A Wonderful Day

Some days just work out better than others. How this happens exactly I don’t know. Maybe we got more rest. Maybe I got a little me time that made me more patient. Maybe the boys ate their breakfast better and their blood sugar was more stable. Who really knows. Some days are a struggle just to get through without any injuries, other days, everyone seems magically happy and connected. Yesterday was one such day.

I woke up around 6 am from a dream about my oldest starting kindergarten. In reality he has another year, but I’m already having kindergarten anxiety. In the dream, we got lost on the way to school, and when we got there, he had been assigned to another classroom, with a fairly lackluster teacher and a very tiny classroom only big enough for the desks. I was unhappy, ready to pull him out and take him home with me, but he was happy and excited… then I woke up. Lying in bed listening for the sounds of my boys waking up (they are really early risers!), I got the idea to play school for the day. Why not turn my anxiety into a positive, right?

Together The Owl and I made a schedule for the day’s lessons:

Welcome/Circle Time
(we sang a good morning song and did nursery rhymes with The Tiger)

Sentence Writing
(with Dolch flash cards)

Morning Project
(we colored and built a house of cards)

Snack Time
(Tiger got to be snack helper, we had Trader Joe’s cheese crackers)

Recess
(We made a chalk bike track in the driveway inspired by this post)

Field Trip to Water Park
(Played in the slip n’ slide in the backyard)

Lunch

Quiet Time/ Naptime
(took a break b/c The Tiger needed a nap)

Story Time

Music Class
(free play with instruments and a Baby Einstein CD)

Art Class
(painting)

Having a schedule and following it really kept the boys interested through the day, and we didn’t fall into the usual afternoon slump of “What do we do now?” I find most of the times when the boys are difficult, they are simply bored and in need of some activity.

All in all, a great day, and something I should try again sometime. It requires some planning, but is totally worth it.