Monday, January 30, 2012

Twins these days

So the twins... turned 5 this year and am hoping that this is the year they magically become easier!!
We have had them in a full day preschool class, (that is free here in our town) and thought everything was going great, until the teacher called and had me come meet with her. There is mandatory nap time in the class from 12:30 to 2, that's an hour and half that they have to lie still and sleep or act as if they are sleeping. My girls have not napped since they were 2 so this has been a thing they have had to re learn to do. But Kaylee won't always do something she doesn't want to do. And on top of that she came down with a cough and we got her a prescription for it and the medicine made her completely nuts! A side effect was hyper-excitability and boy was she ever! she could not sit still for 5 seconds let alone 1 1/2 hrs! Well it took us a few days to figure it out but a few of those days she was at school, and the teacher had enough. She was recommending that the "twins" go to the afternoon class where they wouldn't have to deal with a nap time. At first I was confused at why this problem with Kaylee automatically included Renee and why this is the first time we are hearing of a "problem" and her solution is to kick my kids out.
The next day Joe and I  met with the teacher AND principal about her, and the principal offered a lot of advice and encouragement about the situation. And nothing about needing to move the girls. His advice came from personal experience with dealing with his own son as well as professional in working with children for 20 some years. Yes Kaylee is "strong willed" I would agree, or stubborn like her father however you want to say it ;-) But we did figure out that the cough medicine she was taking for 4 days was making her extremely "hyper-exictable" (more so than usual)  and probably the cause of our meeting, but regardless I was actually glad it happened because we were given some good advice on how we can help her at home and do our best to raise her right. So we left that meeting feeling encouraged and strengthened, that we are not the only parents with a child like this, and all parties agreed to all be on the same page with regards to handling her, discipline, rewards and consequences and giving 2 acceptable choices.

Advice from my 80 something year old grandmother, who spent 25 years teaching kindergarten....1st just enjoy them they grow up too quickly. then for us to put Kaylee into afternoon preschool to give her one on one time with mom and the baby and taking nap time out of the battle. She agreed that 1 1/2 hrs was too long for nap time.
So after much thought and prayer, we feel good about moving Kaylee from her class into the afternoon only class. The one on one time will be for her in many ways. To be with me, bond with the baby, and to have some "me time" that she never gets always having a twin to share every thing and every moment with her.

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