New school and Mommy and Max Day

This is like two weeks a tad late, but oh well. My little boys both started a new school late August. Rylan is now going 3 days a week. I am having heart palpitations just writing that. It just feels like time flew. Every parent says this, its such a cliche, but seriously, I was just quitting my full time gig yesterday to stay home with my 10 month baby because it was best for our family.

The church we joined early this year has a Developmental Preschool in it. I've known for years that a lot of my MOPS friends take their kids there to prepare for kindergarten and get some mommy time, but I started hearing lots of good things about their program and started thinking that the way they "teach through play" was right up Rylan's alley. When we took him out of a preschool a year ago and I did HIPPY at home with him, we did ok, but it was obvious he needed more. He has some delays with hand grip and balance, retaining things like abcs and numbers recognition, and he basically needs some class structure to keep him on task. He's had a lot of free time with mom and we butt heads when its time for me to crack the whip and get him to learn.

On Tuesdays Rylan goes to school on his own. He started Pre-K August 19th.

I didn't get a fancy chalkboard, just erased my grocery list. I'm cool like that.

What he wants to be when he grows up:Spiderman

Favorite Food: noodles

Best Friend: Andrew

Favorite Song: I will Wait by Mumford and Sons

On Thursdays and Fridays both boys go to school and I go to work. Here's Max on his first day of the 3 year old class. He's trying to show me his shark back pack. He backed into every room that day to show everyone.

Dapper little kid.

Now onto a new thing at our house: Mommy and Max day. Every Tuesday. The little boy that was born into a home that already housed a 22 month old and has never had mommy alone a day of his life that he wasn't sick finally gets a little Mommy time. It only took (almost) 3 years. He wasn't complaining, but he sure isn't complaining about some alone time.

Our kids aren't really at the "they play awesome together" stage. I hope it comes. For their sake and for ours. They fight. A lot. They don't like the same things, they pick on each other. Rylan is bigger, Max is small and spry. Someone gets hurt daily in what started out as simple playing.

The first Mommy and Max day I offered Max choices of where to go and he chose home. He just wanted to stay home. So we did.

He played with his car ramp by himself like an angel forever.

Then we walked to our duck pond. Captain Crunch for the toddler, bread for the ducks.

.

One day I will write a children's book about bullying and it will star this a-hole goose in the front. If you are being such a jerk that a 2.75 year old says "hey duckie! Calm down!!!" you are being inappropriate.

After naps for each of us, we watched a movie and ate popcorn and snuggled. Such a good day.

Mommy and Max Day 2

I needed an oil change so we ventured to Bryant to try out a new place and play at Chick Fil A after. This kid eats like a linebacker. We'd already had breakfast so I just ordered coffee and apple juice. 10 minutes later he tells me he's hungry for his lunch. It was 9:05am. So we had 2nd breakfast and played for hours while I clipped coupons. It was glorious.

We then went to Walmart for groceries, and because I only had one kid and there wouldn't be a fight, he got to play on my Iphone the entire time. This was awesome for him, but he was too dang good and I stayed forever and spent hoards of money. I think the fact that I shop with a two and four year old saves more money than coupons because when the shit hits the fan, and they start getting cray cray, I am like "who cares what else we need, we're leaving!"

Mommy and Max Day #3

Library time. We went to Toddler Story Time and checked out whatever he wanted then went home and watched his newly rented movies and read all of our books. 

I am so thankful to get this extra time with Max.