September 2, 2012

b2s 2012

I was afraid to unload the pictures from the first day of school.

Very afraid.

Finn was glowering at me. I snapped a few shots and then shook in my boots and ran for the hills.


I guess this means Finn will no longer hold hands with me and skip to the bathroom anymore. The rudeness.

So as penance for the scathing looks, I made the boys take a few shots across the street the other night. Besides. I had completely forgot to take any pictures of Ollie at his new preschool. Parental fail.

Did you get the new crewcuts fall catalog? The clothes are ridiculously cute but the prices will make you wanna gauge your eyes out. At least for the boys clothes. A cute tie for $76. Really???? But I was inspired by the cover of the mag--the kids were lined up like the good old days of class pictures.

Our wannabe attempt. It did not quite translate. With their backpacks, the boys look like they are strapped into a roller coaster at Magic Mountain.

I didn't have a big chalkboard so I photoshopped one in. As if I could write that evenly on a chalkboard.

I mean, I did not think I would be able to pass that one by you any way. You are much too smart.






Someone here thinks he's too kewl for school. And for mama's camera.




Perfecting his duck face--one of life's more important skills.






It's so funny how last year Ollie was in love with Nemo, and Finn and Calvin were obsessed with Star Wars.

Now it's ALL ABOUT NINJAGO people. We need new patches. Even mama has completely fallen for the charms of Ninja Jay. Kai still has better hair. Ok. I'll stop, before I scare you any further.

Here is the scoop with Ollie. He doesn't like going to school. He goes to a new Montessori
preschool on tuesdays and thursdays and has 1/2 hour speech sessions on mondays and wednesdays.

Once he is there, he is totes fine. Like happy as a clam. But every morning, he asks with a suspicious, anxious tone, "mommy, do I have to go to school today?"

I kinda hold my breath and mutter, "yes ollie".

And then he wails and thrashes like a wet noodle and REFUSES to get dressed. And then I give him a homeopathic remedy for fear(rescue remedy or aconite).

And after around 10 minutes he calms down.

But still. It's wearing me down. I dread mornings. It's good for kids with spd to be in a structured setting with other children, so they can learn to cope in the world. But sometimes I wonder, especially about kindergarten next year. Our school just went to all day kindergarten. That is just not going to fly. However. I will{prayerfully} do what is best for Ollie when the time comes. And for now, we will continue on the current course.

Does anyone else out there have to drag their kids to school? If so, any tips are welcome.

I already learned something new about Ollie this year:

Yup. It's a true story.

Ollie calls his preschool "Twain's school". Because Twain's little friend Paul attends as well. Therefore, it's Twain's school. Perfectly scientific reasoning.

And Ollie is definitely learning his letters. He found a p-shaped carrot the other day. And we cheered. Wouldn't you celebrate, if you found a p-shaped carrot?

With spd, you take nothing for granted.

Calvin has team teachers this year.


I found this little self-portrait in his backpack. He colored his orange and blue striped shirt, complete with skinnies, haha.




Finn's teacher is strict and likes to keep the classroom very quiet. Finn likes the classroom dead silent and gets annoyed whenever anyone talks, so they are a match made in heaven.


What have I learned about Finn this year? See portions underlined in red.

My kid still loves money.

I said, "Hey Finn! I cannot believe you wrote that!!!!" And he started laughing hysterically and said "I was just being funny! I didn't mean it". Yah right kid. Whatevs.

I have tried(and tried) all summer to show him that money is not to be accumulated, but to be shared with others, but I guess we will have to KEEP on it.

>>>>>>><<<<<<<

We are all still adjusting to the new school year. Even mama. We were used to having daddy home for most of the summer, so it was just a rude awakening for us all.

By the end of the 2nd week, we were all toast. I keep falling asleep in the middle of the day and the boys have all been on melt-down mode. Especially the other night.

There were nonstop temper tantrums.
And nonstop fighting between all brothers.
There was disrespecting of parents.
and refusal to repent.
Mommy and daddy were sad and tired from it all.
And their were lots of consequences. And more tantrums when they realized they were not going to get their way.

At one point during the evening, I could not handle seeing the mopey tear-streaked face{s} any longer.
"Enough already! Your life is not that bad! Snap out of it". And I was very tempted to say, "Save your tears for the pillow!", ala Dance Moms...but I refrained. (Have you ever seen that show? omw).

Then God, ever so kindly, pointed out that I had been a bit mopey and teary about something for a little too long as well...and that I needed to snap out of it too. No more angsty teen drama over hurt feelings.

I think when we see our kids act this way, it mirrors how we sometimes act. I can't help but think God uses our children to show us our own yuckiness.

Thank goodness HIS mercies are new every morning.

25 comments:

  1. haha! your posts crack me up. think the whole money desire is interesting.

    the pictures are really cute. i hope they all have a great year at school.

    i've really been monitoring how i act in front of the kids. i noticed when they are cranky and grumpy and i begin to lose it, it just makes the situation worse.

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  2. Oh, how I understand the morning drama. Aubrey has gotten sooo much better this year, but it has been a 3 year process. In preschool, she really fought going to school. Was soo sad. She wouldn't eat or pee while at preschool (yes, she held it for like 8 hours! because I was at work). The mommy guilt was terrible! I actually think the full-time, full day Kindergarten was great for her. Sure, it was hard to transition at first, but she grew so much emotionally and socially! Now that we're in 1st grade, she looks forward to going to school, and she even asks me to let her stay later at after-school daycare because she loves the crafts. :) Hopefully, Ollie will transition well next year. All your boys are so handsome! And, chin up, I think the first few weeks of school are hard on everyone!

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  3. I simply love your pictures. I just took my daughters 3 yr pics with major bribery. I stooped to a new low and I think she totally has me figured out.
    Your boys are super handsome

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  4. I nominated you for a Liebster award even though I have a feeling that you might have more than 200 followers. I just love your photos!
    http://www.thetriplebs.com/2012/09/liebster-award.html
    Carmen

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  5. oh davi, i've been excited for your b2s post :) i love watching how your boys grow and change :)
    your heart is good, sweet davi......i can't imagine getting 4 boys up and 3 of them off to school, and the transitions from the end of summer? oh my. i'm sure it's been a looooong couple of weeks. i giggle as i read about finn, i would have annoyed him so bad......i was the girl that was always talking. i bet his teacher loves him, totally driven to get some learning done!
    are you still cutting the boys' hair? wow girlfriend. if so, you're doing great! i'm scared to touch romy's head.
    he screams like his arm is getting cut off the whole time he gets his hair cut!
    thank you for the sweet ollie update. i love your momma heart, you know each of your boys' needs so well, and i will be praying for you this year....as you begin to prepare for next year!! i feel such a weight as i make decisions for just one child, i can't imagine it x4..... i suppose you learn to rely on our Father even more, as you realize you just can't do it on your own. romy starts OT for sensory therapy this week....i'll message you about how it's going :)
    yes. yes yes, a friend of mine told me a while back she feels like her kids' actions are a mirror of her heart. roman throws the most fits when i'm most exhausted..... it's a yucky mirror sometimes, but we need to see the yucky to keep shaping us for his glory :)
    it's just a 4 day week this week, you can DO IT momma!!!!
    xoxo

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    1. LINDSEY! You have been busy girl--so awesome getting romy into OT. You are gonna rock this thing. SO proud of you. Can't wait to hear all about it.

      and yes, still cuttin' the boys' hairs. which is why ollie looks a bit like a plucked chicky. he was wearing too much hair gel.

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  6. lol...this will be my life starting Tues. Hubby is a teacher and all 4 boys will be in school this year. (They're about the same age as yours.) A recommendation for the morning issues. My Jack-Jack has Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and mornings were/are a nightmare if we're in a hurry. He just can't process fast enough to keep up with our hurryupandgotoschool insanity. What worked for him:

    I made a clipboard with a list of the things (pictures and words) that he needed to get done. There were clothes pins clipped down one side for each item. (i.e. Get Dressed, Eat Breakfast, Pack Lunch, Take Meds, etc.) When he completed that job, he moved the clip to the other side. When all of the clips were moved, he could put a treat in his lunch. It gave him a visual cue, rather than a harried momma yell, to keep him moving. He felt more in control and it gave him a sense of accomplishment to start the day with.

    Good luck with everything! And, thank-you for taking the time to share. I love knowing that I'm not alone. ;-)

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    1. fantastic idea. especially about getting a treat. genius-ness i tell you.

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  7. so proud of ollie.

    and so proud of you!

    new routines are tough. and I always encourage my students' parents to be patient in the first month of school. it is SO exhausting starting over after a long summer off! exhausting for EVERYONE, kids and teachers and mommies and daddies included.

    Swee'Pea totally mirrors my attitude. Totally hear you on that one. And thank Jesus for being more patient with me than I often am with my little one!

    You're doing a great job. Hang in there. It is almost Christmas Break... right???

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  8. These boys...they are just too cute.

    Is your hubs a teacher? I guess maybe I've missed that...
    My hubs is a teacher & I feel exactly the same way when he goes back to school. He is home all Summer, then gone! Yikes! He also coaches too, so he is often gone all.day.long. Shew. I'm right there with ya mama.
    Also, what a great reminder that our kids actions so often mirror our own. Amen.

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    1. Yes Cory! My husband teaches high school! And he used to coach, so I FEEL YA. So.many.hours.

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  9. two best parts of this post:
    1) the photoshopped chalk board. i was clever enough to know you didn't write on it yourself with chalk. BUT - i thought it was a real life chalk board sitting right there in front of your boy. i need to brush up on my spotting-superimposed-photoshopped-chalkboards ability.
    2) calvin's self portrait. it's soooo great and would make anyone smile!!
    : )

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    1. sara! i tried to email you, but alas, it would not go through for some reason! thanks for popping by. you are so cute!

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  10. ummmm how adorable are they! I just stumbled upon your blog and all 3 of those kiddos are precious!

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  11. oh my, your boys are so adorable on their first day of school!! but my absolute favorite parts of this whole post are the last 2 paragraphs. i completely agree and thank God for my son and God's mercies everyday. hope this next week of school is much easier on everyone :)

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  12. Hi davi! Ur boys are too cute! Love their outfits! What school is Ollie going to? I have heard about those schools but didn't know we had one in bk.
    Reid's not a huge fan of school either but I know once he is there he's happy, our mornings are pretty yuck though. Maybe that's just cause I'm not a morning person :0)

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  13. I can't help but think God uses our children to show us our own yuckiness.

    Oh, this made me cringe. Big time. Because I think you're right and my girl's actions and temper tantrums are all too FAMILIAR. :( How can I fix this? Argh.

    Anyway, your boys are all gorgeous. I hope poor Ollie decides that school is amazing and does a 180 in attitude!

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  14. love the pictures of your boys...the one of them riding a magic mountain ride was my fav though. made me laugh out loud.

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  15. your pictures are amazing...probably helps that your kiddos are so cute! and i love what you said about God using our kids to help point out our yuckiness! i was just telling my husband that having kids has been the single greatest thing God has used to help me grow. hope things get a little easier at your house.

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  16. My kids "love" money too. I think its normal in this materialistic world we live in...just keep countering it and God will anchor their hearts with humility and compassion for those that have less.

    Noah asks me every morning..."Is it a home day mom???" He would rather be at home but always says he has a great time at school. my guys have been wiped!!! And we started baseball! All I have to say...tonight is an EARLY NIGHT to bed...maybe at 6:30! well, maybe not THAT early!

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  17. I just discovered your love;y little blog! such a cute post...love your kiddos names :)

    p.s. I cant find your follow button :(

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  18. Oh my can Finn give a scathing glance!
    And oh boy! I have found myself yelling more and more. And Roxy has been more and more defiant.
    Guess it's about time to look at myself and what she's seeing.
    crap.....
    ;)
    Thanks Davi

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  19. their eyes are the most gorgeous golden brown ever!

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  20. Wonderful post - I loved how you ended it with thank goodness His mercies are renewed in the morning because it is very true. Tomorrow is another day...I am also the Mom of boys, and this weekend was one of those whiney-fighting-sassy ones, where we were about to pull our hair out. Thank you for big open fields and a Dad who loves to play chase - otherwise, we would have snap crackle popped :)
    I love your blog and enjoy reading it...

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