so i'm sure i should have put more thought into this than i have...and as it is, i'm still slacking big time...but somehow i just can't wrap my head around the idea that caleb is going to need to start preschool sometime soon. i also can't wrap my head around the idea that we'll be shelling out $600-$800 a MONTH to pay for it. yikes.
as of right now i have apps printed out for our lady of good counsel, alphabetland and keiki care center...i still have to call leeward community college's childcare center because they seem to have a pretty good program that would suit the needs of caleb. the thing is, i don't even know if caleb is going to have to go to preschool this coming year or if he's going to have to wait an additional year. right now the bill that would extend junior kindergarten to cover his year is waiting to be heard by the house finance committee on monday. until we know what they decide, it's still unclear as to where caleb will need to be next year. if they extend it, he'll have to go to preschool in the fall. if they don't, he'll have to wait an additional year because i'm not sending him for two years. how parents afford to send children to preschool and then private school is beyond me. preschool is the only private school these two kiddoes are getting unless they somehow earn a full-on scholarship somehow.
first things first, though...he has to get potty trained before we even think about preschool. i'm thinking this summer i'll have to potty train both of them at the same time. brynna shows some signs of being ready...the boy, though, still very resistant.
Saturday, March 31, 2012
Saturday, March 24, 2012
dentist
yesterday the kids had a dentist appointment and i must say that as we were waiting, i felt like the parent that all the other parents were looking at and thinking, "sheesh, look at her kids." caleb was more active than usual and he and brynna were climbing up and down the stair thing, jumping off each level, running here and there and making tons of noise. at one point i wanted to turn brynna's dress around because it was on backward and she proceeded to pull it off and not want to put it back on. i was feeling verrryyyy embarrassed.
when the assistant came out to call us in, off bounded caleb, loudly saying in his sing-song voice, "hi aunty!" brynna put up a little bit of a fight to go in since she was playing with a toy, but luckily she followed her brother's lead and even said, "hi aunty" quietly when we went in. of course, caleb excitedly greeted the dentist in the same way, "hi aunty!" and proceeded to jump up on the chair and open his mouth before they were even ready for him. the only thing he refused to do was put the spit sucker thingy in his mouth...he played with it and sucked water out of the cup with it, but didn't want to put it in his mouth.
next was brynna's turn, and seeing as how we have to hold her down and force her to brush her teeth while she cries and yells, i thought for sure it was gonna be a battle. nope...she sat on that chair by herself, opened her mouth for the dentist, let her brush for a good two minutes or more, and even let her put the fluoride on her teeth. little miss show off i tell you! i was pleasantly surprised...and greatly relieved!
one note - being the clueless brain-farter that i am...after we brushed their teeth and were heading out the door to the dentist, what do i do but give them each a peanut butter cheese cracker thingy to eat...goodness gracious! what an idiot!
when the assistant came out to call us in, off bounded caleb, loudly saying in his sing-song voice, "hi aunty!" brynna put up a little bit of a fight to go in since she was playing with a toy, but luckily she followed her brother's lead and even said, "hi aunty" quietly when we went in. of course, caleb excitedly greeted the dentist in the same way, "hi aunty!" and proceeded to jump up on the chair and open his mouth before they were even ready for him. the only thing he refused to do was put the spit sucker thingy in his mouth...he played with it and sucked water out of the cup with it, but didn't want to put it in his mouth.
next was brynna's turn, and seeing as how we have to hold her down and force her to brush her teeth while she cries and yells, i thought for sure it was gonna be a battle. nope...she sat on that chair by herself, opened her mouth for the dentist, let her brush for a good two minutes or more, and even let her put the fluoride on her teeth. little miss show off i tell you! i was pleasantly surprised...and greatly relieved!
one note - being the clueless brain-farter that i am...after we brushed their teeth and were heading out the door to the dentist, what do i do but give them each a peanut butter cheese cracker thingy to eat...goodness gracious! what an idiot!
little miss brynna
right before break we took brynna for her 2-year appt and i told the doctor that we were a little bit concerned about her speech...not that she wasn't talking, because she's starting to pick up, but more because the clarity of her speech, to us, is pretty bad. of course we don't have much to compare it to except caleb, so we know that our perception might be a little bit skewed. caleb started talking a little bit later (21 months or so when he really started kicking it into high gear), but from the beginning he was always pretty clear and very vocabulary-rich. his memory is one of his strongest traits, so picking up language was easy for him because he's really good at mimicking. he picked up his alphabet and songs and memorizing books really quickly. that was our baseline, so we definitely were concerned with brynna's speech (or lack thereof). doctor referred us to a free early intervention program that would do a consultation and diagnosis and offer services for brynna and us if needed.
the other day we had a meeting with the lady who is going to be our care coordinator. she met with us for almost an hour and asked us to describe brynna and what she's able to do and what our concerns are. it was kind of funny being the parent in that meeting because it was run very similarly to a sped meeting and we've always been on the other end of those. we got our booklet of rights and all the information on the referral process...very familiar to anyone in the doe. in talking to this lady, though, and telling her what our expectations were and how we were basing this off of what caleb does, i think that we may be wasting their time. first of all, brynna has a significant buck teeth issue because of her thumb-sucking...and if you try to talk with your teeth sticking out at the top, your speech does become slurred. that might be a big part of the problem. part of me thinks that we just expected too much, but i'm so glad that they have these services available for us since it could be that there are other issues that we haven't noticed or we could actually be right about her having some speech issues.
my only worry is that when the speech therapist and occupational therapist come to do the consultation (which is supposed to last about 2 hrs!), brynna will be her uncooperative self and won't do or say what they ask her to. i'm praying that she'll surprise me, like she did at the dentist yesterday (i'll write about that later), and be more cooperative than i'm thinking she'll be. we'll see what happens.
the other day we had a meeting with the lady who is going to be our care coordinator. she met with us for almost an hour and asked us to describe brynna and what she's able to do and what our concerns are. it was kind of funny being the parent in that meeting because it was run very similarly to a sped meeting and we've always been on the other end of those. we got our booklet of rights and all the information on the referral process...very familiar to anyone in the doe. in talking to this lady, though, and telling her what our expectations were and how we were basing this off of what caleb does, i think that we may be wasting their time. first of all, brynna has a significant buck teeth issue because of her thumb-sucking...and if you try to talk with your teeth sticking out at the top, your speech does become slurred. that might be a big part of the problem. part of me thinks that we just expected too much, but i'm so glad that they have these services available for us since it could be that there are other issues that we haven't noticed or we could actually be right about her having some speech issues.
my only worry is that when the speech therapist and occupational therapist come to do the consultation (which is supposed to last about 2 hrs!), brynna will be her uncooperative self and won't do or say what they ask her to. i'm praying that she'll surprise me, like she did at the dentist yesterday (i'll write about that later), and be more cooperative than i'm thinking she'll be. we'll see what happens.
spring break updates
i was a little bit afraid of what a week on maui, at my dad's house, would be like. happy to report, though, that it was a lot easier than i expected!
the first part of our trip was a little bit hectic as i hadn't realized just how many peeps travel during spring break. the airports were madness and we had some mishaps with luggage when we first arrived. at the time it seemed beyond ridiculous, but looking back on it now, things actually worked out pretty well. the kids' seats and my mom's suitcase didn't make it on our flight, which made for some craziness because we had to go rent the car and just as i was about to rent seats from the car place, hawaiian called saying that the seats and my mom's bag were in. sucky part was that it meant i had to head back to the airport to pick up the bags...by myself...while dave stayed at the car place with the kids since we had no seats for them. then the dang security guard guy told me that i couldn't just park at the curb for two minutes...i had to go around, park in the lot, then walk to pick up the bags, carry the humongous bag with two seats on my shoulder (just picture that ridiculousness) and roll my mom's bag, battling the high winds all the way back to the parking lot. dave was waiting with the two kids on the side of the road, had to install the two seats (which for anyone who's installed seats, always ends up taking longer and being more difficult than you expect it to be, especially in a strange car), and by this time we were all starving since it was way past lunch time. we got to my dad's house, though, and the relaxation began!!
well, not really. i was worried that my dad's house would be filthy since he's the only one living there now (not that the ex-wife had frickin cleaned in years anyway, though). in fact, the house was probably cleaner than when the woman was there...my dad is actually a pretty neat guy, but being a guy, he doesn't pay attention to the smaller details, so there was dust and dirt in places that i'm sure haven't been cleaned in decades. anyways, it was really bothering me that the woman's clothes were still hanging in all closets of the house and that her knickknacks and shit were everywhere, so i started cleaning and throwing crap out. by the time we left at the end of the week i was proud to have put all her clothes in bags, cleaned stuff out of drawers and threw away a bunch of unnecessary crap. i'm not sure why my dad hadn't done these things yet, but i think he put away anything that was visible to him and as long as it wasn't in his sight, it didn't bother him.
all of us slept in my sister's room...i'm pretty sure the bed is a queen size but it felt tiny with the four of us. it didn't make for good sleeps at all. caleb slept with my dad for a couple nights and that made for better sleeps for us, but worse sleeps for my dad cuz he was worried caleb would fall off the bed (which he did once). my dad thoroughly enjoyed having the kids at his house and we got to visit with aunties and uncles which was really good too because we hardly ever get to see them. caleb is just entertaining, and brynna really started warming up to people and being a lot more friendly than she was in the past. caleb fits right in on maui cuz to him everyone is aunty and uncle and he makes friends everywhere he goes.
the culmination of our trip was my cousin's wedding...which was tons of fun cuz they kept it light and totally un-serious. the kids looked adorable in their little outfits and it was so cool to see all the family and some friends i hadn't seen in years.
overall, our trip to maui was nice...we didn't do a whole lot of adventuring, but the kids got some quality time with family and that's what's most important.
the first part of our trip was a little bit hectic as i hadn't realized just how many peeps travel during spring break. the airports were madness and we had some mishaps with luggage when we first arrived. at the time it seemed beyond ridiculous, but looking back on it now, things actually worked out pretty well. the kids' seats and my mom's suitcase didn't make it on our flight, which made for some craziness because we had to go rent the car and just as i was about to rent seats from the car place, hawaiian called saying that the seats and my mom's bag were in. sucky part was that it meant i had to head back to the airport to pick up the bags...by myself...while dave stayed at the car place with the kids since we had no seats for them. then the dang security guard guy told me that i couldn't just park at the curb for two minutes...i had to go around, park in the lot, then walk to pick up the bags, carry the humongous bag with two seats on my shoulder (just picture that ridiculousness) and roll my mom's bag, battling the high winds all the way back to the parking lot. dave was waiting with the two kids on the side of the road, had to install the two seats (which for anyone who's installed seats, always ends up taking longer and being more difficult than you expect it to be, especially in a strange car), and by this time we were all starving since it was way past lunch time. we got to my dad's house, though, and the relaxation began!!
well, not really. i was worried that my dad's house would be filthy since he's the only one living there now (not that the ex-wife had frickin cleaned in years anyway, though). in fact, the house was probably cleaner than when the woman was there...my dad is actually a pretty neat guy, but being a guy, he doesn't pay attention to the smaller details, so there was dust and dirt in places that i'm sure haven't been cleaned in decades. anyways, it was really bothering me that the woman's clothes were still hanging in all closets of the house and that her knickknacks and shit were everywhere, so i started cleaning and throwing crap out. by the time we left at the end of the week i was proud to have put all her clothes in bags, cleaned stuff out of drawers and threw away a bunch of unnecessary crap. i'm not sure why my dad hadn't done these things yet, but i think he put away anything that was visible to him and as long as it wasn't in his sight, it didn't bother him.
all of us slept in my sister's room...i'm pretty sure the bed is a queen size but it felt tiny with the four of us. it didn't make for good sleeps at all. caleb slept with my dad for a couple nights and that made for better sleeps for us, but worse sleeps for my dad cuz he was worried caleb would fall off the bed (which he did once). my dad thoroughly enjoyed having the kids at his house and we got to visit with aunties and uncles which was really good too because we hardly ever get to see them. caleb is just entertaining, and brynna really started warming up to people and being a lot more friendly than she was in the past. caleb fits right in on maui cuz to him everyone is aunty and uncle and he makes friends everywhere he goes.
the culmination of our trip was my cousin's wedding...which was tons of fun cuz they kept it light and totally un-serious. the kids looked adorable in their little outfits and it was so cool to see all the family and some friends i hadn't seen in years.
overall, our trip to maui was nice...we didn't do a whole lot of adventuring, but the kids got some quality time with family and that's what's most important.
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
so neglected
i have been neglecting blogging big time. not really sure why...i haven't been overwhelmingly busy (well, no busier than usual, i think). maybe it's because i'm rarely on the computer now, except at school. at home i'm either on my phone or on my ipad and i can't (or won't) blog from those devices. now our main computer has broken down and we're using a super old emac, which is functional, but not pretty at all...lol...so that will probably make me blog even less.
anyways, here's some new things...
my nephew is here with us this week so the four of us have been sleeping in our room so pres can sleep on caleb's bed. tonight pres is staying at his brother's place, so i'm not sure if caleb is going to sleep with us...and that makes me a little sad. he's been sleeping in the crib and brynna's been on the bed with us. going to bed is nice because the four of us get into bed, dave and i read to them, then we read or play on the ipad for a little while and then once i turn off the light, the kids go to sleep pretty quickly (well, either that or i go to sleep pretty quickly so i don't know that they're not also sleeping...hehe). on sunday we're going to maui and will be staying at my dad's house for most of the week so that should be interesting because i'm thinking that we'll probably be sleeping in separate rooms - me and bryn in one room and dave and caleb in another. we'll see how that goes. it's the longest we're ever going to stay with my dad and i'm pretty sure that by the end of the week he'll be glad to see us go so he can have some peace and quiet again. lol.
brynna had her 2-year appt today (poor second child, mommy forgets to call in and make her appt so it's far away from her actual birthday, not like brother's appts which were always near his bday). she refused to do anything the doctor asked her to...didn't want to say "eyes, mouth, nose or ears" even though she knows those things and can say them. she refused to take the little piece of rubbish and put it in the glass jar. she refused to stack the blocks. she refused to even say bye to doctor when it was done. she's such a stubborn little girl...gosh. we have been lax and let her use her sippy cup until now but doctor said we have to force her to use the straw...and thus far, she's refusing. we're going to have a big fight with her tonight because she always wants milk before she goes to sleep...but doctor said we can't give in to her, even if it takes 5-7 days to break her habit. we're in for some crappy days and nights. we said we should wait until after we get home tomorrow so my mom doesn't have to deal with it tomorrow while we're at work. right now as i'm typing she's sitting on my lap and making me stretch my arms around her because she has to be sitting just so...and now she's trying to put her feet on the computer.
caleb has recently made us realize that "bad" words need to stop coming out of our mouths because he's picking them up and using them (in the right context too!). the first one he was "holy shit" when the wind was blowing really hard. that's straight out of my mouth. we've heard him say "g-dammit" (that's all my mom) and "frickin" (dave and me). last night dave told me to shut up and both kids started saying, "mommy, shut up." goodness gracious. now he recognizes when the bad word is said and will tell us that it's a bad word. wonder how my dad will handle since he says at least one bad word per sentence...lol.
i'm really looking forward to this spring break...but i thinkwe're going to need a break from the break since we'll be on maui for most of it. it also makes me sad to think that i only have a quarter left with my kids...i really, really like them this year.
anyways, here's some new things...
my nephew is here with us this week so the four of us have been sleeping in our room so pres can sleep on caleb's bed. tonight pres is staying at his brother's place, so i'm not sure if caleb is going to sleep with us...and that makes me a little sad. he's been sleeping in the crib and brynna's been on the bed with us. going to bed is nice because the four of us get into bed, dave and i read to them, then we read or play on the ipad for a little while and then once i turn off the light, the kids go to sleep pretty quickly (well, either that or i go to sleep pretty quickly so i don't know that they're not also sleeping...hehe). on sunday we're going to maui and will be staying at my dad's house for most of the week so that should be interesting because i'm thinking that we'll probably be sleeping in separate rooms - me and bryn in one room and dave and caleb in another. we'll see how that goes. it's the longest we're ever going to stay with my dad and i'm pretty sure that by the end of the week he'll be glad to see us go so he can have some peace and quiet again. lol.
brynna had her 2-year appt today (poor second child, mommy forgets to call in and make her appt so it's far away from her actual birthday, not like brother's appts which were always near his bday). she refused to do anything the doctor asked her to...didn't want to say "eyes, mouth, nose or ears" even though she knows those things and can say them. she refused to take the little piece of rubbish and put it in the glass jar. she refused to stack the blocks. she refused to even say bye to doctor when it was done. she's such a stubborn little girl...gosh. we have been lax and let her use her sippy cup until now but doctor said we have to force her to use the straw...and thus far, she's refusing. we're going to have a big fight with her tonight because she always wants milk before she goes to sleep...but doctor said we can't give in to her, even if it takes 5-7 days to break her habit. we're in for some crappy days and nights. we said we should wait until after we get home tomorrow so my mom doesn't have to deal with it tomorrow while we're at work. right now as i'm typing she's sitting on my lap and making me stretch my arms around her because she has to be sitting just so...and now she's trying to put her feet on the computer.
caleb has recently made us realize that "bad" words need to stop coming out of our mouths because he's picking them up and using them (in the right context too!). the first one he was "holy shit" when the wind was blowing really hard. that's straight out of my mouth. we've heard him say "g-dammit" (that's all my mom) and "frickin" (dave and me). last night dave told me to shut up and both kids started saying, "mommy, shut up." goodness gracious. now he recognizes when the bad word is said and will tell us that it's a bad word. wonder how my dad will handle since he says at least one bad word per sentence...lol.
i'm really looking forward to this spring break...but i thinkwe're going to need a break from the break since we'll be on maui for most of it. it also makes me sad to think that i only have a quarter left with my kids...i really, really like them this year.
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