Christmas 2013

 On Christmas Eve we went to see the live nativity in West Haven. Alice did not enjoy it.

 Nathan insisted on wearing my scarf over all his winter clothes. He had to wrap it around his neck like four times to keep it from dragging on the ground.

 As always, it was beautiful.

The kids went to bed really well on Christmas Eve so we could get everything set up without it being too late. We set their scooters out by their stockings, and both of the older kids looked right past it to go for their stocking. Alice noticed, though. The first thing she did was climb on her scooter.

The girls' favorite things were the fairy wings and magic wands they both got. Santa didn't need to look much farther than the dollar store, I guess. Mom and dad forgot batteries, so Nathan couldn't play with his remote control helicopter. Oops. But they all had fun playing with Clara's pony princess castle and Alice's doll and bathtub. (It just took me a long time to remember what Alice got for Christmas. It's been a whole month.)

We went to my parents for lunch and presents and then finished the day with dinner and more presents at Levi's parents'. Busy good day. Merry Christmas.

We've had a birthday

 yeah, it was like, three weeks ago? And didn't Christmas happen at some point? Yes and yes. We're getting there. We set up  one of Clara's presents the night before so she could have a grand surprise. For once Clara was up before Nathan so she got a few minutes with it to herself.

We went out for Clara's birthday lunch at Applebee's, then dropped Nathan off at school and went home for Clara's Happy Birthday Tea Party. When we gave her the option of doing something fun as a family on her birthday, like bowling or a movie, all she wanted to do was invite Hannah over for a tea party. So we "girl party"-ed it up. A tea party with bananas, strawberries, pudding cups, and apple juice. Nail polish. Making necklaces. That sort of thing. It was a good time.

 Then we picked Nathan up from school and went up the hill to Danny's birthday party (it gets a little complex when two cousins share birthdays). Clara transitioned from princess tea partying to pirate partying. When I went back to pick up the kids Jon and Rachel let us borrow this birthday hat they'd just bought. It even had four candles, so it seemed perfect.

 Alice was an especially big fan of the birthday hat. She had to hold it up so it wouldn't cover her entire head. We served snacks and birthday cake for the grandparents and opened the rest of her presents. I didn't give her much choice in birthday cake decorating (not that she even eats cake). She seemed pretty happy with a rainbow.

Now, just a word about this four year old. Now that she's four, she can "probably read now." She's pretty sure. She is a big helper; I'm not usually very grateful for her efforts to help me clean the kitchen, or the bathroom, or sweep the floor, but her picking up toys is always appreciated. One day after we dropped Nathan off at school I told her I was tired and was going to lay down for a few minutes, and she said she would "do all your jobs."  I heard her downstairs moving around, and didn't pay much attention. Fifteen minutes later when I came down, she was standing on a chair at the sink, scrubbing dishes. Sometimes the purely generous soul she is makes my heart hurt a little with its beauty.

The Preschool Dilemma

Isn't it such a mom thing that if there's something we could possibly feel guilty about, we will find a way?

Preschool should not be a guilt thing.

My dear rambunctious three year old Nathan needed preschool. Having that time away, that structure, that listening to other adults was irreplaceably good for him. And I felt a little guilty about it, but his behavior was such that I knew we should go for it.

Clara's now four. And at the beginning of the year I decided she didn't need two years of preschool. And she is so shy I didn't think she was ready for it. So I told her, "when you're four you'll go to preschool." And she brought it up, on her birthday. "Now I'm four and I can go to preschool!"

I drop Nathan off at kindergarten after lunch, come home and put Alice down for her nap, and there's poor bereft Clara, bored and "lonely." She doesn't know how to play by herself. And boring pregnant mom just wants some time to rest. So I've been idly thinking preschool might be great.

But my friend just told me they have an open spot in her daughter's preschool. Shouldn't I feel great about this? I don't, for two reasons.

I'm a tightwad that doesn't want to pay 85 dollars a month.

It makes me feel like I'm bunting on meeting her needs. I can teach her letters and counting and all those things. I can be more proactive at arranging play dates for her. I can do those things, and in an ideal world, I would have the mental energy to do them.

So, the question is: enroll in preschool now, or wait till the fall? I think by the fall  I'll be definitely ready to send her off. It's not really that big of a question, is it? It would only be six hours a week.