January 4, 2012 ~ Daycare Follow Up

Oh well. I'm skipping Drawn In this week. Instead, I'm opting for a follow-up on the post relating to issues at daycare.

Original post

After yesterday's issues with refusing to go to school, I finally had the opportunity to speak to the director and I used it. (With holiday and work schedules I was not able to catch up with her and did not have the time/ability to make an appointment). She happened to be in the office and not dealing with an unhappy parent or child this morning when I dropped the payment off.

See, not only is it the teacher being unprofessional, but the kids seem to be mean to him. Listen, I'm not going to blame the other kids. Kids will be kids and they are all much older than him, most by a year. And the difference between a three year old and a two year old can be huge.

Billy tells me that the other children call him "little baby" and "bad guy". He doesn't know how to respond to name calling, so he tells me that he calls them names back or hits them (the go-to toddler response when not getting their way).

I asked him who his friends were at school. He said "no one." But if I ask him who his friends are he will tell me "Cub", "A" and "J". He knows those kids- all children of my friends- will play with him and be nice to him. That's an issue.

I explained the situation to the director. Billy likes school, but since October he hates school and doesn't want to go. It's a problem. And while kids go through phases, several months is likely more than a phase.

She was very concerned and told me she would monitor him in the classroom to determine what's going on. She was surprised, given that he is on par with his three-year-old classmates in learning ability and even ahead of some in the potty training arena.

BUT... just because he can keep up intellectually with the three year olds, doesn't mean he's emotionally ready to be in that class. And the social dynamic is one of the most important parts of being in school. It's training for the adult world as much as learning "ABC".

I will follow up with the daycare's recommendation when I receive it.

January 2, 2012 ~ Drawn Furious

Well, normally I post a cartoon on Thursdays, but that requires thinking up something cute or funny that Billy did over the past week. I'm sure he did something funny or sweet, but nothing comes to mind.

See, this morning Billy absolutely refused to go to school. I tried brushing his teeth (we do every day) and that resulted in an epic meltdown over hating toothpaste, hating the toothbrush and then an utter refusal to let me rinse the toothpaste out of his mouth. Giving up resulted in him screaming and crying about wanting to brush his teeth.

Then I tried to put him in his coat. He refused. He bit me. He scratched me (and I've got the cut on my face to prove it). He kicked. He slapped me in the face multiple times. I realize I weigh more than he does (as Daddy often reminds me), but containing a ball of fury, regardless of size is near impossible.

So, since the fight was over putting on the coat, I gave up. Sure, it was below freezing this morning. So I grabbed a warm blanket of his, wrapped up the ball of fury as best I could, threw him over my shoulder and took him out to the car. Boy, he didn't like that.

He screamed the whole way to school about NOT wanting his blanket. Meanwhile, he clung with all of his might to that very same blanket. I can't win.

But he got to school and settled down.

So, after I settle down and think up something awesome, I will post a cartoon. (Well, it's just toddler being toddler, and it's all in a day of a mom, but my brain refuses to find the cutest thing he did this week. I come up with it tonight when he does something terribly cute and that ball of fury seems like some other terror toddler).

Happy New Year 2013!

Happy

New Year!

2013

We hope you had a fabulous 2012 and that this year will be even better!

Thanks for reading and we look forward to more wacky hijinks and 

sweet stories as Billy grows up.

From our family to yours.

New Year's Eve 2012 ~ Damp the Dinosaur

Santa brought Billy a dinosaur egg. All we had to do was put it in water and the dinosaur would hatch in a few days.

So, before we went to Grandpop's house, we put the dinosaur egg in water. This is how he looked before we left:

It's hard to tell in the photo, but you can see the egg breaking and the yellow dino head popping out. It was sitting in front of Billy's chair at the table so every day he could watch it hatch just a little bit more.

When we got back from Grandpop's the dino was fully hatched and ready to come out of the water and be Billy's new pet. But what to name him?

I'm pretty good at understanding what Billy says, but small words out of context still give me trouble.

He muttered a name to me.

"Dan?" I asked, thinking that's what he said.

"No!" he giggled.

"Dap? Dat? Pat? Sam?"

No, no, no. And more giggles. But then he started getting angry that I couldn't understand the name of the new dinosaur.

It really sounded like he was saying "Dap." But he kept petting the new pet and saying "da...p". Hmm. Oh! He's damp! (Because he just soaked in water for 4 days, so yes, he's wet).

And that folks is how Damp the Dinosaur got his name.

~

Totally unrelated to Damp, Billy got to go to a New Year's Eve party. He was a little confused, thinking it was still Jesus' birthday and he wanted to sing Happy Birthday! again. Well, it was someone's birthday there, so we did sing. He got to stay up until 10 with his friend T, but then it was off to bed.

In a moment of generosity, my toddler decided he wanted to give some of his Christmas candy to his friend T. We brought it over and the boys each got to have their very own piece of gourmet candy (from Grandpop) before the new year.

The Sunday Post ~ Easy Peasy Peanut Bark

Easy Peasy Peanut Bark

What you need:

1 large bag milk or dark chocolate chips(your choice)

1 large bag white chocolate chips

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/2 can of roasted salted peanuts

microwave safe mixing bowl

spatula or spoon

jelly roll pan (cookie sheet with sides)

tin foil

Step one:

Line your jelly roll pan with tin foil. Don't use a cookie sheet- the sides of the jelly roll pan are important.

Step two:

Melt the dark chocolate. 

Melting chocolate: Put all of the contents from the bag into your mixing bowl. Then microwave for 30 seconds. Take out and stir with the spatula. Repeat microwaving for 30 seconds and then stirring until the chocolate is melted. Don't overcook! It is very easy to burn the chocolate. While it may seem tedious to stir every 30 seconds, it will keep the chocolate from burning.

Step three:

Spread the chocolate onto the jelly roll pan in a thin layer. Get close to the edge but don't let the chocolate touch the edge. Make sure chocolate is in an even layer (as best you can)

Step four:

Melt the white chocolate using the same technique as the dark chocolate

Step five:

Add peanut butter and stir.

Step six:

Spread the white chocolate over the dark chocolate on the jelly roll pan. Try to get the white layer as even as possible. Then, mix the two chocolates to create a swirl pattern. (Hint: if the chocolates aren't mixed together well enough, the oil in the peanut butter will cause the two layers to separate).

Step seven:
Sprinkle the peanuts on the white chocolate

Step eight:

Cover with tin foil and press gently, pushing the peanuts into the chocolate.

Step nine:

Refrigerate overnight and then break into pieces and package or serve.

The Sunday Post ~ Easy Peasy Peppermint Bark

Easy Peasy Peppermint Bark

What you need:

1 large bag milk or dark chocolate chips(your choice)

1 large bag white chocolate chips

peppermint extract

12 candy canes

microwave safe mixing bowl

spatula or spoon

hammer

cutting board

jelly roll pan (cookie sheet with sides)

tin foil

Step one:

Line your jelly roll pan with tin foil. Don't use a cookie sheet- the sides of the jelly roll pan are important.

Step two:

Smash the candy canes. Leave them in the wrapper and smash with a hammer on a cutting board until you get pea-sized pieces and smaller. Then remove the wrapper and put the contents in a bowl to use later. (Hint: if you take the wrapper off before smashing you will have candy cane bits all over your kitchen).

Step three:

Melt the dark chocolate. 

Melting chocolate: Put all of the contents from the bag into your mixing bowl. Then microwave for 30 seconds. Take out and stir with the spatula. Repeat microwaving for 30 seconds and then stirring until the chocolate is melted. Don't overcook! It is very easy to burn the chocolate. While it may seem tedious to stir every 30 seconds, it will keep the chocolate from burning.

Step four:

Spread the chocolate onto the jelly roll pan in a thin layer. Get close to the edge but don't let the chocolate touch the edge. Make sure chocolate is in an even layer (as best you can)

Step five:

Melt the white chocolate using the same technique as the dark chocolate

Step six:

Add peppermint extract- 1/4 tsp or about 1 capful and stir.

Step seven:

Spread the white chocolate over the dark chocolate on the jelly roll pan. Be careful not to let the spatula touch the dark chocolate or your white layer will become muddy. Try to get the white layer as even as possible

Step eight:
Sprinkle the candy cane bits on the white chocolate

Step nine:

Cover with tin foil and press gently, pushing the candy cane bits into the white chocolate.

Step ten:

Refrigerate overnight and then break into pieces and package or serve

December 29, 2012 ~ A Trip to Grandpop's

I might have to start writing "PeePop" instead of Grandpop. Billy has taken to calling him that.

Anyway, we went to Grandpop's to do Christmas a few days late. Billy got his present from Grandpop and Nana:

So, now he has his Big Red Racecar AND a motorcycle.

~

Saturday morning started out with Billy screaming at 6am about a dinosaur in our guest room at Grandpop's. Not out of fear, mind you. Nope, he was excited about the dinosaur and wanted to play with it. After futile attempts to get him back to sleep, I gave up and got up with him. As it turns out, the dinosaur was just Daddy's feet in the blanket on our bed. Boy, Daddy has some big feet, huh?

Morning time was presents and playing in the kitchen with Grandpop while he cooked breakfast. Lots of children have played on the floor in that kitchen waiting for breakfast. I did. Grandpop did. His father did and even one more generation did too. Grandpop made bacon and eggs. I bet all six generations ate bacon and eggs in that kitchen.

Billy woke up from his nap screaming about a tiger coming to get him. He was terrified. It could have just been a bad dream, but while he was napping a squirrel happened to get into the attic and was running amok up there. I suspect he was hearing the squirrel in the attic.

He and Daddy went hunting for the squirrel, but they never did find it. We told Billy that the squirrel went home. He was obsessed with the squirrel in the attic. But, it was a good thing that the squirrel got in, because apparently it chased away that mean old tiger. By the way, it was a green tiger, according to Billy.

~

Grandpop was kind enough to offer to let Daddy and myself go out to the movies after Billy went to bed. We wanted to see the Hobbit. But, since Billy got me up at 6am, I fell asleep long before the movie ever started and we never made it. Someday, and someday soon, we hope to make it to the theater. Together. To see a movie. It's a little dream we have.