Poor little Cooper had to suffer through a bout of croup during March. It really took it's toll on him, we all felt so bad as he coughed, sneezed, and wheezed his way through a few weeks. We all lost sleep in the end and are still recovering from the loss of his sleep habits. We had finally gotten him to sleep from 7pm to somewhere between 5 and 6am. While he was sick, he was waking up multiple times a night. I'm talking anywhere from 4-8 times a night. We still haven't gotten back to the way things were and it seems like we're back where we started from. I don't think we've had a night yet with fewer than three or four times up.
In his croup battle he ended up losing quite a bit of weight for a four-month old. Beginning at 14 pounds 4 ounce, he was down to 13 pounds 12 ounces. It doesn't sound like a lot, but when you're only 14 pounds, it really makes a difference. At his four month appointment he was back down to the 16th percentile in weight and 78th percentile for length (25.5 inches).
He is doing much better now though, with the only exception being the sleeping thing...it is bound to come back. I sure hope so anyway. I'd like to get a full nights sleep again one of these days.
Cooper started going to Mary's full time on March 26th. He had gone a few times prior to this date to get used to her and the environment. Mr. Coop really was not a fan. In fact, during his brief encounters at her house, he did more crying and screaming than anything. Talk about feeling bad for poor Mary and the kids she watches. To all of our delight, and utter shock, he did GREAT! He started the week with an hour and a half nap first thing Monday morning. As she put it, "he was an absolutely different kid." Glenn (Mary's husband) told me that I had been black listed for bringing him over and that he had never seen a baby scream and cry with a purple face for so many hours. Yep, that makes a Mom feel good. Not anymore dear Glenn!!! We're all thankful for that one. Now the little man smiles and laughs with her and is a delight to have.
Of course he is. He really is the happiest baby I have ever seen. He is full of smiles, grins, giggles, and now, belly laughs!
Eli
I cannot believe my baby is starting kindergarten in September. He is officially registered for all-day kindergarten!! Yes, he is registered at my school and I love it. The nice thing is that even though I work there, it's also our home school so he'd be slated to attend LWES whether I was there or not, it just helps that I am an employee of the district and he gets priority placement and a spot for all-day! YAY He is so excited. What used to be referred to as MY school is now HIS school. I can't wait for him to be there, he's going to have a good time.
I got to go to my first parent-teacher conference on the 20th. Ms. Marilou had such wonderful things to say about Eli and his progress in Pre-K. Being an intermediate teacher, I really don't have a clue where kids should be at the stage he's at now. Apparently he's doing really well. He can identify letters by sight and sound, randomly, with the exception of the v and w. I was shocked, at home he doesn't like N....has nothing to do with it actually. Apparently he is excelling in the math side - he knows his geometric shapes, numbers, patterns, etc. He has great motor skills, both fine and grand, and is great with scissors. My absolute favorite piece from our conference was a picture he drew.
After being asked to draw a self-portrait, he drew himself, but also added his little brother. He then continued to add both Jess and myself. Someone Jess works with actually graduated with a psychology degree and 'analyzed' the picture. After explaining his experience with this type of activity of kids who have been through difficult things and won't open up they have them draw...anyway, he said Eli feels very loved. By including Cooper in the way that he did, it shows how proud he is of his little brother. The manner he included me and Jess, he sees us loving each other (well, duh) and that he's a well rounded kiddo.
Boy do I love my boys!!!
Me
Not a lot about me, but I am back at work. I went back to my class on the 26th. I was greeted with open arms by both my students and other teachers. It is nice being back but I was quickly reminded how demanding my profession is. The first day back I was up until 11:30 working on school stuff. I love my job, but people really don't have a clue what it takes to be a teacher. If we only worked 8:40-4:10 like I am paid to do so, they would not get the education they do. It takes so much of our own personal time. I'm not complaining about it, I'm just saying it would be nice if the public realized what we did do and acknowledged that instead of telling us to come in before/after school and on weekends to collaborate and get our job done. (These are direct comments from a public question posed about incorporating a weekly late-start to allow for collaboration time for teachers like other surrounding districts have. Seriously. Someone had the audacity to say, and I quote, "Citizens pay for you to do your normal job. If you need more time to 'prepare' for the day then get to school earlier or work on the weekends. I'm not giving up my days off and early release days just because its convienent for a teacher that should be doing their job."
Infuriating to say the least. Sadly, we don't just teach. We have to assess. We have to grade. We have to contact parents. We have meetings. We have 26 kids at different levels to plan for. We have scores to submit to the district. We have goals that we have to plan, document, meet, and reflect upon. We are secretaries. We are counselors. I could keep going, but I'm preaching to the choir....)
ANYWAY, now I'm on Spring Break after a week back at work. I have good planning/timing. :) I love the time with my boys. Wish it could be all day every day, but it can't. I cherish the time I have with them though!
*I will add pictures later. Be ready!
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