School Updates

The day before Christmas break each of the kids had performances or parties.  I thought I would share the pictures and a little school update.

McKay is absolutely loving preschool!  His school and teachers are a perfect fit for him – laid back, loving, playful, and not overly musical.  He wasn’t our most social child prior to this year but he was quick to make friends and seems to be quite outgoing, the leader of the pack even.  Several parents told me at the Christmas performance that their son or daughter often mentions McKay.  Who knew?  Kindergarden was really hard for both Sadie and Jax so we plan to have him repeat preschool since he’s an August birthday and small for his age.   He’s quite clever, though, so hopefully he won’t be bored next year.  Overall he’s happy and thriving!  He’s so cooperative, helpful, happy, obedient, great at sharing, loves to make people laugh, and excessively affectionate.  And he’s the most reverent child I’ve ever met.  I don’t think he has opened his eyes during a prayer once in the last three years.  My only concerns about him are his hatred for vegetables, his clumsiness which leads to injuries, and he cannot pronounce his Rs.

Sadie seems to like 2nd grade more than Kindergarten and 1st.  Academically, she’s always running to keep up with the other kids but I’ve seen a lot of growth in her this year.  She’s a great reader but struggles with writing. She makes friends, both boys and girls, so easily and there’s very little drama in her life.  So happy about that!  Previous school years she mostly played with the boys but this year there’s some really sweet girls in her class and they’ve all become good friends.  She’s been coming home saying more grown up things, “Mommy Ryden loves Ava….he told her today on the playground!”  Cute but a little shocking.  She loved her teacher, Ms. Colern, but she quit about a month ago.  She didn’t like all the changes that have happened in the schools and felt she couldn’t continue to teach because it was unfair what she’s forced to do to the kids. Meaning too many worksheets and testing and not enough of hands on learning and practical skills?  She was really a caring and quality person so it was sad to see her go.  After a few weeks of subs Sadie’s new teacher was just hired.  Sadie seems to like her, too.  Sadie likes everyone, though, so who knows?

Then there’s Jax.  Jax, Jax, Jax.  This child was the easiest, sweetest baby but year 3, 4, and 5 of his life have been hard!  He’s so smart and often overthinks and overreacts to situations.  Kindergarden has been brutal on him.  He cried on and off for the first 4 months.  The tears have finally stopped but it’s still a struggle.  “Mommy it’s so hard when the teachers yell so much”  “Mommy, John Avery and Braden wouldn’t play with me today.”  “Mommy I have to sit for so long and my legs are so wiggly.”  Oh, it’s brutal.  Brutal for me to hear he’s struggling, brutal for me to know what to do, and brutal for him to endure.  We’ve been seriously considering homeschooling him for the remainder of this school year.  He’s becoming anxious at home, clingy at church, and sour/moody in general.  I feel like his adorable little spark is dimming.  Yet, I feel like I shouldn’t rescue him from his problems but instead teach him how to cope which I’ve been trying to do.  Because of some negative things that happened the second week of school he wouldn’t play on the playground from Sepetember thru January.  He sat on a bench every day at recess for 5 months!  Towards the end of January he finally started playing again but he still comes home with complaints “John Avery threw sand on my head today and when I told the teacher he got mad and said he wouldn’t be my friend anymore.”  “Did the teacher do anything?”  “No she just told me to go back and play.”  Stuff like that.  Over and over.  He can be dramatic but it’s still hard to know he’s struggling.  There are several really sweet kids in his class so I think he just needs to learn who to choose as friends.  He’s been making lots of progress the last month so hopefully that will continue.  Good news: he’s academically great, he’s never been in trouble, and he’s making progress.  So that’s something.