The Next Chapter Begins

So we are done with the first two weeks of school, and what an eventful two weeks it was! Let's take them one at a time.

First, the Tornado had his first full week of school. He's pulling the same routine with the socks/shoes that Bear pulled everyday. I told him he was out of luck because I had extensive experience dealing with this tactic. He's apparently doing well in school, with the possible exception of sharing. Yes he's one of three kids, but since he's the only boy and with 4 years in between, it's as if he's an only child. He relayed a story to me about his teacher telling him to get more rest one night so that tomorrow wasn't such a "big deal".

One thing I've learned though, is that changes can be a big deal, particularly for a little kid. He asked me why I wouldn't help put his socks on for him anymore. Well, you are in school now and you are a big guy who needs to do it for himself. He responds, but you just did it the other day?? I didn't really consider how much adjusting he would need to do going full time. He's had to grow up so much all at once, and I think he's had a little bit of a struggle doing that, and it's been a little bit of a struggle letting him do it.

On to the Bear. Her teacher is probably the most soft spoken person in the school, but somehow she's managed to butt heads with the teacher, at least in her mind. She's feeling pretty good about herself these days, as she knows how good of an athlete she is; she's popular with the other kids, including the boys; and she does well in school. Despite these things, she's always looking for attention it seems. I can't figure it out, and I'm hoping it calms down a little as she gets older.

Adding to her self-esteem, she won an election to become a class representative. She won in an old fashioned run off, where the teacher counted the run off votes, one by one, aloud. The Bear came out on top, I can't imagine the devastation that would have occurred had she lost so publicly. But she won, so all is well in the land of the Bear.

As for O, it's been a rough two weeks. First, she started middle school, and part of that change is that she changes classes/teachers every period. This wouldn't seem to be a big deal, but she likes her routine, and this different schedule every day has thrown her for a loop.

Secondly, she tried out for the volleyball team on the 3rd and 4th days of school, and got cut. Never mind that she has never played volleyball, never practiced it, so not a huge surprise that she didn't make it. This turn of events did present an opportunity for me to discuss working for things you want, preparation, and enjoying what you do. She told me she enjoyed doing the triathlons, and missed that we haven't done any lately. So by the end of the next day i had a training schedule put together, and we've been working that. I love going out there with her and spending time exercising. It's a great time to let them talk and just listen, she opens up so much more.

Finally, O lost out in her bid for class representative. She's in a mixed home room with 7th and 8th graders, and two older kids won. She understands it, but mix in that her sister did win, and it sure hurt. One of the kids who won has been giving her a hard time at her locker every day too. That was a little salt in the wound. We talked through a strategy to try to avoid him, and hopefully this issue will go away. 6th grade was my least favorite year of school - I told O that maybe we hit the refresh button and say 6th grade starts for real tomorrow. Here's hoping it works!

The CEO has been going through lots of changes at work, personnel, workflow, all kinds of stuff. That's always disconcerting, and I would imagine even more so as the sole breadwinner. She's a trooper, and tries to never bring home that stress, but it's been bothering her. I do my best to be a good listener, and I hope that it helps.

For me, the last two weeks have been an adjustment too. The house is so quiet during the day now. I've been able to get back to running, and I'm working a lot in the yard. I started my new part time job, which I'll describe in the next post. I get excited when I'm in car line and I see the three of them running to the car. I love hearing their voices when the door opens and they jump in. I love seeing their smiles when they see me. There's a comfort that I have being with them, a good feeling that I can't get anywhere else (and I mean everyone in the family). I hope I provide that for them as well.

Now Go Have an Adventure!

The day is finally here. Honestly, I never really thought it would come. For almost 5 years, pretty much 5 days of every week, for 8 hours every day, it was just me and the Tornado.

I know how blessed I was to have that time. As my friend told me, most Dads don't get to spend that much time with their kids their entire life. And that's true; to be at home with him, see all of his firsts, be there for so many ups and downs was a gift.

But mostly it was just the time together, actually just BEING together, that I treasure the most. I kept trying to think of something to do with our final day before school started, something really really special. As I thought more about it, I realized it was just the togetherness that is what I wanted to celebrate. So we woke up and had breakfast together. Then we watched a couple episodes of Phineas and Ferb while cuddling on the couch. We had a little snack, then we built some train tracks, as we did pretty much every day. We played for a while on the playstation, and had some lunch (SpongeBob mac & cheese!). We played football catch, hit some baseballs, then came in and read some books. Then it was time to pick up the girls from school, and our time as just Daddy and the Tornado was over.

At bed time I went to tuck him in, and read Zen Shorts to him. After the book, I laid down for a minute and told him how much fun he would have at school. How he was going to make some great friends, and learn lots of fantastic things. He looked at me and started to cry. I tired not to cry too, it was really tough. Then he said,"I'm gonna miss you when I'm in school." I lost it. I gave him a big hug, and told him how much I loved him, and left the room. Mommy went in and talked with him for a little. I went back in after regaining some composure, and told him we could still build tracks and play baseball and all that good stuff every day. He said OK, and smiled, and rolled over.

Mommy and I dropped him off this morning (after saying his shoes didn't feel right - ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!), and he ran to see his good friend Gray. He dropped his stuff in his cubby, and hustled to the ring toss game. Then to the cars and blocks. He was trying to get Gray to play with him, but Gray was having a tough moment leaving his Mom. After a few minutes, they were doing their thing together, big smiles and wide eyes. The teacher told them all to sit as school was ready to begin, and time for us to leave. One last hug and off we went.

I am so happy for him! He hasn't had his own friends for so long, and I know he's gonna love it. That doesn't make it any easier for me unfortunately. When I walked back into the empty house, and didn't hear "can I watch my show", or "can I have a snack", or "wanna play football catch", I felt sad. I know it will pass, and I'll find something to fill the time. But nothing will fill the light of joy I've had every day spending time with my son. I love you buddy, now go have an adventure!!