A few weeks ago, we were informed that Kiya would be moved up to a pre-preschool classroom. We at first were thrilled that the staff thought Kiya was ready for more structure and more learning opportunities.
Well the transition week did not go well at all. Far from it. Kiya was less than happy to leave her friends. She has 3 kids that she knows by name and would ask for them as we would put her jacket on in the morning. She also LOVED her teachers.
Her new classroom just felt off. Kiya only kind of knew two other kids in the class. Her teachers were less than friendly. Kiya has her cast on. Big deal. She can do everything that any other kid her age can do. She might do it slightly differently but that cast has never slowed her down. Heck she learned how to walk in that thing. Well, her new teachers were under the impression that Kiya couldn't sit on the potty because of her cast so they didn't take her. They assumed she wouldn't take naps even though most days she naps for at least an hour and a half to two plus hours.
I went in to talk with the new teachers to let them know about the cast and really the only rules we have are no sand and no water otherwise we let Kiya be. The response I got was less than welcoming. When I requested that Kiya wear a bib at meal times, they seemed annoyed since other kids didn't. I brought them a bib even. They drink from real cups in this classroom so lots of messes and I just didn't want her cast shirt to get wet. Sure a little liquid is fine and water not an issues but milk or juice slightly more of a problem as those could smell. Not really a big deal but the teachers reaction to Kiya overall just didn't set well with me.
As we started to have to drop Kiya off in her new room, things were getting really weird. Kiya stomped around the house whining. She started to say "no friends, no friends.". She would say "Kiya stay home. No friends." And then at actual drop off she would start to cry. It got so bad that yesterday she refused to walk in the door and gripped the door frame so I had to practically drag her into the room. After she was in the room she started to cry and then scream. She was saying, "mommy go home, mommy hug. wanna go home." If I didn't have to be at work I would have grabbed her and taken her home.
I had already talked with the director. She was aware of my concerns. She was there on Tuesday during the epic meltdown that was drop off. She was meeting with the other administrators to discuss our options.
She called yesterday with GREAT news. Kiya is going back to her old classroom with her friends and with her teachers. The plan is for her to stay there until a space opens in the pre preschool room that we want Kiya in. The one where the teachers are fabulous and Kiya knows other kids.
I am glad we got this resolved. I was feeling terrible about it and Kiya obviously wasn't happy and that was the worst part. And while I was excited about the new challenges that would be there for Kiya in a new room, her happiness shouldn't be sacrificed and now it won't be.
Showing posts with label daycare. Show all posts
Showing posts with label daycare. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Friday, September 24, 2010
Life with a frustrated, determined and loud toddler
Kiya is doing fantastic. In fact her physical therapist was just so impressed with her. She couldn't believe how well Kiya was walking, bending, etc with her cast on and her ankle supports. She doesn't think it will be all that long before Kiya takes up walking full time. Right now it is a part time activity but standing is much more comfortable and as she gets used to her ankle supports that will help too. She also commented on how great Kiya's hand/eye coordination are, her verbal skills and just how well she will imitate sounds, words etc. The two of them had fun yesterday.
That said there are times when Miss Kiya gets frustrated. And her frustration leads to screaming. Sigh. Bring on the terrible two's. If she tips over and is in a corner somewhere she has a hard time maneuvering herself to be able to get out. Also since she still crawls at times and wears a lot of leggings, she slips and falls a lot on the carpet and the linoleum floors. Both of these require a scream and usually mommy asking if she needs help. If she says yes I help her otherwise I encourage her to try again and do it herself.
She also really wants to try to climb the stairs again. This Mama is not ready for that one. She is top heavy and only been in her cast a little over a week. Maybe in a few weeks....maybe....or not. Sounds scary.
She is very determined to do things herself yet sometimes she just can't, hence the frustration. She has a great vocabulary so we are encouraging her to use her words and not scream and if she is to whiny/screamy/frustrated we take a break. A break includes her sitting in her chair with her blanket (also known as tee tee thanks to a girl her age at daycare) and calming down. She gets up when she is ready and is usually in a better mood after that.
Volume control is an issue in that she doesn't have one. She is set to LOUD all the time doesn't matter if we are inside a store, at home or outside at the park. Screams of "hi, bye bye, nigh nigh" are all common.
We also hear a lot of "Mommy, Daddy, r you?" (as in where are you). Or my favorite, "Mommy, now or Daddy, now." She also repeats everything and since Badger can be a tad naughty at times and is told no a lot, she has been yelling at him. Poor guy. So we are also hearing, "Doggie, no. Sit." Doggie is Badger, Bassy is Sebastian. She rarely yells at her Bassy. Though I was calling for Sebastian to come inside and she was behind me saying, "Bassy, Bassy, r u?" We are working on not saying no to Badger but that is tough. He has issues but we are trying to praise him and teach Kiya "Good Doggie".
Yesterday we were at the grocery store and she was singing which she does all the time and when she finished "wheels on the bus" she screamed "yeah". I told her she was being loud and she repeated "loud, loud, loud" to the tune of "wheels on the bus". Sigh. And no there was no inside voice at all. She is just loud and loves to hear herself and wants to make sure everyone can hear her too. It always cracks me up when a former teacher at daycare says that she doesn't hear Kiya talk much. I was like, really, try spending 30 minutes with her in the car.
So life has returned and we are settled into our new normal. Kiya is just a remarkable kid and I am truly in awe of her. Nothing is going to stop her and I think that is a great quality. Next week she starts her transition to her new room at daycare. I am not super thrilled about it as we will have brand new teachers that she doesn't know and will now have to deal with her cast. I foresee this Mama Bear having to step out and set up some guidelines but we shall see. I am trying to be open minded about it but I know what they are going to want and it isn't what I want. For example, Kiya falls asleep on her own. She doesn't need to be rocked and while I complain about nap fail she does just fine if she chooses to skip one. Apparently these teachers want all the children to sleep. Kiya sometimes sleep 13+ hours a night and therefore doesn't necessarily need a nap. In fact even in her current room on her daily sheet there was a frowning face because she only napped for a little over an hour one day. Sigh....sorry she is a curious kid and just can't be bothered with sleep.
That said there are times when Miss Kiya gets frustrated. And her frustration leads to screaming. Sigh. Bring on the terrible two's. If she tips over and is in a corner somewhere she has a hard time maneuvering herself to be able to get out. Also since she still crawls at times and wears a lot of leggings, she slips and falls a lot on the carpet and the linoleum floors. Both of these require a scream and usually mommy asking if she needs help. If she says yes I help her otherwise I encourage her to try again and do it herself.
She also really wants to try to climb the stairs again. This Mama is not ready for that one. She is top heavy and only been in her cast a little over a week. Maybe in a few weeks....maybe....or not. Sounds scary.
She is very determined to do things herself yet sometimes she just can't, hence the frustration. She has a great vocabulary so we are encouraging her to use her words and not scream and if she is to whiny/screamy/frustrated we take a break. A break includes her sitting in her chair with her blanket (also known as tee tee thanks to a girl her age at daycare) and calming down. She gets up when she is ready and is usually in a better mood after that.
Volume control is an issue in that she doesn't have one. She is set to LOUD all the time doesn't matter if we are inside a store, at home or outside at the park. Screams of "hi, bye bye, nigh nigh" are all common.
We also hear a lot of "Mommy, Daddy, r you?" (as in where are you). Or my favorite, "Mommy, now or Daddy, now." She also repeats everything and since Badger can be a tad naughty at times and is told no a lot, she has been yelling at him. Poor guy. So we are also hearing, "Doggie, no. Sit." Doggie is Badger, Bassy is Sebastian. She rarely yells at her Bassy. Though I was calling for Sebastian to come inside and she was behind me saying, "Bassy, Bassy, r u?" We are working on not saying no to Badger but that is tough. He has issues but we are trying to praise him and teach Kiya "Good Doggie".
Yesterday we were at the grocery store and she was singing which she does all the time and when she finished "wheels on the bus" she screamed "yeah". I told her she was being loud and she repeated "loud, loud, loud" to the tune of "wheels on the bus". Sigh. And no there was no inside voice at all. She is just loud and loves to hear herself and wants to make sure everyone can hear her too. It always cracks me up when a former teacher at daycare says that she doesn't hear Kiya talk much. I was like, really, try spending 30 minutes with her in the car.
So life has returned and we are settled into our new normal. Kiya is just a remarkable kid and I am truly in awe of her. Nothing is going to stop her and I think that is a great quality. Next week she starts her transition to her new room at daycare. I am not super thrilled about it as we will have brand new teachers that she doesn't know and will now have to deal with her cast. I foresee this Mama Bear having to step out and set up some guidelines but we shall see. I am trying to be open minded about it but I know what they are going to want and it isn't what I want. For example, Kiya falls asleep on her own. She doesn't need to be rocked and while I complain about nap fail she does just fine if she chooses to skip one. Apparently these teachers want all the children to sleep. Kiya sometimes sleep 13+ hours a night and therefore doesn't necessarily need a nap. In fact even in her current room on her daily sheet there was a frowning face because she only napped for a little over an hour one day. Sigh....sorry she is a curious kid and just can't be bothered with sleep.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Survived the first week
Well the first week of Kiya in her new room at daycare is now over, well okay yesterday but still.
Eating: The table and chair seems to work okay for her. She looks so cute sitting there. As for the food, that has been hit or miss. It always is with Kiya. Some days she will eat everything and other days not so much. Then there are the days where she throws her food on the floor. We have agreed with daycare that if she throws it on the floor she doesn't get more. She thinks its funny and is doing it for attention. One day a little boy threw Kiya's pizza on the floor so they did give her more and then she threw it on the floor so that was it. She is learning how to eat out of a bowl and use a fork and spoon. She holds the utensils very well and can get them in her mouth. They don't generally have food on them yet but she is starting to get the idea.
Napping: Oh boy this one has been a little tough. The first day she slept for an hour after putting on a show of course. The next day she slept for almost an hour and a half with out much of a production. Then came Friday....no nap at all and much laughter and antics. The teachers think she is funny and she wasn't disturbing the other kids but she didn't nap at all. It may be due to the fact that she has been going to bed quite early and sleeping in until 8am. Some days she sleeps for 14 hours hence the no nap. I am not sure how the sleeping on a mat is affecting this or if she is just getting all the sleep she needs at night....maybe next week will be better. They turn the lights off at 11:45 and they come back on at 2 so it is quiet/rest/nap time unless you are Kiya and then it is showtime. My silly little girl....
Social: Kiya seems to be interacting with the kids well. She is the only non-walker in the room so that makes it a little tough but she is hanging in there. The other kids are fascinated by her since she is new to the room so that helps. Her teachers are great and they LOVE her so they look out for her and encourage her to do new things.
Kiya is always happy when I pick her up and the teachers always give her a good daily report so that is comforting. Hopefully next week she can give the comedy routine a break and the teachers and take a nap :)
Eating: The table and chair seems to work okay for her. She looks so cute sitting there. As for the food, that has been hit or miss. It always is with Kiya. Some days she will eat everything and other days not so much. Then there are the days where she throws her food on the floor. We have agreed with daycare that if she throws it on the floor she doesn't get more. She thinks its funny and is doing it for attention. One day a little boy threw Kiya's pizza on the floor so they did give her more and then she threw it on the floor so that was it. She is learning how to eat out of a bowl and use a fork and spoon. She holds the utensils very well and can get them in her mouth. They don't generally have food on them yet but she is starting to get the idea.
Napping: Oh boy this one has been a little tough. The first day she slept for an hour after putting on a show of course. The next day she slept for almost an hour and a half with out much of a production. Then came Friday....no nap at all and much laughter and antics. The teachers think she is funny and she wasn't disturbing the other kids but she didn't nap at all. It may be due to the fact that she has been going to bed quite early and sleeping in until 8am. Some days she sleeps for 14 hours hence the no nap. I am not sure how the sleeping on a mat is affecting this or if she is just getting all the sleep she needs at night....maybe next week will be better. They turn the lights off at 11:45 and they come back on at 2 so it is quiet/rest/nap time unless you are Kiya and then it is showtime. My silly little girl....
Social: Kiya seems to be interacting with the kids well. She is the only non-walker in the room so that makes it a little tough but she is hanging in there. The other kids are fascinated by her since she is new to the room so that helps. Her teachers are great and they LOVE her so they look out for her and encourage her to do new things.
Kiya is always happy when I pick her up and the teachers always give her a good daily report so that is comforting. Hopefully next week she can give the comedy routine a break and the teachers and take a nap :)
Monday, January 4, 2010
The toddler room
So today was the day. Kiya was going to transition to her new room at daycare. The plan was supposed to be drop her off and she would eat breakfast in the infant room and then spend the rest of the morning in her new room. Well, at drop off this morning we were told that the slow week long transition wasn't going to happen. Today was the day. Kiya was spending all day from now until she is 2 in her new room.
The reason, you ask. Well, first off they needed the room in the infant room for another child and Kiya already has a relationship with her new teacher. So they all thought Kiya would be fine. When I heard this I was a little freaked out. So much change and so fast for my baby girl. Boy was I wrong.
First and foremost I think my baby doesn't actually like being a baby. I think she prefers to be a big girl. You see now she sits at a table with bowls and plastic utensils for meals, no more high chairs. She takes a nap on a mat on the floor not in a crib. She fed herself and ate very well today. They said she was super chatty and completely herself. She did great.
I am really excited for her. I think this room will be great and more age appropriate. They are going to work with her and encourage her to walk and will work on language and social skills. And as a bonus they may even braid her hair :)
Kiya even put on a comedy act at naptime today. I guess they laid her down on her mat and typical Kiya she started to roll around and was babbling away. Well apparently she then took her blanket and wrapped it around her head and just started to laugh. The teachers thought it was so cute they got other teachers to come in and see. Her new room is MUCH louder than her infant room. Kiya will fit in perfectly as she is quite loud herself and very outspoken. She will let you know when things aren't going her way or if she is mad or frustrated or happy or silly. All of her emotions are bigger than life.
Kiya wants to be a big girl or so it seems at the moment. She is showing her independence more and more each day. Some days she will only eat if she can feed herself others days she won't eat unless you feed her. This weekend she started to actually cruise on furniture. She will walk between stationary objects that are next to each other. She goes slow but she is going.
The times they are a changing.
The reason, you ask. Well, first off they needed the room in the infant room for another child and Kiya already has a relationship with her new teacher. So they all thought Kiya would be fine. When I heard this I was a little freaked out. So much change and so fast for my baby girl. Boy was I wrong.
First and foremost I think my baby doesn't actually like being a baby. I think she prefers to be a big girl. You see now she sits at a table with bowls and plastic utensils for meals, no more high chairs. She takes a nap on a mat on the floor not in a crib. She fed herself and ate very well today. They said she was super chatty and completely herself. She did great.
I am really excited for her. I think this room will be great and more age appropriate. They are going to work with her and encourage her to walk and will work on language and social skills. And as a bonus they may even braid her hair :)
Kiya even put on a comedy act at naptime today. I guess they laid her down on her mat and typical Kiya she started to roll around and was babbling away. Well apparently she then took her blanket and wrapped it around her head and just started to laugh. The teachers thought it was so cute they got other teachers to come in and see. Her new room is MUCH louder than her infant room. Kiya will fit in perfectly as she is quite loud herself and very outspoken. She will let you know when things aren't going her way or if she is mad or frustrated or happy or silly. All of her emotions are bigger than life.
Kiya wants to be a big girl or so it seems at the moment. She is showing her independence more and more each day. Some days she will only eat if she can feed herself others days she won't eat unless you feed her. This weekend she started to actually cruise on furniture. She will walk between stationary objects that are next to each other. She goes slow but she is going.
The times they are a changing.
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
7 months home and a doctor visit
We have been home 7 months today with our princess. Wow. So what did we do to celebrate....I took Kiya to her 12 month check up :)
The numbers:
Weight: just under 21 lbs (42nd percentile)
Height: 29 1/4 inches (48th percentile)
Head circumference: 44.5 cm (29th percentile)
So as a reference, Kiya was in the less than 3rd percentile in weight and head circumference and between the 5th and 10th percentile for height.
Development:
Food: The nurse was shocked when I told her Kiya took herself off of bottles and is solely on sippy cups of whole milk. She said we were lucky. I just think we have a big girl who knows what she wants :) She did say Kiya should be drinking 16oz of milk a day. We are a tad shy of this but she said yogurt counts so we should be fine. She encouraged us to let Kiya try and feed herself finger foods. I told her Kiya has been doing that for awhile. We have good and bad days. Some days Kiya wants to feed herself and other days she doesn't. Introducing the spoon is next...beware pugs, floors, blinds and anything else near her while eating.
Sleep: The nurse asked us how Kiya is sleeping at night and for naps. I told her that unless she is sick or teething, Kiya will sleep 11-12 hours through the night. As for naps, we are in transition to one nap so some days she will take 2 shorter naps totaling near 3 hours or one long nap of 2-2 1/2 hours. She then asked us if Kiya falls asleep by herself or if we rock her to sleep. She has always fallen asleep by herself. At this point the nurse was looking at me like I was nuts. She said it was too good to be true.
Speech: Kiya was quite vocal while we were there. In July, Birth to 3 said that she was delayed about 36% in her speech. Well, the doctor now thinks that Kiya is ahead of the curve. She says mama, dada, daw (dog), hi, na (no) along with a whole bunch of other sounds like nana, lala, baba, ssss, zzz, ga. She also will point at what she wants and grunt a little to let us know she wants it. Usually it is her sippy cup she wants and can't reach other times it is Mama's dinner :)
Motor skills: The doctor said they usually expect most 1 year olds to pull them self up to a stand and Kiya only does this with our fingers. She doesn't really cruise on furniture but she did yesterday take one sideways step while holding on to the coffee table. She has been trying to walk a lot more so it is only a matter of time. The doctor also said that since at 5 months she couldn't really stand up on our laps and had little muscle tone that it may take her a little longer for her to fully walk on her own. She asked about crawling, rolling, etc. So we told her about Kiya's butt scooting, rolling antics and she said that is all great. She asked if she is continuing to show increased strength and desire to move and do things and I said yes. She said that is all that matters.
Overall, the doctor felt Kiya was growing and developing well. While there Kiya got her MMR, chicken pox, pneumonia booster, and H1N1 shot. She is also having a TB skin test done.
In other news, Kiya will transition to her new room at daycare the last week of December. Why not sooner....well a spot opened up in the room we wanted so we took it. It meant delaying the transition to her big girl room but we get the teacher we know and love. And more importantly it is the teacher that Kiya grew to love and trust.
The numbers:
Weight: just under 21 lbs (42nd percentile)
Height: 29 1/4 inches (48th percentile)
Head circumference: 44.5 cm (29th percentile)
So as a reference, Kiya was in the less than 3rd percentile in weight and head circumference and between the 5th and 10th percentile for height.
Development:
Food: The nurse was shocked when I told her Kiya took herself off of bottles and is solely on sippy cups of whole milk. She said we were lucky. I just think we have a big girl who knows what she wants :) She did say Kiya should be drinking 16oz of milk a day. We are a tad shy of this but she said yogurt counts so we should be fine. She encouraged us to let Kiya try and feed herself finger foods. I told her Kiya has been doing that for awhile. We have good and bad days. Some days Kiya wants to feed herself and other days she doesn't. Introducing the spoon is next...beware pugs, floors, blinds and anything else near her while eating.
Sleep: The nurse asked us how Kiya is sleeping at night and for naps. I told her that unless she is sick or teething, Kiya will sleep 11-12 hours through the night. As for naps, we are in transition to one nap so some days she will take 2 shorter naps totaling near 3 hours or one long nap of 2-2 1/2 hours. She then asked us if Kiya falls asleep by herself or if we rock her to sleep. She has always fallen asleep by herself. At this point the nurse was looking at me like I was nuts. She said it was too good to be true.
Speech: Kiya was quite vocal while we were there. In July, Birth to 3 said that she was delayed about 36% in her speech. Well, the doctor now thinks that Kiya is ahead of the curve. She says mama, dada, daw (dog), hi, na (no) along with a whole bunch of other sounds like nana, lala, baba, ssss, zzz, ga. She also will point at what she wants and grunt a little to let us know she wants it. Usually it is her sippy cup she wants and can't reach other times it is Mama's dinner :)
Motor skills: The doctor said they usually expect most 1 year olds to pull them self up to a stand and Kiya only does this with our fingers. She doesn't really cruise on furniture but she did yesterday take one sideways step while holding on to the coffee table. She has been trying to walk a lot more so it is only a matter of time. The doctor also said that since at 5 months she couldn't really stand up on our laps and had little muscle tone that it may take her a little longer for her to fully walk on her own. She asked about crawling, rolling, etc. So we told her about Kiya's butt scooting, rolling antics and she said that is all great. She asked if she is continuing to show increased strength and desire to move and do things and I said yes. She said that is all that matters.
Overall, the doctor felt Kiya was growing and developing well. While there Kiya got her MMR, chicken pox, pneumonia booster, and H1N1 shot. She is also having a TB skin test done.
In other news, Kiya will transition to her new room at daycare the last week of December. Why not sooner....well a spot opened up in the room we wanted so we took it. It meant delaying the transition to her big girl room but we get the teacher we know and love. And more importantly it is the teacher that Kiya grew to love and trust.
Monday, November 30, 2009
30 posts in 30 days :)
I did it. I didn't think I could but I did. I know that some of my posts were let's say not so good but I hope a few of them were pretty decent.
It is tough to blog with a 1 year old but I will continue to try but will likely take some days off.
Today we had Kiya's parent-teacher conference at daycare. I know seems weird to have one of these for a 1 year old but whatever. I talk to her teachers every time I pick her up so I knew what to expect.
Kiya's teachers think she is doing just great. She shares toys with the other kids; she loves to put things in a bucket and take things out; she LOVES to throw things; she is very verbal; she eats like a champ (most of the time).
Overall they think she is right on track to slightly ahead in her fine motor skills and her verbal skills which is great. Remember way back in July when Birth to 3 told us she was about 36% behind in her verbal--not anymore :) My gabby little girl loves to blab away. She even talks to high chairs.
Things we and they will continue to work on are her gross motor skills, namely walking and pulling up. She thought about and kind of tried to pull up on one of her activity toys today which was a surprise. She still prefers to pull up using our fingers which at times can get a little frustrating for all parties involved.
Today she also showed a tremendous amount of desire to walk. I mean really walk with very little support. Sure we were still holding on but she wanted to really go. She also tried to take a couple steps holding on to the coffee table and then again with her toy. She doesn't cruise on furniture so we saw this as progress.
We are just encouraging her and supporting her. She will walk when she is ready. This is Kiya we are talking about. She will do it when she wants and no sooner. So we will watch, wait and continue to enjoy her.
It is tough to blog with a 1 year old but I will continue to try but will likely take some days off.
Today we had Kiya's parent-teacher conference at daycare. I know seems weird to have one of these for a 1 year old but whatever. I talk to her teachers every time I pick her up so I knew what to expect.
Kiya's teachers think she is doing just great. She shares toys with the other kids; she loves to put things in a bucket and take things out; she LOVES to throw things; she is very verbal; she eats like a champ (most of the time).
Overall they think she is right on track to slightly ahead in her fine motor skills and her verbal skills which is great. Remember way back in July when Birth to 3 told us she was about 36% behind in her verbal--not anymore :) My gabby little girl loves to blab away. She even talks to high chairs.
Things we and they will continue to work on are her gross motor skills, namely walking and pulling up. She thought about and kind of tried to pull up on one of her activity toys today which was a surprise. She still prefers to pull up using our fingers which at times can get a little frustrating for all parties involved.
Today she also showed a tremendous amount of desire to walk. I mean really walk with very little support. Sure we were still holding on but she wanted to really go. She also tried to take a couple steps holding on to the coffee table and then again with her toy. She doesn't cruise on furniture so we saw this as progress.
We are just encouraging her and supporting her. She will walk when she is ready. This is Kiya we are talking about. She will do it when she wants and no sooner. So we will watch, wait and continue to enjoy her.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
They think she is ready
It's true. We got the papers yesterday that Kiya's daycare teachers think she is ready to transition to the 1 year old room. They didn't ask me...I am not ready.
I love her teachers right now. I like the room and the activities and the whole bit. Kiya LOVES it in there. But they think she is ready. Ready to move on. Ready to be a toddler.
I worry. She is going from the oldest in her room back to being the youngest. She doesn't crawl, or walk or pull up. She does walk holding on to our fingers and she does pull up if we give her our hands. She doesn't cruise on furniture but stands up really well. She has to work on the holding on thing but her balance is really improving. They think she is ready. I just don't want her to get stepped on.
She will figure out it that much I know. I talked to the teachers about my concerns and they reassured me that she will be just fine. They have sent plenty of kids to the 1 year old room who don't walk or crawl and they do just fine. The nice thing is there will be other kids from her current room transitioning to the same new room so her friends are going with her.
The teachers also told me that Kiya may not be the most mobile(other than her new found love of rolling everywhere) but since she is eating table food and drinking from a cup and holding her own bottle she will be ahead of some of the other kids who recently transferred to that room.
We picked our daycare for a reason. We like the curriculum and the diversity. I know she will be fine and deep down I know she is ready. She is ready to be a toddler. She is ready to move on from the infant room. She is the second oldest in her room right now. The oldest crawls and does his own thing. The next closest in age to Kiya is a 9 1/2 month old that also doesn't crawl or walk. She doesn't even stand. The rest of the kids are 5 months or less. There isn't a challenge for Kiya anymore. There aren't older kids for her to look up to or want to be like.
While I trust the teachers, I got a little teary eyed when I read the transition papers. My baby girl is growing up. Momma is not quite ready for that and yet I am excited to watch her grow. Does that even make sense?
So starting the week of December 14th, Kiya will be moving on. Moving from her Sunshine Sea infant room to her Barnyard Buddies toddler room. We can do this. We both will be fine.
I love her teachers right now. I like the room and the activities and the whole bit. Kiya LOVES it in there. But they think she is ready. Ready to move on. Ready to be a toddler.
I worry. She is going from the oldest in her room back to being the youngest. She doesn't crawl, or walk or pull up. She does walk holding on to our fingers and she does pull up if we give her our hands. She doesn't cruise on furniture but stands up really well. She has to work on the holding on thing but her balance is really improving. They think she is ready. I just don't want her to get stepped on.
She will figure out it that much I know. I talked to the teachers about my concerns and they reassured me that she will be just fine. They have sent plenty of kids to the 1 year old room who don't walk or crawl and they do just fine. The nice thing is there will be other kids from her current room transitioning to the same new room so her friends are going with her.
The teachers also told me that Kiya may not be the most mobile(other than her new found love of rolling everywhere) but since she is eating table food and drinking from a cup and holding her own bottle she will be ahead of some of the other kids who recently transferred to that room.
We picked our daycare for a reason. We like the curriculum and the diversity. I know she will be fine and deep down I know she is ready. She is ready to be a toddler. She is ready to move on from the infant room. She is the second oldest in her room right now. The oldest crawls and does his own thing. The next closest in age to Kiya is a 9 1/2 month old that also doesn't crawl or walk. She doesn't even stand. The rest of the kids are 5 months or less. There isn't a challenge for Kiya anymore. There aren't older kids for her to look up to or want to be like.
While I trust the teachers, I got a little teary eyed when I read the transition papers. My baby girl is growing up. Momma is not quite ready for that and yet I am excited to watch her grow. Does that even make sense?
So starting the week of December 14th, Kiya will be moving on. Moving from her Sunshine Sea infant room to her Barnyard Buddies toddler room. We can do this. We both will be fine.
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Separation anxiety
It has set in in our house and while some would find the shrieking annoying I LOVE it.
I know weird right but when you are an adoptive parent it is kind of a special moment when you baby has bonded with you and actually misses you if you leave the room. It warms my heart.
Sure when we are at a brunch buffet and I leave and Dave stays with Kiya (or vice versa) and she starts screaming and others are staring it can be a tad much. But I wouldn't change it for the world. Scream away Miss Kiya. We love you too.
I know it is an age appropriate thing but again as adoptive parents we tend to over analyze every little thing. So we kept wondering when and if this stage would set in and were we doing something wrong. Guess not :)
So far she hasn't screamed when Dave drops her off at daycare but she really likes her daycare so that could be part of it. We anticipate at some point though that may change. She will be changing rooms sometime in the next couple of months and that may be the fuel that starts it. We put in a request for a specific room as Kiya has this teacher the first couple months she was at daycare and we really like her. We know that they can't guarantee she gets in that room but we are trying and so is the teacher. As of right now it is a no go as the room is full and the next child to age out doesn't turn 2 until April. Bummer. We know she will do fine in whatever room she goes to but still hoping for our first choice.
But for now...
She likes us. She really likes us.
I know weird right but when you are an adoptive parent it is kind of a special moment when you baby has bonded with you and actually misses you if you leave the room. It warms my heart.
Sure when we are at a brunch buffet and I leave and Dave stays with Kiya (or vice versa) and she starts screaming and others are staring it can be a tad much. But I wouldn't change it for the world. Scream away Miss Kiya. We love you too.
I know it is an age appropriate thing but again as adoptive parents we tend to over analyze every little thing. So we kept wondering when and if this stage would set in and were we doing something wrong. Guess not :)
So far she hasn't screamed when Dave drops her off at daycare but she really likes her daycare so that could be part of it. We anticipate at some point though that may change. She will be changing rooms sometime in the next couple of months and that may be the fuel that starts it. We put in a request for a specific room as Kiya has this teacher the first couple months she was at daycare and we really like her. We know that they can't guarantee she gets in that room but we are trying and so is the teacher. As of right now it is a no go as the room is full and the next child to age out doesn't turn 2 until April. Bummer. We know she will do fine in whatever room she goes to but still hoping for our first choice.
But for now...
She likes us. She really likes us.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
I LOVE BEING A MOM!
It's true, I do. It really hit me yesterday when we were at the Brewer's game and I was walking around with Peanut in the Ergo. She didn't want me to sit in our seats much so we walked, we stood and we mostly watched the game on TV. All the while I couldn't imagine doing anything else.
Sure I wasn't sitting with my husband in our seats down the 3rd base line but I was with my daughter and we were bonding. I love being a Mom. I was pretty sure I would and it just feels right. Better than right, it is perfect. A dream come true.
I am facing the reality of having to go back to work in 2 weeks and I am NOT looking forward to it. I am deeply going to miss our days together. Sometimes we hang out at home and other days we hit Target or go for a walk. It is going to be different come August 10th and I hate that. The one plus is that I don't work standard 9- 5 hours so I should be able to be home most days by 1pm.
I think it is probably a good thing that I am not going to be the one to drop Peanut off at Grandma and Grandpa's or at daycare. I wouldn't leave. I want to stay with her. You can be for sure that I will be hurrying home from work so we can hang out again at least for a little bit before nap time.
Just when we were finally settling in to our new schedules things are going to change. Peanut is very adaptable, her Mom not so much. We will manage and it will get easier but those first few days back are going to be very tough. I can look forward to hiring a cleaning service though so I don't have to spend my time after work cleaning the house and can better spend it with Peanut.
Peanut pictures coming soon as baby girl is almost 8 months old :)
Sure I wasn't sitting with my husband in our seats down the 3rd base line but I was with my daughter and we were bonding. I love being a Mom. I was pretty sure I would and it just feels right. Better than right, it is perfect. A dream come true.
I am facing the reality of having to go back to work in 2 weeks and I am NOT looking forward to it. I am deeply going to miss our days together. Sometimes we hang out at home and other days we hit Target or go for a walk. It is going to be different come August 10th and I hate that. The one plus is that I don't work standard 9- 5 hours so I should be able to be home most days by 1pm.
I think it is probably a good thing that I am not going to be the one to drop Peanut off at Grandma and Grandpa's or at daycare. I wouldn't leave. I want to stay with her. You can be for sure that I will be hurrying home from work so we can hang out again at least for a little bit before nap time.
Just when we were finally settling in to our new schedules things are going to change. Peanut is very adaptable, her Mom not so much. We will manage and it will get easier but those first few days back are going to be very tough. I can look forward to hiring a cleaning service though so I don't have to spend my time after work cleaning the house and can better spend it with Peanut.
Peanut pictures coming soon as baby girl is almost 8 months old :)
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Daycare
So I toured the daycare facility that we are looking at sending Peanut to for 2 days a week. My gracious in laws will watch her 2 days and then I have a day off during the week so 2 days was all we needed. First off it is VERY challenging to find part time daycare for a child under the age of 2 so my options were limited. This particular daycare had a good reputation and my neighbor sends both of her girls there and will send her third there as well. Now keep in mind that I loved that I had to look for a daycare but hated it at the same time.
The staff was very friendly when I arrived. The place was clean and well kept. They have security cameras around the perimeter and in each room so everything is monitored. If Peanut does something while we aren't there like take a step or roll over and we want to see it all we have to do is ask. I thought that was pretty neat. All the doors require a 4 digit code to get in and the doors of all the rooms have alarms on them so if a child is trying to escape staff will hear it. All the play yards are fenced in and it is far from any street really which is nice.
The director showed me around the rooms and introduced me to the staff. Lot's of sleeping babies while I was there. The caregiver to child ratio is 4 infants to 1 staff member and then there are floaters that go between rooms when needed and 5 additional administrative staff on hand in case there is chaos which I was assured has never happened.
The walls are all brightly colored and there were lots of toys and interactive activities in each room. There is a curriculum even for the infants. They have different developmental things they work on each day and that curriculum gets more intense as the children get older.
I was assured that the staff would follow whatever schedule we have Peanut on in terms of naps and food. We will provide them with a crib sheet, bottles, diapers, wipes and anything else she will need. The staff will also write up a daily sheet about what Peanut was doing that day to go home with us.
Overall I really liked the place. I could see us taking Peanut there and being happy with our choice. So when I asked when we would need to make a commitment to hold our spot for August, I was told the sooner the better. Wow! Who knew I had to plan that far in advance. Well, I took a leap of faith today and registered Peanut for daycare staring in August. I paid the registration fee and first month to hold our spot. I am still a little shell shocked that I had to sign my baby girl up for daycare and I haven't even met her yet. I guess before you know it I will be evaluating preschools and getting her signed up for that too.
The staff was very friendly when I arrived. The place was clean and well kept. They have security cameras around the perimeter and in each room so everything is monitored. If Peanut does something while we aren't there like take a step or roll over and we want to see it all we have to do is ask. I thought that was pretty neat. All the doors require a 4 digit code to get in and the doors of all the rooms have alarms on them so if a child is trying to escape staff will hear it. All the play yards are fenced in and it is far from any street really which is nice.
The director showed me around the rooms and introduced me to the staff. Lot's of sleeping babies while I was there. The caregiver to child ratio is 4 infants to 1 staff member and then there are floaters that go between rooms when needed and 5 additional administrative staff on hand in case there is chaos which I was assured has never happened.
The walls are all brightly colored and there were lots of toys and interactive activities in each room. There is a curriculum even for the infants. They have different developmental things they work on each day and that curriculum gets more intense as the children get older.
I was assured that the staff would follow whatever schedule we have Peanut on in terms of naps and food. We will provide them with a crib sheet, bottles, diapers, wipes and anything else she will need. The staff will also write up a daily sheet about what Peanut was doing that day to go home with us.
Overall I really liked the place. I could see us taking Peanut there and being happy with our choice. So when I asked when we would need to make a commitment to hold our spot for August, I was told the sooner the better. Wow! Who knew I had to plan that far in advance. Well, I took a leap of faith today and registered Peanut for daycare staring in August. I paid the registration fee and first month to hold our spot. I am still a little shell shocked that I had to sign my baby girl up for daycare and I haven't even met her yet. I guess before you know it I will be evaluating preschools and getting her signed up for that too.
Monday, February 16, 2009
Quiet...
Sorry I have been quiet lately just not a lot going on. Got tired of blogging about my spending sprees on adorable clothes for Peanut. I fully admit I have a problem when it comes to shopping for baby clothes.
Not much is going on. We are just waiting. Waiting for the days to pass and hopefully quickly. We won't get new measurements for Peanut for another couple of weeks and our court date is about a month and a half away.
We are starting to think about donations that we will be bringing with us when we do get to travel. We hope to bring one or two big suitcases full of much needed items.
We also decided that we probably won't be able to go to the CHS sponsored picnic in Minneapolis this year. They just informed everyone that the date is June 20th and if all goes well we will only be home about a month. As much as I would LOVE to go and meet everyone I have 'met' online, it is just too soon to be making an overnight journey out of town. Things could change but I just want to make sure we are all settled as a new family before we go to big events like that. I want Peanut to be settled with us. I want to make sure we are all healthy and not fighting off bugs that may have hitched a ride back with us. If we lived closer and could go home if it was all too much then maybe... I guess we may have to wait until next year.
A bunch of families have court dates at the end of the week so I will be busy saying prayers that they all receive great news before weeks end and don't have to wait over the weekend not knowing. Hopefully, they get to travel real soon to be united with their little ones.
Tomorrow, I am taking a tour of a daycare facility here in town. I only need daycare 2 days a week come August and this is one of the few places that offers that as an option. My neighbors send their 2 children their now and recommend it so hopefully it will all work out.
Not much is going on. We are just waiting. Waiting for the days to pass and hopefully quickly. We won't get new measurements for Peanut for another couple of weeks and our court date is about a month and a half away.
We are starting to think about donations that we will be bringing with us when we do get to travel. We hope to bring one or two big suitcases full of much needed items.
We also decided that we probably won't be able to go to the CHS sponsored picnic in Minneapolis this year. They just informed everyone that the date is June 20th and if all goes well we will only be home about a month. As much as I would LOVE to go and meet everyone I have 'met' online, it is just too soon to be making an overnight journey out of town. Things could change but I just want to make sure we are all settled as a new family before we go to big events like that. I want Peanut to be settled with us. I want to make sure we are all healthy and not fighting off bugs that may have hitched a ride back with us. If we lived closer and could go home if it was all too much then maybe... I guess we may have to wait until next year.
A bunch of families have court dates at the end of the week so I will be busy saying prayers that they all receive great news before weeks end and don't have to wait over the weekend not knowing. Hopefully, they get to travel real soon to be united with their little ones.
Tomorrow, I am taking a tour of a daycare facility here in town. I only need daycare 2 days a week come August and this is one of the few places that offers that as an option. My neighbors send their 2 children their now and recommend it so hopefully it will all work out.
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