home last night, he had to get his hair buzzed (which still did nothing for the gaping holes where he cut it off at his scalp) before he could shower, brush his teeth, do his homework, and go to bed. At which point I also noticed the stray hair that needed to be vacuumed, the pajamas covered in cut hair, and the sheets that surely did as well. I managed to clean up the floor and get some clean pajamas, but it was too late for new sheets.
Sigh.
At drop-off this morning, the boys' teachers commented on his new hair cut. Apparently he had told them about it yesterday at school. His hair was getting too long, and Mommy and Daddy wouldn't cut it, so he took care of it.
Indeed. How nice.
Here We Go Again ...
Fall baseball is already in full swing. The league opened up practices last weekend and games start this weekend. So far, Connor has had two practices and one scrimmage (see above photo). He has two more practices again this week before his first game on Sunday. And that's just the first week.
Did I mention that we were incredibly unhappy with Connor's previous baseball league, that it seemed incredibly disorganized and not very instructional? I think I may have added a few morerants details here.
This year we moved Connor to another league. Everyone we talked to gave the league the highest recommendations, offering only one caution - it was incredibly competitive.
Fall ball is, of course, a little more laid back. And that's good. Because while Connor loves the game and does pretty well with the basics, he really needs some good instruction. And in only our first week, I can already tell you that he's been given more instruction than the sum total of what he had in two seasons (one Fall, one Spring) in his other league.
This is little league baseball. His coach is constantly watching what he is doing, offering suggestions, making corrections, and offering encouragement. Before and after each play, the coach is ... well, coaching. If they're batting, he's offering them tips on pitches and their swing. If they're fielding, he's constantly asking them where the next play should be and telling each player what they should be doing whether it's covering bases, backing up players or getting the ball into the infield.
I know it's early in the season. Things may change. But right now, I could not be happier with our decision. Connor is not only playing baseball, he's also learning how to be a better player. He's learning the basics of the game, and improving his own skills. And he's having a lot of fun doing it.
I also feel the need to mention that so far, the schedule has not changed once. That's right. When coach tells us there is a practice or a game, the time and the location stay the same. We also haven't practiced on a grassy field, but on real, actual baseball fields. And we've used the batting cages to practice batting. How refreshing.
We won't talk about how much the twins still hate baseball. It has nothing to do with the game or the league, simply that they have no interest in being strapped into a stroller for several hours, several nights a week, at a dusty baseball field. As the younger sister of a lifelong baseball player, I kind of see their point.
But it's about finding balance. Connor deserves something of his own, even if the twins have to sacrifice a little for it. Heaven knows he sacrifices a lot to their needs and to simply be their older brother. Balance. And baseball, because that's what Connor loves.
Did I mention that we were incredibly unhappy with Connor's previous baseball league, that it seemed incredibly disorganized and not very instructional? I think I may have added a few more
This year we moved Connor to another league. Everyone we talked to gave the league the highest recommendations, offering only one caution - it was incredibly competitive.
Fall ball is, of course, a little more laid back. And that's good. Because while Connor loves the game and does pretty well with the basics, he really needs some good instruction. And in only our first week, I can already tell you that he's been given more instruction than the sum total of what he had in two seasons (one Fall, one Spring) in his other league.
This is little league baseball. His coach is constantly watching what he is doing, offering suggestions, making corrections, and offering encouragement. Before and after each play, the coach is ... well, coaching. If they're batting, he's offering them tips on pitches and their swing. If they're fielding, he's constantly asking them where the next play should be and telling each player what they should be doing whether it's covering bases, backing up players or getting the ball into the infield.
I know it's early in the season. Things may change. But right now, I could not be happier with our decision. Connor is not only playing baseball, he's also learning how to be a better player. He's learning the basics of the game, and improving his own skills. And he's having a lot of fun doing it.
I also feel the need to mention that so far, the schedule has not changed once. That's right. When coach tells us there is a practice or a game, the time and the location stay the same. We also haven't practiced on a grassy field, but on real, actual baseball fields. And we've used the batting cages to practice batting. How refreshing.
We won't talk about how much the twins still hate baseball. It has nothing to do with the game or the league, simply that they have no interest in being strapped into a stroller for several hours, several nights a week, at a dusty baseball field. As the younger sister of a lifelong baseball player, I kind of see their point.
But it's about finding balance. Connor deserves something of his own, even if the twins have to sacrifice a little for it. Heaven knows he sacrifices a lot to their needs and to simply be their older brother. Balance. And baseball, because that's what Connor loves.
Monday, August 22, 2011
Just Because ...
While Sawyer's squishy face took last week's Snapshot Sunday, this one of Connor was a very, very close second.
And today his teacher called to tell us what a great job he's doing in first grade, how polite he is and how well he gets along with everyone in class.
Our big boy ...
And today his teacher called to tell us what a great job he's doing in first grade, how polite he is and how well he gets along with everyone in class.
Our big boy ...
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