It's that time of the year again! Line up, troops! Backs straight and eyes forward! Pencils sharp and lunchboxes packed!
It's.....
BACK TO SCHOOL TIME!
And as if to herald this busy time of the year, I was on the phone for over an hour the other day making all the necessary doctor and dentist appointments. (Gotta keep those kids in tip-top shape, dontcha know!) I even scheduled a check-up for the dog!
And last night, I was going over various extracurricular classes for the kids to take this fall. In the end, I chose swimming, gymnastics, karate and music for the both of them. (Well, Jesse's not old enough for karate yet, but he, too, will be taking swimming, gymnastics and music. He'll also have a "toddler playtime" class on days he doesn't have preschool.) Despite the busy schedule in place with all of these activities, Jennifer wants to do one or two more things! As it is, she will have Friday and Saturday "off." I told her, "You will be grateful for those days off!" Still, she wants to do more. So I thought that maybe it would be a good idea for me to find a "mommy and me" class that we could take together, on Saturdays. Since Jesse will have a "mommy and me" class for the swimming, it's only fair that Jennifer has one, too. We've narrowed it down to a few options: Yoga, art and cooking. I hope I can find something that will take place on Saturdays. She wants to be a chef, so I am hoping I can find a cooking class we can take together. (I love to cook, too, so that should be fun!)
We've been buying the kids new clothes and shoes for the new school year. Jennifer also wants a new backpack, even though her dad says the one she has now is fine. But we both think it would be neat to have a new backpack for the new school year, so we'll keep our eyes peeled for a good one. She also wants a new lunchbox. After three years with the same old lunchbox, I agree that it's time to retire it for something new.
As to Jesse, I am planning to enroll him in the same preschool Jennifer went to. This time, however, he'll be attending two days of the week, instead of four. I also want to start him off on the "half day" schedule, just until he gets used to this. (OK, OK. Until I get used to this, too!) We have been working on pottytraining him, to get him ready for this. That in itself has been a work-in-progress. He has done well with it but just having trouble recognizing when he has to go to the bathroom. So we have to keep asking him, "Do you have to go potty?" So we are working with him on that. I can't believe my baby boy is almost three years old! Time sure flies. Wow.
But I know this will be good for him. He needs to build those social skills and explore his physical skills. I have every faith in Kim to be able to work with Jesse and also nurture his creative growth. I just hope we can still get him in there!
It's not just the kids who are going to school this year. I will be "attending" school, too! But, only on a part-time basis -- one, on account of the baby, and two, because the school I'll be taking classes at is soooo far away. It's about an hour away! And, three, because by going part-time, it won't cost an arm and a leg to take the class. I'm starting with ONE class and I'll work my way through it. The classes I'm taking are mostly available online. I think there are one or two of them I'll need to take that are not available online at this time. But that can come later. By the time I'll need to take those courses, the baby will be in kindergarten (not a baby anymore!), so I'll have time to make that commute. I have been talking with an instructor of the courses and checking out what I need to do. This is for the medical coding job. The training will last for 3-4 years at the rate I am going -- which is fine by me, really. I need to have this time so that I can still be available for my children and be at home until the baby is older. I DO want my kids to be independent and self-sufficient, but they are still too young for a lot of things that go with that.
Overall, it's going to be a REALLY busy autumn/winter. Of course, I'll also have to get Jennifer signed up for basketball, when that time comes. (She plays it every year.) I'm excited about this new adventure and I know the kids will be happy to learn all these new things, too. They have enjoyed their "lazy time" during the summer. Now it's time to get back to that old school desk, and to get busy!
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3 comments:
Sounds busy! I hope your activities for the kids are on different days of the week. I knew a woman who so over scheduled they were having to leave one activity to get to another one late! My kids have done every sport under the sun and for a time they did 2 sports at once combined with piano lessons, girl scouts and at the time Caitlin also played flute in the band. As they get older the sports get more expensive and finally you have to just choose one or two. Swim team alone for my kids costs 180 a month, with 500 down payment, and 500 commitment to fundraising! Not to mention goggles, caps and speed suits!!! But this is their chosen sport and its good exercise.
Isabel is doing swim team, girl scouts and band, Caitlin is just doing swim team, because she is so advanced at school and has 3 AP classes this year, and she volunteers at Noah animal rescue every week.
Good luck with school Dawn!
Wow you DO sound busy this autumn/winter but that's great! You're an awesome mom & it's great you know what your kids need. :) It's exciting to know that next time we see Jesse that we'll be able to have a convo w/ him (it might be small but still! lol). He sure is growing & he's obviously proving he wants to be a "big boy" and not a baby anymore by learning all this stuff such as potty training. I think it's great you & Jen will be taking a class together! :)
Thank you, Nancy. :) Yeah, they're on different days, fo sho. Gotta have some time to do that homework! :) Holy cow, $1000+ for swimming??? Jeez Louise! That's pretty darn expensive. I don't blame you for keeping it low on account of cost. As it is, both kids have one expensive class: Music. But it's cheaper compared to their being taught by a private tutor. All the same, if it's something they like and that they want to continue, I'll opt for the private tutor. Yes, swimming IS good for the health! It's an excellent exercise. I hear it's also good for the back. Did you hear that legend about how humans used to be dolphins?? Maybe that's why so many people take to the water. LOL I'm glad your girls have their desired activities, though. It's good they know what they want to do!
Thanks, Millie. :) For the most part, I'm trying to see where they REALLY want to participate. This will be their first experience in gymnastics, though Jen has been begging me to sign her up for years. I want to see where they TRULY want to be a part of these activities and, from there, plan accordingly in the future. At least they get to try stuff out, but I have a feeling the swimming thing will stick. Jesse is DEFINITELY turning into one big talker. He can speak in complete sentences and understands a lot of questions and things we say to him. I'm excited about taking a class with Jen, too! But I hope I can find one in the afternoon. There's a women's self defense class is on Saturday mornings I am planning to enroll in, so I'll have to see what's open for us afterward.
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