C has been in a big boy bed for about 5 months? Maybe more. Or less. I can't quite remember. His crib broke, and I thought I would cry. Granted, that garage sale crib lasted through 4 children, and it was a *hushed whisper*
drop side. So, a big boy bed was forced upon us even though C is a notorious trouble maker and I had no intention of moving him out of that crib until he was, oh, 16 or so.
It went surprisingly well at first, but then he started getting up. He would get up over and over and over at bed time. He would get up in the middle of the night, and at the butt crack of dawn. He would go into his siblings' rooms and slam their doors until THEY woke up. He would go into the kitchen and get out the eggs and drop them on the floor. We'd find apples in his bed at 5AM. Luckily, we have child safety door knobs so he couldn't go outside and play with the coyotes! (and an alarm that would alert us if he did figure out how...)
We tried bribing, threatening, sleeping with him, sleeping on the floor, letting him "sleep" with us, etc. Finally, out of desperation, we bought this alarm clock.
The hope was that he was just getting up because he didn't yet KNOW it was not time to get up, since he's only 2.5 and can't tell time. This clock has a yellow night light that you can set to turn green at an appointed time. I have never in my life paid so much for an alarm clock, so you know desperation had set in.
Long story short: The clock is GREAT but C didn't stay in bed despite knowing that he would get a treat if he DID and also repeatedly saying, "I stay in bed. Light turn green; I get up."
UNTIL.
After one particularly annoying night, I set up the pack and play in his room and told him if he got up he was going to sleep in that instead. (He never climbed out of his crib and I hoped he wouldn't realize that he is most certainly big enough/able to climb out.) Sure enough, he was up again 34 seconds later. I put him in the pack and play and he was... unhappy. I did not get to go back to sleep that early morning, but a few more days of that and guess what? He "magically" stays in bed until the light turns green about half the time! It's almost a success! Probably my first EVER sleep story where something I tried actually (sort of) worked.
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d got his report card last week! He's doing well in school but has suddenly decided he doesn't want to go. I think it's a combination of "I have more fun at home." and what he SAYS it is, "I'm bored and never learn anything." I know that he does learn SOME things. (They worked on fractions such as 1/2 and 1/3 this week.) I know he's bored a lot as well. (A lot of his worksheets are still focusing on letter recognition, and he writes and animates comic strips on the back.) (plus, they do pretty much "all worksheets, all the time.")
Although he's bored, he never gets in trouble. He's a huge rule follower (like me) and absolutely hates to get in trouble.
I don't really mind that he is not LEARNING NEW THINGS ALL THE TIME. I taught school and I know how it works. (and didn't expect him to be reading Shakespeare or anything - he's in Kindergarten)
I am disappointed that his teacher seems unwilling to let him do any varied activities. I'm bothered that they seem not to do ANY science or social studies (and I know it's in the curriculum). I'm bothered that it seems I'm supposed to just accept that "that's the way it is" and that now; I don't WANT to teach my younger children much at home because I will have this problem all over again! I hate that they have little time for learning social skills. (No recess! No talking!) (Although he's learning plenty of school skills. i.e. how to sit down and listen.)
Most of all, I'm very disappointed that my oldest child is now starting to dislike something he once liked quite a lot (and that is in his future for years to come) because he has to sit in a chair and be bored much of the day.
I don't want to sound like one of those parents who thinks their child is a genius (I don't. I do think he's above average in a few areas.) and complains non-stop about the teacher (who, despite my concerns, I DO like), the school, the public school system in general and shoots down every suggestion. I feel like, short of homeschooling - which I'm unwilling to try barring some HUGE motivation - and private school - which we can't really afford and even THEN I'm not sure it would be better - I've tried everything I can think of and explored every avenue available to me. So. Maybe I DO just have to accept that that's how it is for this year and hope for better for next year?
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Oh hey, it's rugby season again! We're already fighting about it! YAY!
I've decided not to fight about it anymore. I can hate him being gone for practices and games on all-day Saturdays just as much inside my head and then my throat won't hurt from yelling. D is not going to give up rugby (and I can't honestly say I want him to). If and when he DOES give it up, I damn straight don't want it to be because I "made" him.
So. We'll see how long that works for me.
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I wasted $4.99 on a
Kindle 
book that I'd seen on The View or The Talk or one of those yappy shows. I don't know why I do this to myself. It was supposed to help "cure" me from my "eating type." It helps you find your eating type. Yes, I'm an emotional eater - I already knew that. Thanks.
Then, it gives me a food plan for a diet for a month so I could lose 10 lbs. I stopped reading after that. Maybe it tells me how TO NOT be an emotional eater but, like I said, I stopped reading so I guess I should finish before I b*tch too much about it. What are the odds it will "cure" my emotional eating?
Yeah...
I really like, as were several of the things on this list. (I have the older edition, not the revised as shown in the link.)
is the one I have. (That's what I bought with the gift card my parents gave us for Christmas, and some of my swag bucks gift cards.)
