preschoolers reanbean Tiny & Buba: first film kiddie party library shopping snow
by reanbean
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Just the Highlights
Last Monday, T and I had planned to take Buba and Tiny to open skate at our local ice rink and let them try out the new skates that Santa had brought them. Unfortunately, it seemed that everyone else had planned to spend the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday at the ice rink as well. We couldn’t even find a place to park, so we had to tell the kids that we’d have to break in the new skates another day. They were horribly disappointed, so we drove around trying to find a pond that was frozen enough to skate on. No luck. Just hasn’t been consistently cold enough (not that I’m complaining). So instead, we drove to Grammie’s and invited ourselves to lunch. The kids always enjoy visiting with Grammie, so it was a great distraction and a nice visit.
Monday night we got a few inches of snow, and Tiny and Buba were beyond excited to see the yard and street covered in glistening, white snow when they woke up Tuesday morning. They wanted to go out and play immediately, but I insisted that we have breakfast and get ready for school like we always do. However, I told them if we could all get ready quickly, which requires a great deal of effort and cooperation on their part, we could go out and play before they had to go to preschool. Then I had the brilliant idea that we should skip playing in our yard and go straight to school to play in the schoolyard. Both Tiny and Buba were extremely motivated to get ready and out the door, and we had a great time playing outside at school. There weren’t any other kids there when we arrived (about 30 minutes before the start of the school day), and the yard was pretty much untouched. Buba immediately began making snow angels and Tiny soon joined in. They cleared off all the swings and slides, and we made a small but happy looking snowman right outside their classroom door. And the best part was, when it was time for school to start, we were already there! No whining or complaining about having to stop our play to get in the minivan and go to school. They just walked right in and got on with the day.
Thursday morning, we found ourselves without plans and decided to head to the library for storytime. We had been regulars at storytime for the past two years, but we hadn’t been once since the kids started preschool. Our days have just been so busy. But Buba and Tiny jumped at the chance to go and had a great time listening to their favorite librarian read and sing songs with them. Afterwards, I dragged them shopping with me so I wouldn’t miss out on spending some Kohl’s cash. I didn’t really plan to be there long, but five minutes turned into 15, which turned into 30, and before I knew it, we’d been there almost a full hour. But the reason I hadn’t noticed all the time passing by was because Buba and Tiny were so incredibly well behaved the entire time. They stayed right by me as I looked for things we didn’t really need, and in the end, I bought them both new Color Blast picture books. They totally deserved it.
Friday night, we got a few more inches of snow, and Tiny and Buba were all ready to go for another fun day of snow play. They went out for about an hour in the morning, and then went out for over an hour after quiet time.
They slept really, really well Saturday night.
Sunday morning, T headed out to Foxborough with Grammie just after 10 to get ready for the big playoff game (Grammie is a longtime Pats fan), so Tiny, Buba and I had the whole day to ourselves. It was only in the 20s, so I opted for indoor activities. We did a bit more shopping and then watched the first part of Mary Poppins (Tiny and Buba’s first feature film!). We’d watched a few clips on youtube, so they were psyched to sit down and watch the real deal. I popped some popcorn and watched them watch. It was so fun to see the excitement on their faces. We stopped the movie about 30 minutes in so we could all get ready to go to a party at an indoor kiddie playspace. Buba and Tiny had a great time running around (burning off energy) and had their first face paint experiences.
Before going to bed, we watched about 20 minutes more of Mary Poppins (at their request), and by the time I turned it off, they were already talking about how they would play a Mary Poppins game and who would be which character. We probably won’t see the next few scenes of the movie until the weekend, but they seem to be okay with that. For now, they’ve got all they need to keep the film alive for themselves. And it really is fun for me to see them loving a film and characters that I loved so much as a child.
Separate Playdates
Today, for the first time ever, Buba and Tiny had separate playdates. Back in September, they each had a playdate on his/her own with a friend while I did something with the other, but today was the first time they both had a playdate with different friends and at different houses.
This is actually something I’ve been wanting to do, and have been thinking about arranging ever since my conference with the kids’ teachers back in November. At the conference, we talked about how Buba was having some tough times at school, feeling sad and sometimes crying when Tiny would go off and play with a friend without him. Anyone who knows Tiny knows that she is as social as they come. She’ll approach other kids, even ones she doesn’t know well (sometimes even random kids at the playground), and try to engage them. And she talks constantly. But that’s just not Buba’s way. He’s very social with Tiny. He loves to play with her and will approach her and try to draw her into his games. But he’s not yet ready to do that with other kids. And even though he could join Tiny and the preschool friend she’s chosen to play with, he doesn’t. And he doesn’t even want to. When I asked him about this, he said, “I want to play with Tiny. Just Tiny.”
In the weeks that followed the conference, Buba has become less sad at school. He enjoys playing at all the different stations around the room, and he loves, loves, LOVES his teachers. From what I can tell, he still hasn’t connected with any particular classmate, but his teachers both say that he is friendly, funny, and well liked by his peers. All is well and good as far as his social development goes.
But, recently I’ve noticed him feeling somewhat left out at playdates. Typically, when we meet up with a friend, it’s just one other three year old (usually another girl) or a three year old with a younger sibling. And often Tiny is quick to connect with the friend and get her going in a game or some sort of pretend play. Buba will try to join in, but sometimes doesn’t seem to know how. And once he gets frustrated about being left to play on his own, the unpleasant behaviors start to emerge (whining, throwing toys, picking on Tiny).
During a playdate a few weeks ago where Tiny and another little girl (J) were playing nicely while Buba complained about not having the toy he wanted, I mentioned how I thought it might be time to try to separate their playdates every now and then. I just wasn’t sure how I’d work it all out since most of our playdates occur during the day when T is working. Very kindly, J’s mother offered to have Tiny over for a playdate sometime so that I could take Buba off to a playdate of his own. I knew Tiny would love the idea of having a playdate with a friend without me being there, so I started to try to figure out how to make it work for Buba. I emailed a friend who has a little boy (O) the same age as Buba, and we were able to work out a day and time that would work for all three parties.
And today was that day. After lunch and an abbreviated quiet time, I dropped of Tiny at J’s house and headed over to O’s house with Buba. Buba was excited, but I could also see that he was a little nervous. However, O is much like Tiny, and worked pretty consistently to get Buba to play with him. The boys played nicely, but for the most part, they played near each other rather than with each other (though I’m sure O would have played with Buba more if Buba had been more into it). At the very end of the playdate, as I was calling Buba to get his shoes and coat on, the two boys were sitting and playing a game together (go figure!).
Tiny was bursting with news when I picked her up from J’s house. She and J had come across some ink pads that J uses for stamping projects, and had covered their whole hands with green ink! Tiny’s pink baby was wearing one of J’s baby’s outfits, and Tiny was walking around in a pair of J’s slippers. Clearly she had felt very comfortable there on her own, and J’s mother reported that the two girls had played very nicely together. And watching the girls hug before Tiny left was just so, so sweet.
Of course, Tiny and Buba were happy to see each other again. They both shared a few things they had done during their playdates, and Tiny presented Buba with a picture she had “made” for him (technically she didn’t draw it, but it was very sweet that she thought to bring a picture from her playdate for him). When we got home, Buba and Tiny played very nicely on their own while T cooked dinner and I paid bills.
I’m sure this sort of thing will happen more naturally as the kids get older, but I’m still glad I made the effort to get it started now. I don’t imagine we’ll do these types of playdates all the time, but even once a month would be a good start. Many thanks to the two other moms who helped make this possible. Both my kids had a great time and can’t wait for their friends to come and play at our house sometime soon.
preschool preschoolers reanbean Tiny & Buba: lost parent/teacher conference Santa
by reanbean
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The Day We Saw Santa
Two weeks ago, Tiny, Buba, and I went to visit Santa at the mall. It was definitely the highlight of our day, but there was much more to our morning than just a photo session with the big guy in red.
First up that day was a parent/teacher conference with Buba and Tiny’s teachers. I ran plenty of conferences back in my classroom teaching days, and it was really interesting for me to be on the other side of the table this time. The teachers had written up narrative progress reports on each child, and it was fun to see what they chose to point out.
From Buba’s report: Buba explores the room freely. He loves the moon sand and playdough and spends good amounts of time manipulating these materials…His teachers have noted his long attention span and ability to concentrate on the task at hand…Buba has a terrific sense of humor and is well liked by his peers…Buba is well able to occupy himself independently…
From Tiny’s report: Tiny is an incredibly happy child who comes into the classroom with a huge smile and a hug for the teachers each day…Tiny is happy playing with friends or working diligently on an art project alone…Tiny is a kind and thoughtful friend to the other children…Recently she was overheard in the kitchen area saying to a friend, “What do you want? I’ll cook it for you.”
Needless to say, I was very pleased to hear how well both Tiny and Buba have transitioned to preschool. We are all loving their school and their teachers, and look forward to seeing how the kids continue to grow as the year unfolds.
After the conference, we headed down to the mall for our annual visit with Santa (year #4!). Both Buba and Tiny were very excited to see Santa, and went right up to him when they were called to sit on his lap for photos. After they’d had their pictures taken, Santa asked each of them what they would like for Christmas. Tiny responded that she would like Tinkerbell, and Buba answered with, “Um…toys.” Santa chuckled and reminded them to be very good for their Mommy and Daddy (something we’re constantly working on, of course), and then sent us away with a candy cane for each kid. Fortunately, Buba and Tiny do not yet know about candy canes and did not protest at all when I took them away and explained that I would keep these fragile decorations safe until we were ready to hang them on our Christmas tree.
Next the kids picked out one ornament each to add to their personal collection of ornaments that we started their very first Christmas. Tiny picked a fire truck, and Buba picked an ambulance.
Our last stop was to be at the Apple Store to pick up a gift card for a cousin’s birthday present. One interesting, but sometimes difficult, thing about this store is that there is no specific are for check out. A team member comes to you and completes your transaction on the spot using (I believe) an iPhone that is able to run a credit card (not sure if or how they handle cash transactions). So, we picked up our gift card, and then I let the Buba and Tiny sit down and play on the kid computers while I waited for someone to come to ring up our sale. The woman who came was having trouble getting a good signal where we were, so she stepped away from the computers towards the back of the store. I started to follow her, but then explained that I needed to be able to see my kids. She nodded, and I turned back towards the computers to see just Tiny sitting on the little stool in front of the computers.
“Where is your brother?” I asked her. No response. Panic creeps up my spine. “I’m sure he’s just browsing the store,” another team member offered, but one quick sweep and I knew he was no longer in the store. Major panic. I grabbed Tiny and tried to run. I’m sure I looked absolutely crazy, and for good reason. Fortunately, the team member remained calm. “What does he look like?” she asked. 3 feet tall. Brown hair. Bright yellow rain jacket. No sooner had I spoken those words and she was on her head set communicating the same information to every team member in the store. By the time I got out to the mall walkway, I could see an Apple member about three stores down with Buba, who was sobbing. It had only been about 45 seconds from the time I realized he was gone until we found him, but they were the longest and most terrifying 45 seconds of my life. I was shaking and crying as I picked him up and squeezed him tightly.
We paid for our gift card, and promptly left the mall. I felt horrible, absolutely horrible. The magic of the Santa visit was gone, replaced with guilt and disappointment. Buba and Tiny recovered quickly, but it still kills me every time I think about this. My kids are usually so good at staying right by me when we’re out and about, but this recent scare has made it necessary to have even more rules and consequences for behavior when I need to take them shopping with me.
Fortunately the magic of Christmas has prevailed. I won’t forget that horrible experience, but I can’t dwell on it forever either. We’ve got Christmas music playing daily in our house, and soon we’ll be baking and addressing Christmas cards. It’s a happy time of year, and it should feel happy. But you’d be right to think that I hold Buba’s hand extra tight whenever we go into a store, even if it’s just a quick trip. Lesson learned.
Tiny and Buba on Ice!
I know I learned to ice skate at some point when I was a kid, but I’m pretty sure I wasn’t 3 and a half when I started. However, having lived in New England now for almost 16 years, I know that our kids are going to need some fun, cold weather activities to get us through the long winter months.
It had been proposed that we put ice skates on Tiny and Buba’s Christmas lists, but before asking the grandparents to make that kind of investment, I decided that we should try out ice skating with them first. As luck would have it, our local sports center (soccer/hockey) had some open skate time today. And with T home from school (Veterans Day), it seemed like the best day to try it.
But our adventure was almost over before it began. We arrived at the ice rink only to find that the smallest skate size was a size 8 and our kids would need a size 6 or 7. However, kids under four skate for free and our guys were super, super excited to try it. So we slapped on those too-big skates and gave it a go.
Both Buba and Tiny were a little uncertain at first, but honestly, I was shocked at how quickly they were ready to be off on their own. Buba in particular, was very eager to skate all by himself with no help from anyone or anything.
Tiny was less steady at first, but quickly became the speedy one.
And Buba soon realized that he could cover more ground (and more quicky) when he was willing to use the double crate.
There were certainly a fair numbers of slips and spills, but overall, a good time was had by all.
milestones preschoolers Schedules & Routines Tiny & Buba: no more naps
by reanbean
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Quiet Time
Last Thursday, we tried having quiet time instead of nap time. It was something I’d been thinking about doing for a while. Both Tiny and Buba were still napping, but their nap time kept getting pushed further and further back (from the original start time of 12:30pm to the recent start time of 2:30pm) in order for them to be tired enough to sleep.
It was nice to still have the naptime- some downtime for all of us- but with a late starting nap, my kids were no longer falling asleep before 8pm most nights. And no matter how much I wanted that mid-day break, I knew that it wasn’t worth having 3 year olds who were still awake at 9 o’clock at night. So, we started to entertain the idea of quiet time.
I knew right away that for quiet time to really be quiet, Buba and Tiny would have to be separated- one in their bedroom and one in the living room. They would also need quiet toys to play with- things that could keep them busy and happy for more than a few minutes. So, I put together a bag for each of them, including puzzles, sewing cards, a Magna Doodle, their Tag Readers, and a few small stuffed animals. We talked about the rules for quiet time- stay in your quiet space, play quietly, rest or nap if you’d like- and then gave it a try.
I thought it might take them some time to get used to this routine change, but it’s gone very, very well from day one. Tiny and Buba alternate their quiet time space each day, and are pretty good about staying quiet the whole time (about 60 minutes). I’m still able to get lesson plans done during this time, and I often sneak in a catnap for myself. So far it seems to be a win-win situation. They seem to benefit from some downtime on their own (sometimes they even take a catnap themselves), and bedtime is back to 7pm with both kids asleep no later than 7:30 (often they’re asleep within minutes).
And when quiet time is over, both Buba and Tiny are so happy to see each other and play together again. They even extend quite time sometimes by pretending to nap together in their play tent.
Tiny are Buba are so proud to be big kids who don’t take naps anymore. And, I must admit, I’m proud of my big kids too.
Backtracking- Glueing Project
Back at the end of September, Buba, Tiny and I met one more messy milestone together: their first gluing project. This was not their first time using glue, but it was the first time I’d give the kids their own glue bottles along with some jewels and pompoms and just let them have at it.
It was quite an experience. I tried to be as hands off as possible, but it took a little hand over hand training to get both kids to realize how much pressure they needed to apply to get enough glue to actually make their craft objects stick. Once they seemed to get the hang of it, I walked away and let them work. It didn’t take them long to glue down all the jewels and pompoms I had given them, so I let them add a little more color with markers.
Buba made this lovely creation:
And Tiny made this lovely one:
They were both so proud of themselves, and of course, we have prominently displayed them on one of our kitchen cabinets, where we can admire them every day.
We have yet to repeat this project, but I’d definitely be less hesitant to do this or another glueing project again. It kept them busy, they were happy, and the mess wasn’t really all that bad.
(FYI: Washable school glue needs to be pretreated before going into the wash. It says so on the fine print on the bottle, which I didn’t read until the gluey spot on Tiny’s shirt turned into a hard, stiff stain after going through the washer and dryer.)