A Break.

From its conception, my intentions for this blog were to not only organize and journal pre-school activities for the girls but also to dish honestly about motherhood and raising two daughters.  Recently, I have been bogged down with day to day activities and family commitments and therefore my blogging hobby was on a two week hiatus.  Nonetheless, I have been jotting down post ideas and this one tops the list!

BREAK

Merriam-Webster's online dictionary includes in excess of forty definitions for this simple word.   I personally experienced many of these definitions a few weeks back.  It was just one of those weeks - I found myself broken - without patience, without the capacity to respond to my girls in a manner that would de-escalate behavior.  We were stuck in a cycle of bad behavior, bad choices, and poor responses giving way to more bad behavior.  Now, as I look back, I know it was not really that awful in the big picture of life - no one was sick or injured, no financial burdens fell on our shoulders, we (me & the girls) just, plain and simple, had a broken week and I needed a break.  It seems like that week was filled with tears, yelling, more tears, throw in some whining (well, a lot of whining) and some more yelling, add it all together and you get one frustrated stay-at-home MOM who vented to her friends and forgot just how many blessing are present in this life!

I knew things were spiraling, my tolerance for the girls' needs was at an all-time low and I was disappointed in my inability to be the parent I know how to be, the mom my girls deserve, the parent I want to be ALL of the time.  (See my note about the new "all" at the end of this post.)  So, what did I do?   After venting and thereby some reflection and self-evaluation, I realized I needed to ask for help!  And that is exactly what I did. 

My mom is off for the summer from her full-time teaching job; my "I need a break because my kids broke me" week coincided with her last week of school so in an effort to avoid bombarding my mom, I told her...I need your help...eventually.  Phase two, my husband, Mike, and I sat down and looked for a weekend we could get away for a night this summer.  Nothing, and I mean nothing was open until the last weekend of August...nine, NINE weeks away.  That absolutely would not do if I wanted to keep my sanity so I impressed this upon my husband and he and his saintly mother made the next Sunday/Monday work so that we could have twenty-four hours plus away from the kids.  So, the personal day for Mike's work was scheduled and we were looking forward to our mini-staycation!!!  I was feeling better already. 

But, I did not stop there!  I had already asked my three other limbs to help (mom, hubby and mother-in-law)...and then I prayed - for more patience, for more grace, and then I thanked for the blessings of my two beautiful daughters.  My prayers were answered and peace came to me.  And I, with some help because we don't have to do it alone, quickly rediscovered my mommy toolbox and my old bag of tricks which includes a huge dose of patience, love and remembering to be thankful even when the going gets tough. 

The next week - much better! 

The break with the husband - wonderful and refreshing. 

The ironic - During our break, Mike and I went to Barnes & Noble where I was browsing and a book titled "Good Enough is the New Perfect" jumped out at me.  I just went to the local library tonight to request it via inter-library loan so I cannot speak to its value but I am excited and impressed with the title and teaser which urges mothers not to give up on having it all but rather to change our perspective by creating a new "all."  I felt like this was screaming at me, stay tuned for a future book review!  In the meantime, if you want to check it out, it's on Amazon here.

The last word - In looking up "break" in the online M-W dictionary, I scanned the antonyms and found the last one to be...

RAISE! 

Break

transitive verb

1

a : to separate into parts with suddenness or violence b : fracture <break an arm> c : rupture <break the skin> d : to cut into and turn over the surface of <break the soil> e : to render inoperable <broke his watch>

2

a : violate, transgress <break the law> <break a promise> b : to invalidate (a will) by action at law

3

a archaic : to force entry into b : to burst and force a way through <break the sound barrier> <break a racial barrier> c : to escape by force from <break jail> d : to make or effect by cutting, forcing, or pressing through <break a trail through the woods>

4

: to disrupt the order or compactness of <break formation>

5

: to make ineffective as a binding force <break the spell>

6

a : to defeat utterly and end as an effective force : destroy <used starvation to break the enemy> b : to crush the spirit of <brutal methods broke the prisoner> c : to make tractable or submissive: as (1) past participle often broke : to train (an animal) to adjust to the service or convenience of humans <a halter-broke horse> (2) : inure, accustom d : to exhaust in health, strength, or capacity <broken by his struggle for power>

7

a : to stop or bring to an end suddenly : halt <break a deadlock> b : interrupt, suspend <break the silence with a cry> c : to open and bring about suspension of operation <break an electric circuit> d : to destroy unity or completeness of <break a dining room set by buying a chair> e : to change the appearance of uniformity of <a dormer breaks the level roof> f : to split the surface of <fish breaking water> g : to cause to discontinue a habit <tried to break him of smoking>

8

a : to make known : tell <break the bad news gently> b : to bring to attention or prominence initially <radio stations breaking new musicians> <break a news story>

9

a : to ruin financially <break the bank> b : to reduce in rank <broken from sergeant to private>

10

a : to split into smaller units, parts, or processes : divide b (1) : to give or get the equivalent of (a bill) in smaller denominations (2) : to use as the denomination in paying a bill <didn't want to break a $20 bill> —often used with into, up, or down

11

a : to check the speed, force, or intensity of <the bushes will break his fall> <without breaking her stride> b : to cause failure and discontinuance of (a strike) by measures outside bargaining processes

12

: to cause a sudden significant decrease in the price, value, or volume of <news likely to break the market sharply>

13

a : exceed, surpass <break the record> b : to score less than (a specified total) <a golfer trying to break 90> c : to win against (an opponent's service) in tennis d : to make (a run) in football by getting past defenders <broke a 20-yard run>

14

: to open the action of (a breechloader)

15

a : to find an explanation or solution for : solve <the detective broke the case> b : to discover the essentials of (a code or cipher system)

16

: to demonstrate the falsity of <break an alibi>

17

: to ruin the prospects of <could make or break her career>

18

: to produce visibly <barely breaks a sweat>

"break."  Merriam-Webster.com. 2011. http://www.merriam-webster.com (29 June 2011).

The Days of the Week, v.9

Fun Week, aka Mommy Didn't Prepare a Letter of the Week, Week!

~ Lena is 3 years, 3 months and Lucianna is 21 months ~

 

While did absolutely zero sit down formal school time, I snuck in some fun activities...we did a lot of cube activities this week.  Lena received this a few Christmases ago from her Aunt Christine & Uncle Matt and it is a solid keeper in our house...but it does get ignored from time to time as any toy does that is constantly in plain sight.  But, with some prodding from Mom, the girls re-discovered the cube's sides. 

Letters and letter sounds!

Lena worked on adding and subtracting with the abacus.  I just love to hear her vocalize addition with her most girly girl pitch modulation:  

"If you have two," 

"And then you add one more,"

(in the most matter of fact tone you can imagine...)  "Then you have three."

Color sorting trays - Lucy struggled with this but she enjoyed playing with the items nonetheless.

Making her own fun!

Coloring sorting and adding a fine motor skills twist, these are left over egg grippers from Easter but I throw them in with lots of the trays we do.

Lucianna loves to read by the window.

A gorgeous day at the beach...NJ was HOT HOT HOT this week!

The Days of the Week, v.8

Letter Ff Week

~ Lena is 3 years, 3 months and; Lucianna is 21 months ~

Lately, Lena has been creating her own school time activities, rivaling some of the most creative mommy bloggers!   Her innovation has made me smile - all children thirst for learning, I am thankful to encourage her on HER journey.  After 1 of Lena's 100 logical reasoning comments (you know the ones that makes you think...."I can't believe she just said that!"), my husband says, "At three years old, she is as intelligent as we are - just without the life experience and wisdom we have gained."   Our hopes are to expose Lena & Lucianna to a strong educational foundation that will expand their base of knowledge and foster a love of learning. 

Lena has a color matching puzzle and an animal lift-the-flap book (I think both were picked up in the dollar section at Target - on different trips).  One morning this week, she called me into the playroom to show me the animals from the puzzle are exact matches for the animals in the book.  Lena proceeded to conduct a full on activity to find all of the matches in the book for each one from the puzzle. 

Is my little innovator the next future teacher in a long line of educators? 

 My dad always told me I could be the first female President of the United States.  Now, in my 30's I find that implausible and laughable but then, during my formative years, I believed it because he believed it - he gave me the gifts of confidence & ambition.  I ultimately decided to be a special education teacher and as of late, a stay at home momma but I know he and my mom are just as proud of these choices as they would have been if I were the first female President (I was rooting for Hillary:).  The point is, Lena will choose her own career path and we (my husband and I) will be proud of her (and Lucy, too).

Lena's Animal Matching Activity...

The girls cleaning up after a game of Hullabaloo.  They love this, it is a bit difficult right now for them to follow the directions from the host on the TV so I repeat them as we go.  It's a blast for them to jump around and they love the music!

Another innovation...this is the week of Memorial Day.  Lena used the sticks from the pinwheels to make letters.  Not only did she come up with this on her own but also added a physical component of hopping over the sticks:)

We received a freebie sample from Highlights' Puzzle Buzz...she really liked this - it is almost like a sticker book puzzle.  We won't be ordering it because we already get High Five & Animal Baby.

Tot School printables from 1+1+1=1 for letter of the week Ff!  Left to right...

Letter worksheet from Home School Creations

TSP - We are big fans of the lacing cards, puzzles and sequencing cards.

This week, I tried something new with the vocab, number and shape cards that was a big hit with both girls.  I just cut a slit in the lid of an old tupperware container so the girls could slid the cards into the box as they flipped through them.  Something so simple really refreshed Lena's take on the cards and Lucianna was instantly attracted to this.

Letter hunt...find ..."Ff"

I FOUND THEM!!!