The best birthday present ever!

Just 4 minutes ago, at 10:30 pm, the night before my 37th birthday, I went in to check on Sarah like I do every night before I go to bed. I had already been in to see Justin and he was sound asleep. I open Sarah's door, and she's awake, just sitting up in bed. She was scratching her face (she has a nasty viral rash that is very itchy.) She saw me and very sleepily said "Happy Birthday Momma."

The best I could ever ask for! I love you!

**
She started with the rash yesterday. It got worse and she was awake for an hour last night crying that it was so itchy. Once the bendaryl kicked in and she fell back asleep, she was fine. But the cheeks were so bad today that I took her to the doctor. She supspects a viral rash that may spread and may last a while. Great. She will be looking so bad in her birthday party pictures. Just great. There is a slight chance it was a rash from wearing sunscreen for the first time this season on Monday afternoon. No clue. But, that is less likely since the rash is in some places I didn't put the sunscreen and definitely NOT in a lot of places I did. The rash is mostly on her face, neck, and upper arms, upper back and upper chest. It spread down her arms a little more today.

Sarah celebrates her birthday at school tomorrow. We made cupcakes. It also happens to be ice cream day at school so I need to remember to send in some of her ice cream.

Tidbits....

Sarah can tumble!!! 7 months in gymnastics class and she can officially tumble now! So exciting. Last week I said "yeah" when she tumbled during class, so the next time she tumbled, she looked right over at me to see if I say her. I clapped and she smiled! The kids have new bedroom stuff. New beds, new bedspreads, new rugs. And their new rugs are thick and padded so they can tumble on them. It is exciting to see her tumble in the house. They couldn't before since they can't tumble on hardwood floors.

Something I don't expect to hear when he's much older. But, for now, Justin LOVES school. So much so that he said told us today about the bad things kids said on the bus one day when it was raining. Justin told us "It was raining and they said 'rain, rain, go away, (and something about school is boring.)' That is so bad and not true. School is never boring!" Well, I am glad he at least loves it now.

Ahhh....the result of sending my kid to a Catholic School is that he and Sarah spent the weekend performing the Passion Play for Mick & I. No lie. At least 5 times they performed for us, and then they spent at least an hour practicing and performing their practices. No lie. Justin was the narrator and Sarah was Jesus. I videotaped it a couple times. And I took pictures a different time. It was all fun. And watching Sarah "fall" 3 times was very funny. The best was them running around at the end yelling "He's Alive! He's Alive! He's Alive!" and waving their arms. It was great to watch. I also enjoyed watching Sarah carry the cross. And after Jesus dies, Sarah would run behind the couch and hide in the tomb. I still can't believe how well trained Justin had her to do what he wanted her to do. It was great. Oh, and Sarah was adorable when she was baby Jesus and laying on the ground wrapped in the blanket.

The other night (Thurs night b/c Justin had Music class that day) Justin and Sarah spent about 2 hours playing music class. He was the teacher and he had his new grand piano (I guess the teacher has a new one.) He set his keyboard up on his low dresser (formely his changing table) and used his books to pretend they were his sheet music books. He spent the whole time singing religious songs. So funny!!

Thurs night Sarah and Daddy went out on their big date - to Daddy's Night Out at her preschool. I had her dressed up all fancy and we even added a necklace and bracelet. She looked adorable. She was so excited and had so much fun!!

The most wonderful happy Mommy day!

This morning was Sarah's preschool Christmas party. She was so cute. At the Halloween party she was quiet and seemed very uncomfortable. This time she seemed happy and confident and was totally into the songs. It was so fun to watch her. And her dance moves made me so happy. She even went up to see Santa! Oh my! She wouldn't look at him. She wouldn't talk to him. But she went up to him to get her present.

At home, getting dressed to go:


She sees Santa:


So excited to see Santa:







11 Pipers Piping:


6 Geese-A-Laying:


5 Golden Rings


A Partridge in a Pear Tree:






Sarah & Lexi:


Morgan and Sarah:


And then We went to Justin's Kindergarten Christmas Story Play. It was just the best. We laughed and smiled the whole time. When Justin finally had hid turn to be up front, he made the most of it just being extra charming with his smile.


The 3 Kings - JT, Justin and Matthew:






I couldn't stop laughing that he looked at me for so long and let me get some pictures. I raised him well:




Coming out for their introduction:


They were so happy and wouldn't move to let the next people come out. Again, couldn't stop laughing!:








And I also got to see this pretty outfit on my Baby:

No crying and no potty trips!

A great school day for Sarah. Again she was fine with going to school. And today she didn't spend any time in the bathroom at all!!! Ms Robin told me she kept asking her if she needed to go and Sarah kept saying no. Yeah! I am so glad she is over her bathroom fun!

I didn't cry!

Sarah can't stop saying "I didn't cry!" She is so proud of the fact that she did not cry at school!

She always gets the last laugh!

Yup, Sarah always has a way of telling me that she is the boss!

Today I sent Sarah to school in undies. She was so excited b/c if she was dry at pick up time we would go shopping for her dolly. (her reward for being potty trained.) So, off she went to school. And she never even cried! When I picked her up, Ms Robin said that she never cried, but that she did spend about an hour in the bathroom. She said she never peed but that she kept trying. Ugh! If it's not one thing, it's another. So anyway....

Off to the store. We got her a Baby Belle dolly at Walmart.

After we picked up Justin from the bus stop, we came home and Sarah went into Justin's room to play. OMG! She pooped. In her pants. And peed. Just like she used to when she'd go off and play by herself. It has been so long since she has done this. I was shocked.

She gets the last laugh. But, I have the power to take away Baby Belle if she does it again on purpose.

Sarah's version of the day

So I used the drop off for school today. The morning started out real rough. By 7:30 am she was crying and crying and crying b/c she didn't want to go to school. By the time we got Justin to school, she calmed down. We got home and I distracted her with Dora Mermaid immediately. When we left she whimpered a little, but not too bad. I managed to distract her a lot of the drive. We talked non-stop about a lot of fun stuff. When we got close to school she started up a little with "I don't want to go to school." I just kept talking. When we got to the front door and Ms Michelle came to get her, that was when the crying and screaming started. I was tough in front of her, but I drove away crying. This part of mommyhood sucks!

When I picked her up she was fine of course. But I was distracted and not able to ask how long she cried. (She had her lovie in her hands when Ms Michelle took her this morning. It wasn't in her bag and I needed it back. Luckily the teacher knew where it was and went to get it for me.)


After school, Suzy was nice enough to call me to give me Lexi's version of the day. (Of course I didn't want to ask Sarah since I didn't want to even remind her.) SO, acoording to 3 yr old Lexi, Sarah cried for just a short time but stopped when she came into Ms Robin's room. No way to know how accurate this was of course. But Lexi did tell her that a different time they had to take Sarah into the office for a while, which is true. So...

Later Sarah told me that she was crying when they had to go outside for recess. I asked why and she said "Because Ms Robin made me go and I wanted my mommy." I asked if she cried for a long time or a little time and she said "just a little." And, I know she did her crafts this week, unlike last week.

Oh, and again, her pull up was dry. As soon as she got home she took it off to go potty. Yeah Sarah!

Sarah's side of things

As we were getting Sarah ready for bed tonight, we were talking about her school and some of the things she'd be doing at school tomorrow. Then she chimes in with :

Sarah: Ava cries
me & Mick: What? Ava cries? (lmao)
Sarah: Ava cries. She wants her mommy

So, that's her side of things, huh? We went on to tell her that she needs to tell Ava that her mommy will always come back when school is over, but that in the meantime there is still so much fun left to have at school.

Let's see if she buys it. lol

I am nervous about tomorrow morning. I am trying the drop-off where they will come and get her from the van instead of me bringing her inside. We'll see how it goes!

Sarah and school stuff

The good and the bad ---

Sarah has a rough time again today. She complained the whole ride to school that she wanted me to stay there with her. When I brought her in, she ended up clinging to me and crying. I had to wait for Ms Robin to finally pull her off of me. Oh, what a horrible feeling. But, again, at pick up time she was fine!

I called and talked to Ms Kate this afternoon. I called about the breakfast they are serving next week b/c of Sarah's lactose intolerance. But I also asked about today. She said that Sarah cried for about 15 minutes , on and off. They took her into the office to calm her down and about 10 minutes later Ms Robin came to take her back to class. I am going to try to do the drop off next week where Ms Michelle will come and take her from my van. We'll see if that goes any better. Oh and Ms Kate said that Sarah was fine by picture time. She said she had made a point to ask Ms Robin since I had been concerned b/c of all the tears. So, we'll see...

I also asked if she knew if Sarah was using the potty at all. She said yes. And she's using the big potty, not her potty ring. Wow! When we got home today her pull up was dry again so I asked her if she used the potty. She said yes and she told me it was the big potty when I asked. I just didn't know if I believed her. lol

So - good news and bad news.

Field Trip!

Sarah had her field trip to Riverview Orchards today. It was very cute and she had lots of fun! And, day 4 of dry pull-ups!

Ugh!

And so it starts...

not sure what happened to change her opinion on school, but now when we talk about going to school, she gets very upset and doesn't want to go. I am dreading next week! Right now she doesn't even want to go on the field trip tomorrow. Ugh!

But, she is still happily playing school and happily playing Ms Robin games when it is in the abstract setting.

I am so hoping she gets over this quickly.

Tough time for Sarah

Mick had the day off today and I had an appt at 9am. So, Mick brought Sarah to school. I should have known.

A. She woke up saying "I don't want to go to school."
B. She likes routine

She was ok-ish until Mick went to get out of the car at school. She just started bawling. His shirt ended up drenched from her tears. He finally got her into school and 2 teachers had to drag her away from him.

Ugh! If you've been there, you know the horrible feelings involved.

My poor baby.

She was ok when I picked her up. Ms Robin said things were tough for the first hour or hour and a half, but she got into things later. Poor kid.

Thursday is a field trip to Riverview Orchards at noon. No school in the morning.

I dread next Tuesday. I hope she's fine by then. Especially since it's her picture day at school.

My poor babe

She was very sad when I picked her up today. I think she thought I was leaving without her, but I am not sure. But she had tears in her eyes. When she came outside, Ms Robin held her back and said "wait here until Mommy pulls up" b/c the car in front of me was leaving. I think she thought I was driving away without her. Either way, it was a tough ride home. She was very upset about something and told me she missed me. I hope she's ok at dropoff on Thursday.

Sarah and school

Copied from my mommy and scrapping boards...

oh my...oh my...oh my....I Finally have some good news! I hope I can stop being such a downer now!

I called a whole bunch of preschools. No luck. Then decided to call one of the really good ones and told her “I have a question for you. I am sure the answer is no, but do you have any openings in the mornings for your 3 yr old program?” She went to check and her exact words were “OMG! You are not going to believe this, but someone just switched out of the mornings to afternoons this morning.” OMG!

They allow pull ups.
They allow me to bring her potty ring in and leave it at school.
They just want you to tell them where she is and they will work with her!!!!!
Open house is tomorrow morning.
School starts Thurs.

Really, the only drawback is that it isn’t where I wanted her to go and it’s 20 minutes away v/s 3 mins.

But it’s a very good school. I know several moms who love it. When I mentioned one of my friend’s names, she was all excited that Sarah knew someone and was gonna switch someone else around so Sarah could be in class with Lexi.

I am so stunned, still a little sad, but so excited!

How can I not do this instead? OMG!!!!

There is a lot I still need to find out, like what to do for Sarah’s snack problems - can’t have lactose, etc. But this really seems meant to be.

Thank you so much for all of you that have listened to me and talked to me about this. Your support meant a lot.

I think Sarah and I will be much happier at this place than forcing her to do something she’s not ready to do at the other school.

I am still stunned.

Oh....and Sarah LOVED gymnastics and ballet. Loved them!!!

My week is off to a good start!

Although - Justin’s principle called me this morning to tell me the answer about the potty seat ring. I am not kidding - panic freakin’ city. It was 1 yr ago this Friday that I got the call that Justin ran out of school and into the road. When she started talking to me about Sarah, I was like “Wait! So this isn’t about Justin? Oh thank God!”

*****
update
Tonight she went and sat on the big potty, without the ring. Yup. You couldn't make this stuff up. She never peed while she was on it that way. But, when she went to sit on and I was like "sarah!" , she said "it's ok mommy, Justin showed me his trick." OMG! Really, this could only happen to me.
A few minutes later she ran back in though and wanted the ring. And she looked up at me so sweetly "my school will let me use the ring?" I smiled at her "Yes Sarah, the new school will let you use the ring."

I am now back to being confused. But I think I will bring her to both orientations tomorrow just to see how she does. I think I will start her at ABC and keep her enrolled for a few weeks at St Mary's. Really, she might now be able to handle it, somewhat, at St Marys. But she really is not potty trained. Only at home. She still has a LONG way to go to be where St Mary's wants her to be. So, I think she'll feel better at ABC. I know it will be more comfortable for her, and given her other fears right now, that is important.

Ok, maybe she just isn't ready

I want Sarah to go to preschool. Preschool is fun. And I think preschool is so good for kids. It teaches them how to be away from their momma, how to listen to a teacher, how to make friends, how to clean up, how to sit quietly, how to share with others, etc.

I will be crushed if she can't go to 3 yr old preschool.

But I am very nervous about so much:
- The potty training thing. She still won't use the potty in public. And she doesn't care at all when she wets or poops in her pants. I cannot make her use the potty at school. She has to want to do it.
- She is so scared of so many things. See my other post.

So maybe she isn't ready. If so, I will really need to find peace with this or rush off to find her a new school that takes pull-ups.

This whole thing is stressing me out every day!

Preschool

I am hoping Sarah will be ok in preschool. She starts in 2 weeks. Crazy. Isn't she supposed to still be a baby? lol

I am hoping Sarah will be ok. I have many worries.

- She is still not really potty trained. She CAN do it, but she has yet to keep her undies dry in public.
- She is not close to the point of being able to use the big potty without a potty seat ring on it. I am going to ask if I can donate a ring to the school, but I am not sure they can allow it. If they say no, I doubt she'll be able to stay in school. Someone would have to hold her on and I don't think she'd be able to perform b/c I think she'd be too scared.
- She had many fears. And when she gets scared, she gets VERY scared. She gets scared by some toys and some pictures. Scared to the point you need to hold her tight and get the item out of the house. It is not for attention. She is truely terrified and shakes like crazy. She holds onto you for dear life. It is so sad to watch her be so scared.
- She is such a momma's girl (and daddy's girl) and I don't know how she'll react when we get there and I have to leave her.

I am so hoping things work out and that she'll be ok. I think she will have so much fun. I think she will love having little girls to play with and there are a lot of girls in her class.

I am so nervous and excited at the same time.