The REAL Reason for Preschool and Thoughts on Dora

In the last month, we have discovered the REAL reason why it´s a good idea to send kids to preschool! 
Now, keep in mind, I´ve taught preschool, and taken graduate level classes in early childhood education.  I can tell you any number of ways a child would benefit from a preschool education. 

But this year, as a parent of a preschooler, I have stumbled on the Number One Most Important Reason to send one´s child to preschool:  to boost their immunity! 

In the last 6 weeks, Clara has missed 2 weeks of classes, thanks to being sick.  I had a feeling this would happen, as Clara was rarely sick before this year (with the exception of spring allergies).  I was afraid that as soon as she started school, she´d be a magnet for any germ that would come her way. 

Nuts, I was right. 

But, on the upside, she´s naturally boosting her immune system, so (here´s hoping) that by the time she´s in elementary school, she´ll have a robust immune system and won´t have so many sick days.   Furthermore, this time around, she´s passing on her germs to the younger brother, so he´ll start his school days with some natural defenses. 

It´s not much fun at the moment, but I´m hoping that it will pay off in the end! 

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On a side note, it was always my rule with my kids that we do not watch TV unless we´re sick or if the weather has been really nasty for days on end. 

After Clara´s first bout with a cold a bit over a month ago, we developed a daily Dora the Explorer habit.  While she was sick, I said, ¨Sure--we can watch Dora!¨  But then, once Clara was better, we just kept watching Dora!  Where have my principles gone?  ;) 

However, Dora is on at 7pm.  It´s great incentive for the kids to eat dinner in a timely manner (as opposed to taking an hour or more to eat a bowl of yogurt) and take showers quickly.  Like any preschoolers, my kids are GREAT at doinking around, so telling them that ¨there´s 10 minutes until Dora is on!¨ really gets things moving. 

But, on another level, I really like Dora.  There´s goofy parts about her show--the repetitiveness, waiting for the audience to respond to a question--that I always thought was a little silly, but the kids eat it up.  They stand up and jump when she asks them to jump, they verbally answer her questions.  And when I say ¨they¨, I mean BOTH my kids.  Yes, Joey-child-with-next-to-no-vocabulary, VERBALLY answers as many of Dora´s questions as in can.  With real words.  In Spanish. 

Seriously, he´ll talk to Dora, but not with his own mother?  I may have to pull the plug.  Except he´s so cute!

And there´s another reason for keeping it on--it´s in Spanish.  Sure, Clara is getting much better Spanish exposure through school, and Joey is really learning it through Tía Patty, but . . . the more they get the better, right?  Sure.

But you know how´s Dora is a wee bit bilingual?  When she´s Spanish-dominant (on TV in any Spanish-speaking country), all her English comes out with an accent.  Now, that´s not necessarily a bad thing, but surely they can find a Dora voice that is rather accentless in both Spanish and English, right?  Apparently not, as ALL the characters (except Tico) have really thick accents.  Which sounds even more ridiculous when Dora asks my English-dominant children to tell a character to ¨STOP¨ in English.  However, Dora says ¨stop¨ with a long O, and my English-dominant children will repeat it back to her--with the long O! 

sigh

It seems Dora is around to stay.  And, overall I am OK with it, or I could bust out Big Bad Mommy and pull the plug.  However, it is rather ironic, as the week before we started the Dora habit, I filled out a survey at Clara´s school.  The very last question:  How much TV does your child watch in a week? 

Very smugly, I wrote down, ¨Less than 1 hour a week!¨

I knew I was far too smug when I wrote that!

Thoughts on Preschool

Now that we´ve been doing the whole ¨school thing¨ for nearly two months, we´ve got some patterns established and observations that we´ve made.  

1)  Clara still enjoys school, playing with the kids, cutting and pasting, playing ¨chase¨ with anyone who will chase her, etc.  

 2)  We´ve gotten a lot of information about Diego, a boy in her class.  Apparently he had a rough transition to school, following instructions, etc.  Clara still gives us daily, unasked-for updates on Diego´s progress (or lack thereof, somedays).  For the first few weeks, Diego seemed to be her only interest in school. 

3)  Fortunately, her interests have expanded in the last month, and now we get updates on the other girls in her class.  Who played with her, who has a new backpack, who threw up in class.  You know, the things that make a four-year-old´s world turn. 

4)  I´ve been very impressed with the homework that Clara´s teacher assigns.  My only experiences with Mexican preschools have been in private schools, and the director that I had in Metepec insisted that I give the kids homework EVERY DAY.  I felt rebellious giving them homework only 4 days a week.  (Knowing in my head that it´s ridiculous to give a preschooler any homework at all.)  Clara´s teacher, being a good deal smarter than that director, only asks for homework once a week, or once every other week.  Usually it´s before a holiday, and we (the parents) are to explain said holiday to the child and they draw a picture, or cut out pictures from magazines about anything having to do with said holiday.  That´s the kind of homework I can get behind.   The piece of homework above was a reflection on the United Nations, as they celebrated the founding of the United Nations on October 24th. 

5)  The only complaint with school is that she seems to get pushed and hit a lot.  I´ve walked past the school at recess time and all the kids have recess at the same time and it´s just a giant free-for-all.  I´m guessing that most of the hitting and shoving happens simply because preschoolers don´t tend to pay attention to their surroundings, so having 100 preschoolers running amok in a fairly confined space makes for any number of accidents waiting to happen.  On a daily basis. 

However, Clara is also not quick to defend herself (to put it mildly).  So she may be a bit of a target.  Mario and I encourage her to hit back when someone hits her first.  From what she says, her teacher encourages her to retaliate, too.  (I love this woman.)  Growing up, I can´t say I ever heard in a school setting that it was OK to hit anyone, even if they hit you first.  It was always, ¨take it to the teacher, take it to the teacher, blah, blah, blah . . . ¨ (Keep in mind, I never went to preschool myself.)  So I´m really happy that this teacher wants to encourage her to stand up for herself and is actively teaching her to defend herself, instead of letting her slip into being the perpetual victim. 

A friend of mine also suggested that she learn how to pray for problem children.  So tonight when she was praying for her friends, I suggested that we pray for another little girl, who Clara said that nobody likes because she hits and pushes everybody.  After we did that, Clara mentioned that Pushy Girl is doing a lot better.  Here´s hoping that´s the case!   

6)  And finally, Clara has been recruited by the speech therapist.  She doesn´t have any noticable speech problems, but the therapist will just work with her to increase her Spanish vocabulary.  Apparently, for her assessment, they didn´t realize that she spoke English at home (strange, because her teacher sure knows), so I can just see Clara sitting before a stack of flashcards they wanted her to identify, over and over saying, ¨I don´t know, I don´t know, I don´t know.¨  Until it finally dawned on her to explain that she knew how to say all these words in English!  Poor kid.   

She is doing really well and her Spanish has improved tremendously in the last two months.  Today, I even caught her using indirect objects, direct objects and both forms of the past tense!  (Yes, Spanish has two forms--and my four-year-old is beginning to dominate that!)

Obviously school has much to do with this improvement, as does Tía Patty coming back to live with us (so Joey´s getting solid Spanish exposure, too!) or if it´s also thanks to our new-founded Dora the Explorer habit.  Even Joey yelled at the TV this evening for Mapa to come out of Dora´s backpack.  (Of course, he called it Papa.)

But in the end, we´re really happy with school and pleased in our choice of schools.   

And I still can´t get over how stinkin´ cute she is in her school uniform!

All About Joe

As I figured, I am really enjoying all my Joey-time, now that Clara is in school for three hours a day.  At just over two years old, he´s got a lot going on, and surprises me all the time with new things he can do and the ways he shows us he´s understanding the world. 

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  Entertaining himself on the walk back home from school.

  
  His speaking skills are FINALLY taking off!  It became clear sometime this summer (like August) that ¨mama¨ really meant Mama.  For the longest time, he only said Mama when he was mad, so I wasn´t sure if he was taking to me, or if it was just the sound he made when he was mad.  Once he got over that stumbling block, the words are starting to roll off his tongue, and this week it seems that he´s learning a new word every day.  His vocabulary so far: 
• Papa--he just mastered this this week, but hoo-boy, he´s got it down! 
• quack-quack--really, this was his second ¨word¨, as all summer he´d quack at the ducks, geese, pigeons, any bird at all merits a good ¨kak-kak¨
• hot--he says, ¨ha¨ but I know what he´s talking about, as he only spouts this when he´s in the bath or eating.  Then again, the other day he hurt himself, I gave him an ice pack, and he proclaimed the ice pack to be ¨ha¨. 
• The other day he really got going on saying ¨hi¨ to me and Clara.  But I haven´t heard much of it since. 
• He attempted to say ¨apple¨ this evening.  I´m curious if we´ll hear it again soon. 
• The other day he asked Mario for ¨agua¨ without prompting.  Knocked my socks off!
• When he really, really wants more of something, he will ask, ¨mo´¨  He first said ¨more¨quite clearly way back on Christmas Day, but we haven´t heard much of it since until these last two weeks or so. 
• When he was trying to figure out how to say ¨Papa¨, he´d get all excited and stand at the door when Mario came home, shouting, ¨Mama!  Mama!¨  At least he now has the Mama/Papa distinction down.  However, asking him about other people in his life goes something like this:
• Me:  Joey, how do you say, ¨Clara¨?
• Joey:  Mama
• Me:  How do you say, ¨Tía Paty¨?
• Joey:  Mama   [glad to know that I´m so interchangable]
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  One evening, he insisted on wearing Clara´s school apron and backpack, then happily waved goodbye to us and trotted off to ¨school¨. [This is also the first picture I´ve taken of him when he smiled when asked to smile!  Huge milesone for the child of a mamarazzi!]

  
  He went potty!  I wasn´t even planning to try potty training him yet, but one night when he was running around naked before his bath he plopped his naked self down on the potty chair and when he got up there was something in it!  I was almost wondering if Clara hadn´t left something in the potty earlier in the day, but then again tonight (a week or so after the first incident) he did it again!  I´ve heard that second children are much easier to potty train, and I´m getting some pretty strong signs that that´s a true story!  Keep your fingers crossed! 

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  Paints with four brushes at once--what an artist!

  He´s fighting me in the bath, because HE wants to put the soap on himself and scrub it around.  At that stage, I know I let Clara do her bath mostly by herself, and took pride in how independent she was.  But bathing Joey myself is just so easy that it hasn´t crossed my mind this time around to let him try his hand at it.  Now that he´s insisting, I guess there´s no way around it. 
• Still likes to paint, draw, dance, brush his teeth, play with his cars, push doll strollers, run around, throw balls, try to catch balls, put things in boxes, play with electrical outlets, read books (especially about airplanes), climb, and take bites out of apples.  
• He really, really likes his accessories.  When I put his hat and sunglasses on him, they do not come off until he´s good and ready--usually a good hour or two after we´ve been inside.  If I put a sweatshirt on him in the morning, it does not come off.  Period.  No matter if the noontime temperature gets close to 90, that boy loves his sweatshirts.  If he could figure out Clara´s headbands, he´d probably get equally attached to those, too.  

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A friend had given us a pack of stickers and I HAD to give him a lightning-bolt scar, just like his world-famous birthday buddy! 

The Big Day!

Our yearly visit to Indiana was so timed to end the weekend of Uncle Dan and (the newly minted) Aunt Tadj´s wedding!  We figured it was worth missing the first two weeks of school in order to attend.  And we were right!

The only picture I took of both Dan and Tadj . . . sorry
it wasn't more flattering!

Clara was the flower girl, and did a very thorough job, despite plenty of misgivings during the rehearsal. 

Joey was a dancing machine during the reception.  I can count the number of songs he did not dance on one hand.  

Mario was able to join us, for his first weekend off since the beginning of June--thanks for getting married, Dan and Tadj, for giving him a reason to have a weekend off!

But most importantly, we´re over the moon about the fact that Tadj is officially part of our family now.  She´s the best thing to happen to us since . . . cheesecake! 

That wasn´t the widest hint, I´ve ever written, was it?  ;)

The big, red barn at Salomon Farm where the reception was held.

Dan and the bridesmaids.

Mario and the dancing kids!

Joey making short work of the coloring books that Aunt Tadj made.

The flower girl and her chapstick-eating brother.
It was the only way to keep him quiet while they took pictures.

First Day of School

After a month away, we´re back home.  Stories and pictures from our month in Indiana will be coming. 

However, this week saw another milestone in our family as Clara went to her first day of school! (OK, first three days--we did send her back for Thrusday and Friday.)  When we picked her up, Clara greeted full of smiles.  And it´s been that way every other day, too.  

Yay for school!  

I´m getting used to setting an alarm for the first time in five years (man, it´s been a beautiful five years!), as I now have to wake up the children every morning.  In some ways, I think I´m going to enjoy the structure that the school schedule will bring to our lives.  It was that kind of structure I craved when Clara was a baby and I hadn´t lived an unscheduled life since I was about five years old.  Over the last five years, I´ve slowly adjusted myself to a life without any set schedule, and found that I really like it.  But it took some getting used to.  Now that the structured life has imposed itself upon us again, I am resenting it a little.  

But I am glad that Clara likes school as much as she does.  So far.  

And I am looking forward to the hope of increased productivity on my part.  I think. 

And I really do enjoy the walks back and forth to school every day.  On this, there is no hesitation.  So glad we chose a school within walking distance!  (And an easy walk, at that.)

And Clara really likes pushing Joey.  No complaints here!

Baking Buddies

We were making bread the other day, and I just couldn't help myself and busted out the camera. 

We've got our baking routine down now, to include Joey, who also always wants to help.  Clara measures and Joey mixes.  At least, until he starts to mix the flour right out of the bowl. 

While I was getting things ready, they were already itching to help.  So I set up Joey with the flour, bowl, and measuring cup, knowing that he'd transfer as much of the flour to the bowl in whatever time frame I gave him.                                    He did not disappoint!

I just love the way that Joey kneads with such gusto!  Clara usually is a bit more effective, but I think she was interested in making a good show for the camera.

Mid-July with the Kiddos

Summer rolls on . . . and is now starting to look like a typical, Mexican summer, thanks to the rain!  (Thank you, God!)  Oh, shoot--will this post jinx the rain away again?  That happened after the last time I wrote about rain. 

But really, it's time to stop believing that I can jinx things!

So, photo roll-call of the last week (or two): 

Size comparison--almost 4 1/2 and almost 2.

Our big excitement these last two weeks has been Vacation Bible School.  I wrote a post on the whole experience on the other blog.  In a nutshell--it's been great!

With Clara gone for two hours every day (thanks to VBS), Joey gets a break from being bossed around.  The train set has been a hit, and he loves putting the tracks together his own way.  (Clara ALWAYS wants it set up exactly like the picture on the cover of the box.)  While I'm excited for Clara to start school because I know she'll love it, I'm also really looking forward to more one-on-one time with Joey.

Also--hint for those who buy my kids birthday presents and Christmas presents--just like children's books, one can never have too many trains and train track!  ;)

We had a nice, steady rain ALL AFTERNOON yesterday.  Usually it just downpours for 10 minutes.  While I'm incredibly grateful for the rain (and if we got rain like that from now until Christmas it still wouldn't be too much) we were starting to get stir-crazy from spending ALL AFTERNOON inside.  What do you people who live in more temperate climates DO when it rains for days on end?  Or, how do you cope with--dare I mention it--a cold, snowy winter? 

Now that I think about it, if we lived somewhere where it rained frequently, our wardrobes might actually include something called "rain gear".  Ohhh . . . right. 

And standing in the doorway, watching the rain might not be such the photo-op. 

Lazy Days (Take II)

While tomorrow is officially the first day of summer, we've been sinking into our summer routine quite nicely for about a month now.  We're getting quite good at doing nothing, so I figured that I had nothing to blog about.   For real--we've walked to the Alameda ONCE in the last month.  That's it.  We've got the lazy days of summer down pat.  Before they even begin! 

Every now and then,  my camera batteries are charged, so I did find a few photos (and their stories) worth posting!

Joey drying off after an afternoon in the pool.

Before the pool was up, we graffiti-ed the patio wall a bit.  And , yes, it is popscicle season again!

On the Clara front, I had been dreading taking her in for her four-year-old shot.  On Monday we finally did it.  I still remember when I got my six-year-old shots--trauma doesn't even begin to describe it--they had to have 8 people hold me down!  (And if I think I was traumatized, I only wonder how my poor mother survived the day.)  I didn't know what Clara's reaction would be.  But being that she normally cries at the drop of a hat, I didn't have high hopes.  When I told her we were going to the clinic, she was OK, as if we were simply going to the grocery store.  And when they gave her the shot, she didn't even flinch!  Nothing!  No reaction!  I don't think I've ever been prouder of her.  (Because, let me tell you, I closed my eyes and did some nice, deep yoga breaths while they poked her!)  In this area, this kid is light years ahead of me. 

OK, I realize this story doesn't go with the picture, but the picture didn't need a caption and that's about the best picture I've got of Clara recently.  Nevermind that Joey features more prominently.  Isn't he cute, though?

The kiddos and their babysitter on the last day of Wednesday Bible Study.  It was the very last day for both Bronte and Clara, as both girls will be going to school in the fall.  (Bronte to college in the US--we'll miss her so much!)

I had a curiously quiet half-hour of washing dishes.  Should have known something mischievous was afoot!  That ice cream bucket was FULL of water by the time I found him, playing with everyone's toothbrushes.  And what do I do? 
Take a picture.  Of course. 

He can climb into his carseat all by himself!  From the ground!

Clara invented a new game, oh-so-creatively named "Pool Ball".  The point it to try to hit the ball with the golf club.  In the end, it looks rather similar to pool.  Maybe that's how pool was invented, eh?  ;)

Concentrating hard at poolball.  Joey sometimes joins her with a club.  That day, he was the ballboy and picked up the balls when they fell off the pool cover. 

On a Happier Note . . .

Sorry to leave you all hanging with the tantrum post for a month.  They're still happening, but most of the time life is just sunny here. 

And, for the 2+ weeks that we were visiting family in Mexico City, Joe gave up on the tantrums completely (in favor of a serious case of mamitis . . . I'm not sure which I prefer). 

Without further ado, here are the highlights of the last month!

Cousins!

On weekends, the lady who owns the corner store near my in-laws' house sets up a trampoline.  5 pesos for half an hour of bouncy fun.  Well worth it.  We made good friends with the neighbor kids another day, when there were 13 kids all packed into said trampoline (this is one of those instances that I'm so glad we don't have the ability to sue people in Mexico with quite the ferocity of the US).  All 13 kids on that trampoline were really good with my kids, watching them, jumping with them, and making sure that things didn't get too rough for them.  I'm highly impressed with my in-laws' neighbors' children!

At La Marquesa with Tia Paty and the cousins.

After a little hike at La Marquesa.

Clara cuddling up to the Cutest Baby Ever.

Lagunas de Cempoala--we worked hard to find the coolest (as in coldest) places to visit!



Joey's turn at smacking Dulce's piñata.  He didn't do much damage.

Inseperable cousins--makes me wish we lived closer!

And So It Begins . . . May It End Soon

For a few weeks now, or a bit longer, I've been noticing that certain scenes, particularly with the Small Child, make me lose my cool and shoot straight through the ceiling.  I couldn't figure out what is was, and my reaction was really bothering me.  Finally it dawned on me:

Tantrums.

Yep, Little Guy has finally figured out how to throw a rip-roaring tantrum, complete with teradactyl screams.  Fan-freakin'-tastic.

But now that I realize what's going on, my patience level has expanded exponentially.  I offer him help at the outset.  If it's clear that I can not be of any help, I'm now content to just let him be and sort it out on his own.  Or until he's ready to let me help him.

Because, let's face it--it's sure not going to help Joey's tantrum if I throw one, too.

Glad I figured that out in time!

Recovering from last night's colossal 2-hour long, 3-tantrum-in one fest.  Yikes.  He needed both the blanket and towel for comfort. 


May this be over sooner than later!

I'll take comfort in the hope that because he's throwing such spectacular tantrums now, someday he'll be the most pleasant 15-year-old on the planet.  Right?

Right?

Windy Days Through Clara's Eyes

In between Joey being sick and Clara's allergies raging out of control, we took advantage of a windy day last week to fly a kite at the Park On Top Of The Hill (aka:  Venustiano Carranza). 

I'm sure I had more fun flying the kite than the kids did.  After all, it helps to have a couple extra feet of height to get the kite in the air!

After awhile, we had to take refuge in a walled shelter that I think the park constructed for days such as these.  Because when that wind blows through, it HURTS!   Especially if you're a little boy who likes to play in the dirt. 

I also gave Clara the camera for a few minutes and was amused to see what the world looks like through Clara's eyes. 

Our shelter

Clara thought she was funny taking a picture of her feet. 

Hang on, Joe!

My much coveted water bottle in the shelter. 

Apparently this is how Clara sees me.  Yikes!

Much better.

Our Week in Photos

Joey spilled a cup of Cheerios he was eating.  When he walked away from them, I was about to yell at them when I realized that he was just heading off to get the broom and dustpan.  His coordination wasn't too effective, but I loved the intent!

He also loads the washing machine.  With empty yogurt containers. Or anything else he can find.

Clara's valentine-making factory.  She made a valentine for everyone we were to see on Valentine's Day weekend!

I found it interesting the differences between her valentine and mine.  Glad to see that she likes herself.  A lot, apparently.   ;)

Joe's fascinated with underwear.  But he doesn't have any yet, so he has to steal Clara's out of the wash basket.  He is coordinated enough to get them on all by himself!

He's also becoming more and more interested in babies.  Here, he's giving Clara's baby a drink of milk.

And the calla lily bloomed again!  Welcome, spring!