The girls are home for six (yes 6!) complete days due to Easter break. Every year, I call this period Mommy's Spring Training. Even if we are just a half-day into the break, I have already, once again, realized I will need a plan, and a good one at that, for summer vacation. The only way to prevent constant nagging and arguing around here seems to be to keep them very, very busy! I already have morning activities scheduled, we just have to write the big fat checks to all the sport associations and Monday to Friday mornings will be covered. That will leave afternoons... hmmm. Maybe I should put biggirl to the test and have her in charge of entertaining and watching babygirl for a few hours after lunch so I can get some work done. It's worth a try anyways! The only thing is that babygirl is the one who needs the least entertainment. I know very well that after a morning of scheduled activities, she will need time in her bubble (alone in her room that is). Biggirl on the other hand needs non-stop entertainment and I have a serious problem with her being plopped in front of the television for two hours (but she would have absolutely no problem with that!)
Regardless of how everything works out, I hope to be free by 3 p.m. to jump in our brand smacking new pool with them. After all, Quebec summers are far too short, we have to splash around while we can!
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Well what do you know
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Legally old enough to...
babysit!!! Wow, I know I babysat when I was 11 years old, but now that it's biggirl's turn... I just have to wonder.
She eagerly attended an 8-hour course offered by the Red Cross and came home crammed full of facts she had never heard before about diapers, bottles,and so much more!
She informed neighbors and friends of her new babysitter status and anxiously awaits her first official job.
Will someone actually give her a chance?
Well, we have begun entrusting her with her little sister now and then for brief periods. The goal is to show her we trust her, but not to leave them alone long enough for them to start fighting because we know just how easily things can escalate to frightening proportions!
It was so cute to hear her share the details of her course with us. The most LOL moment being when she said the lady had informed them that it was not a good idea to babysit with a friend (Why not? Seems reassuring to me!)
Well, it seems this poses a risk. Parents might call the said friend next time and you would, heaven forbid...lose your business! Now we definitely don't want that do we? So, she is determined to do this on her own, if the phone ever rings that is!
She eagerly attended an 8-hour course offered by the Red Cross and came home crammed full of facts she had never heard before about diapers, bottles,and so much more!
She informed neighbors and friends of her new babysitter status and anxiously awaits her first official job.
Will someone actually give her a chance?
Well, we have begun entrusting her with her little sister now and then for brief periods. The goal is to show her we trust her, but not to leave them alone long enough for them to start fighting because we know just how easily things can escalate to frightening proportions!
It was so cute to hear her share the details of her course with us. The most LOL moment being when she said the lady had informed them that it was not a good idea to babysit with a friend (Why not? Seems reassuring to me!)
Well, it seems this poses a risk. Parents might call the said friend next time and you would, heaven forbid...lose your business! Now we definitely don't want that do we? So, she is determined to do this on her own, if the phone ever rings that is!
I'm back!!!
My WAHM world has been rocking more than ever lately (for several months as you can see). I have been busy, busy, busy which, when you are your own boss, is a good thing of course. I have been writing a French blog too. Here is the link for anyone who, like me, is bilingual : http://zoneparents.com/zoneblogues/?cat=251
Hope you enjoy it too!
But, this morning in the shower (which let's face it, is sometimes the only time I really have to myself)I decided to make a big return to this blog! In order to be able to commit to this blog once more, here is my promise (to myself):
I will post often, even if it is just one line, even if there is no picture to accompany the text, even if I haven't had the time to make sense of the day's (or week's) events yet...
So join me in making me keep this promise! Hope you enjoy!
Hope you enjoy it too!
But, this morning in the shower (which let's face it, is sometimes the only time I really have to myself)I decided to make a big return to this blog! In order to be able to commit to this blog once more, here is my promise (to myself):
I will post often, even if it is just one line, even if there is no picture to accompany the text, even if I haven't had the time to make sense of the day's (or week's) events yet...
So join me in making me keep this promise! Hope you enjoy!
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Self-esteem is not an issue here
Babygirl came home from school with a huge pile of drawings and crafts which she was so happy to give to me for Mother's Day. The very best of the best was this picture.
The title at the top of the page read: "What I like about me". Babygirl (who cannot read yet) informed us that her teacher asked her to draw what she liked about herself and since what she likes about herself is "everything" she drew her whole entire little self.
The fact that she said this so matter of factly and seriously was totally adorable and quite possibly the best Mother's Day gift she could give me. After all, if she is able to feel this good about herself, I must be doing something right!
The title at the top of the page read: "What I like about me". Babygirl (who cannot read yet) informed us that her teacher asked her to draw what she liked about herself and since what she likes about herself is "everything" she drew her whole entire little self.
The fact that she said this so matter of factly and seriously was totally adorable and quite possibly the best Mother's Day gift she could give me. After all, if she is able to feel this good about herself, I must be doing something right!
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Bake sale economics
Babygirl's kindergarten class is having a bake sale this week to raise money for their year end field trip. We had our first bake sale experience last year in Pre-K. I must say, if children are too young to calculate their sales, they may be too young for the whole bake sale thing you know what I mean... Since I was a volunteer last year, I do have to admit that a bunch of preschoolers sitting behind a table of goodies almost begging you to purchase their baked goods with their eyes was the sweetest.
Last year I went all out, I made whoopie pies AND chocolate and candy coated pretzels which sold fairly quickly. We had wrapped our $18 worth of homebaked goods individually (as requested) and even added ribbon and stickers on the bags... after all it all comes down to marketing right?
However, I do not think the individual cost of the field trip to the zoo even came close to being reduced by the amount we paid to participate in the bake sale so... I'm kinda wondering if it's all worthwhile this year.
Nonetheless, we made 30 butterfly cupcakes tonight. I cut the tops off of each cupcake, layered frosting, cut wing shapes out of the tops and tuck them neatly on either side of gummy worms before adding liquorice antennae. Tada!
At first, biggirl said my cupcakes would be unappealing since there was no visible frosting... say what!?!
But, since total cupcake production was 33 and we are only sending 30 off to the bake sale, I quickly realized that they did have a certain 'je ne sais quoi' afterall.
The bottom line is that Babygirl is happy to bring her butterfly cupcakes to school and hoping they fly away quickly...only because she is hoping to help the little preschoolers (who she says are so cute) sell their goodies because you know, they don't know how bake sales work and she has bake sale experience because she is sooooo much older!
Last year I went all out, I made whoopie pies AND chocolate and candy coated pretzels which sold fairly quickly. We had wrapped our $18 worth of homebaked goods individually (as requested) and even added ribbon and stickers on the bags... after all it all comes down to marketing right?
However, I do not think the individual cost of the field trip to the zoo even came close to being reduced by the amount we paid to participate in the bake sale so... I'm kinda wondering if it's all worthwhile this year.
Nonetheless, we made 30 butterfly cupcakes tonight. I cut the tops off of each cupcake, layered frosting, cut wing shapes out of the tops and tuck them neatly on either side of gummy worms before adding liquorice antennae. Tada!
At first, biggirl said my cupcakes would be unappealing since there was no visible frosting... say what!?!
But, since total cupcake production was 33 and we are only sending 30 off to the bake sale, I quickly realized that they did have a certain 'je ne sais quoi' afterall.
The bottom line is that Babygirl is happy to bring her butterfly cupcakes to school and hoping they fly away quickly...only because she is hoping to help the little preschoolers (who she says are so cute) sell their goodies because you know, they don't know how bake sales work and she has bake sale experience because she is sooooo much older!
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Grade 4 Drama
I haven't posted for a while mostly because I was really struggling with how to put into words the who and the how (and mostly the why) of our recent upsets. I think I have taken a step back enough now to get my message, a very important one, across to anyone and everyone who may stumble upon this post.
Three weeks ago, biggirl came home from school with baggage. I knew, as soon as she entered the door that things were going to be rocky...but never could I imagine just how rocky!
We were in a rush to get urgent homework done because she had gymnastics. Even if I know very well that being in a rush never results in a positive output with kids, I was struggling to get her settled with a notebook and pencil without much success when the doorbell rang.
I opened the door to the very distraught father of a girl in biggirl's class who asked to speak to me privately. I am sure he saw the question marks in my eyes as I followed him outside.
The father had shown up to inform me that biggirl was intimidating his daughter at school so much that they had considered changing schools, that biggirl was taking his daughter's friends away one by one, that she was the leader of the "pack", that she had splashed water in her face that day, etc., etc.... I was blown away, I could not feel my legs, my heart was pounding, I knew I had hives all over (which a glance in the mirror confirmed when I finally came back inside)... I kept telling him that I didn't understand, that biggirl was often coming home crying that no one would sit with her, that she had no one to play with, that no one wanted to be her friend...
Anyways, I vowed to fulfill my parental duty and speak with biggirl about the situation and call him later that evening. Biggirl confirmed the water splashing but for the rest of the "accusations" we were at a loss...really.
As promised, I dialed the father's number later that evening and offered that we meet, both girls and both set of parents later that week. They did not have time to meet with us.
Since he used the word "intimidation" which is a very powerful and serious accusation, I asked him which other incidents had occurred between the two girls for him to want his daughter to change schools. There were none.
I asked him to call me back at the end of the week to let me know if there was still a problem. He accepted. The call never came.
After thinking about this over and over and over again these past weeks, I guess my goal in writing this is for adults to realize that yes bullying and intimidation exist and they definitely are a serious problem in schoolyards. However, there is a big difference between normal grade 4 drama and intimidation.
Before we go knocking on anyone's door, as parents we have to take a step back, breathe, and think. Grade 4 is tough (on kids and parents alike) but so is life. We may want to protect our daughters from the mean words, angry glares, and jealous stares of their peers but let's face it, they are going to have to deal with them their entire lives, the best thing we can do is help them deal with it, encourage them to believe in themselves and empower them with strong self-esteem.
When you are 10 years old today's "I won't have anything to do with you" could be tomorrow's BFF...go figure. That, it seems, is just the way it is.
As a parent, I don't expect biggirl to be best friends with everyone but I do expect her to be fair, polite, and respectful with whomever she comes across in life. Of course, I hope others return the favor, including grade 4 parents...
Three weeks ago, biggirl came home from school with baggage. I knew, as soon as she entered the door that things were going to be rocky...but never could I imagine just how rocky!
We were in a rush to get urgent homework done because she had gymnastics. Even if I know very well that being in a rush never results in a positive output with kids, I was struggling to get her settled with a notebook and pencil without much success when the doorbell rang.
I opened the door to the very distraught father of a girl in biggirl's class who asked to speak to me privately. I am sure he saw the question marks in my eyes as I followed him outside.
The father had shown up to inform me that biggirl was intimidating his daughter at school so much that they had considered changing schools, that biggirl was taking his daughter's friends away one by one, that she was the leader of the "pack", that she had splashed water in her face that day, etc., etc.... I was blown away, I could not feel my legs, my heart was pounding, I knew I had hives all over (which a glance in the mirror confirmed when I finally came back inside)... I kept telling him that I didn't understand, that biggirl was often coming home crying that no one would sit with her, that she had no one to play with, that no one wanted to be her friend...
Anyways, I vowed to fulfill my parental duty and speak with biggirl about the situation and call him later that evening. Biggirl confirmed the water splashing but for the rest of the "accusations" we were at a loss...really.
As promised, I dialed the father's number later that evening and offered that we meet, both girls and both set of parents later that week. They did not have time to meet with us.
Since he used the word "intimidation" which is a very powerful and serious accusation, I asked him which other incidents had occurred between the two girls for him to want his daughter to change schools. There were none.
I asked him to call me back at the end of the week to let me know if there was still a problem. He accepted. The call never came.
After thinking about this over and over and over again these past weeks, I guess my goal in writing this is for adults to realize that yes bullying and intimidation exist and they definitely are a serious problem in schoolyards. However, there is a big difference between normal grade 4 drama and intimidation.
Before we go knocking on anyone's door, as parents we have to take a step back, breathe, and think. Grade 4 is tough (on kids and parents alike) but so is life. We may want to protect our daughters from the mean words, angry glares, and jealous stares of their peers but let's face it, they are going to have to deal with them their entire lives, the best thing we can do is help them deal with it, encourage them to believe in themselves and empower them with strong self-esteem.
When you are 10 years old today's "I won't have anything to do with you" could be tomorrow's BFF...go figure. That, it seems, is just the way it is.
As a parent, I don't expect biggirl to be best friends with everyone but I do expect her to be fair, polite, and respectful with whomever she comes across in life. Of course, I hope others return the favor, including grade 4 parents...
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