A day at home

Last night the children had their annual "Holiday Tea and Sing".   Their school rents a large auditorium and the children from all of the classrooms gather onstage and sing a series of culturally diverse Holiday songs they have been practicing for the past several weeks. Afterwards, the parents, teachers, and children gather together for Tea and Cookies that the children baked in their classrooms.  It is an adorable night.  Hearing the children shout/sing and so earnestly perform all of the hand motions to the songs is just delightful.  

And it makes me fully realize that they will only be this special age just once and for such a short period of time.  

So, it should have been no surprise to me that when the children woke up this morning and started playing a bit, I didn't rush them into their clothes and out the door like normal.  I let them play and play and play.  

The whole day.  

I sometimes plan to do this --take a break from school and just enjoy being with the children. We usually do something planned and fun-- like make crafts, visit a local attraction, decorate for the holidays.  But, this was the first time that we stayed home just because.  

Just because they are little and precious and the days go by all too quickly.  

So yesterday we played together the whole day at home.  We played babies and puppies and doctor and a couple of new pretend games of library and zoo.  And at times the children preferred to play just with each other and I was happy to stand back and observe the world from their perspective and see their imaginations in action and see how they delight in and participate in the world around them.  So, yesterday I had the wonderful chance to see them eat their snack with no hands from a plate on the floor "just like puppies" and to hide from a big green dragon in Alexander's tent and to squeeze hand soap onto the shower floor to "practice skating".   All the cliches are true-- it is impossible to anticipate the joy and love that you'll have as a mother.  It is really the most amazing gift.  

Today is a new day and the children happily went off to school where their friends and teachers and "work" awaited them.  And I am home looking at their little slippers, little books, and little clothes and missing them terribly.  But I don't feel sad.  I just miss them.  They are off experiencing their lives and growing and blooming and I will be there to catch them back in my arms and to delight in all that is new about them.  And to look forward to the next time that we just take a day off to play, play, play.

First parent-teacher conferences.

Today was Alexander's and Avery's first parent-teacher conference at their new school.  While I didn't expect any issues or problems to come up in it, I did wonder what their teacher would cover as it provides a glimpse into how she thinks about the children and their growth.  I was so thrilled to learn that she thinks about them just the way Eric and I do--as multi-faceted, ever developing, interesting little people.  After just 3 months with them, she KNOWS them and all the little qualities about them that make them so wonderful and unique.  

For Alexander, she spoke for awhile on his kindness, gentleness, self-discipline, focus, and inquisitive nature.  She spoke about how the other children seek him out as a work partner. The younger children like how he patiently and clearly explains things and is not bossy or pushy.  The older children like him because he stays on task, is reliable, and a good contributor. On a social level, she noted that he is really coming out of his shell (Alexander is not technically shy, but he takes a little bit of time to adjust to new situations).  She said he initiates conversations, allows others to join him in projects, and asks to join others.  He still prefers to watch a bit and "hang back" in less familiar groupings, but we both suspect that as he gains more experience he'll jump in more readily.  

I love that she is not pushing him in this area by putting him on the spot or pressuring/forcing him to join in a group he is observing, but handling it just the way I would-- giving him lots of opportunities for growth and the space to develop/try new skills when he's ready.   I love that she already trusts and knows that he will get there in his own time.  And he will get there-- I will forever remember driving an hour round trip every day to the zoo so that Alexander could work up the courage to join the kids at the splash park.  After a couple of months, he was the kid confidently running through all of the spouts and leading the way for less certain kids.  He definitely likes to watch a bit and see how things work before jumping into something new. 

She also spoke about how he confidently approaches difficult tasks, doesn't shy away or get easily discouraged from new jobs that are initially hard, and is more often than not seeing inevitable mistakes as simply a part of the learning process (rather than a horrible frustration and something to be avoided at all costs-- his initial perspective on mistakes).  Eric and I are both perfectionists and have been working with Alexander on a "healthy perfectionism"--to have high standards, but embrace the entire process (which includes mistakes and setbacks) in reaching ones goals.  (Something Eric and I are still working on).  It is wonderful to see this healthy philosophy nurtured in the classroom and Alexander making such great progress in this area.  It is something we have been working on since he was about 2.  It was so clear in all that she said how much she adores Alexander, how well she "gets" him, and how well loved he is by her.  

As for Avery, she spoke at great length about the special heart and personality of our littlest one.  She described her enthusiasm, positive attitude, eagerness for learning and doing what is right, her loving nature, and magnanimous spirit.  She noted that Avery's personality lifts the atmosphere of the classroom.  She noted how children frequently come up to her throughout the day just to hug her.  How children love to take her by the hand to show her a job and how the older kids have taken to calling her "little Avery" or "amiga" (friend in spanish-- the children are in a spanish and mandarin immersion program).  Given that she is the youngest by half a year, I guess that would be everyone!  She talked about how she is just adored by the children and has such a positive spirit about her.  

She said that when Avery does get teary eyed about something, her happiness returns quickly and that she is eager to be happy again.  She noted that when Avery is corrected about something, she seems genuinely eager to learn the proper way.  She talked about how she loves classification activities, practical life jobs, and links what she is learning in the classroom to other things in her life.  She noted that she is patient, takes turns well, and completes the full work cycle without a reminder.  She noted her concentration, focus, and care in her work are very good, especially given her young age.   I love that her teacher not only sees her special qualities, but celebrates and nurtures them.  We feel very lucky to have found this school and feel very blessed in their teacher.