So far....an update on New Year's goals:
1. One of the friends I thought I was getting closer to....canceled our last play-date, and it's up to her to reschedule...and I don't think she will. You win some, you lose some...I'm not sure if I did something/said something/what happened....but I think that friendship, that was just starting to grow, is maybe not growing.
2. One long time family friend who has sort of come and gone over the years has come to eat with us twice! Once in January, once in February, and I've just sent a message to invite her back in March.
3. I stepped out of my comfort zone and let a group of ladies that I sort-of-knew know that I would like to be invited along the next time they went out together....and they invited me, and I went, and I ended up organizing our next get-together, and we had a lot of fun. I have high hopes that this group of ladies will continue to go out together (and that I will continue to be part of the group!).
4. I invited my church friend with similarly aged children to join the group mentioned in #3 on our last outing (we needed another person for the escape room!), and she joined us, and I think that friendship is in a slow but steady growth process, as well.
I've been actively looking for solutions to some of our other challenges lately. Specifically, I've been looking for ways to help my oldest, Peanut, to have a better experience at preschool. After a meeting with one of her preschool teachers, it was arranged for me to observe Peanut in the other teacher's class. Observing was eye-opening. One of Peanut's teachers apparently has very poor classroom management skills. So much yelling! And her assistant just sat and watched and played a game on the computer! I was not very impressed with what I saw. Though I have experience in a similar teaching setting, I don't feel that I'm in the position to offer constructive criticism. So I have decided to be more flexible with Peanut -- yes, she is a contributing factor to her troubles in the classroom, but she is not the whole problem, at all. Peanut will not nap in this particular teacher's classroom (she will in the other), and they rotate days, so when I can, I will pick her up early from school. It is a full-day program....but there are plenty of 4 year olds who do not go to preschool at all, and there are plenty of 4 year olds who only go to half day schools, and she is, after all, only 4 years old. I've done it once so far -- picked her up in time to go pick up Miss Middle, and then home for lunch (Peanut had eaten at school, but sat at the table with us), then a nice, long snooze. She woke up around the same time I would normally have picked her up from a full day at school....and she was SO PLEASANT to be around. It was a revelation. I am sorry I did not think of this solution sooner, and also I am so glad that I thought of it at all and that the first time went so well that I want to do it again.
Baby boy is nearly 5 months old, and rolls off the blanket every single time he is put down. He smiles, he coos, he laughs....but he does not nap. Accepting all ideas for getting a sweet, active, fun, and tired baby to nap!
Miss Middle....she's doing just fine. Acts out for attention, every now and then, but mostly remembers we prefer that she ask for nuggles when she needs us to look at her.
1. One of the friends I thought I was getting closer to....canceled our last play-date, and it's up to her to reschedule...and I don't think she will. You win some, you lose some...I'm not sure if I did something/said something/what happened....but I think that friendship, that was just starting to grow, is maybe not growing.
2. One long time family friend who has sort of come and gone over the years has come to eat with us twice! Once in January, once in February, and I've just sent a message to invite her back in March.
3. I stepped out of my comfort zone and let a group of ladies that I sort-of-knew know that I would like to be invited along the next time they went out together....and they invited me, and I went, and I ended up organizing our next get-together, and we had a lot of fun. I have high hopes that this group of ladies will continue to go out together (and that I will continue to be part of the group!).
4. I invited my church friend with similarly aged children to join the group mentioned in #3 on our last outing (we needed another person for the escape room!), and she joined us, and I think that friendship is in a slow but steady growth process, as well.
I've been actively looking for solutions to some of our other challenges lately. Specifically, I've been looking for ways to help my oldest, Peanut, to have a better experience at preschool. After a meeting with one of her preschool teachers, it was arranged for me to observe Peanut in the other teacher's class. Observing was eye-opening. One of Peanut's teachers apparently has very poor classroom management skills. So much yelling! And her assistant just sat and watched and played a game on the computer! I was not very impressed with what I saw. Though I have experience in a similar teaching setting, I don't feel that I'm in the position to offer constructive criticism. So I have decided to be more flexible with Peanut -- yes, she is a contributing factor to her troubles in the classroom, but she is not the whole problem, at all. Peanut will not nap in this particular teacher's classroom (she will in the other), and they rotate days, so when I can, I will pick her up early from school. It is a full-day program....but there are plenty of 4 year olds who do not go to preschool at all, and there are plenty of 4 year olds who only go to half day schools, and she is, after all, only 4 years old. I've done it once so far -- picked her up in time to go pick up Miss Middle, and then home for lunch (Peanut had eaten at school, but sat at the table with us), then a nice, long snooze. She woke up around the same time I would normally have picked her up from a full day at school....and she was SO PLEASANT to be around. It was a revelation. I am sorry I did not think of this solution sooner, and also I am so glad that I thought of it at all and that the first time went so well that I want to do it again.
Baby boy is nearly 5 months old, and rolls off the blanket every single time he is put down. He smiles, he coos, he laughs....but he does not nap. Accepting all ideas for getting a sweet, active, fun, and tired baby to nap!
Miss Middle....she's doing just fine. Acts out for attention, every now and then, but mostly remembers we prefer that she ask for nuggles when she needs us to look at her.
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