…subtitled, “Some days you just need a cookie.”
For those of you BTDT, please let me know if you have experienced what you are about to read below — please feel free to send me advice! I’ve learned much from my blogger buddies and now is the time to weigh in with your suggestions!
So, the boy started “school” this week and so far, so good — sort of. He does freak out a bit when I drop him off but having worked in daycare myself in college, I know how the drop off drill unfolds. When I come to pick him up, he is excited to see me and equally excited to tell me about his day — fingerpainting, apple juice, outside, nap, etc.
When we arrived home yesterday, we had a quick snack and ran over to visit the neighbors as their son is going back to college and we wanted to say goodbye. Upon returning home after that brief visit, he had A MELTDOWN! Yes, emphasis on the capital letters. I chalked it up to keeping it together all day at school and then finally releasing all the emotions now that he was home — plus he was hungry.
So, I did as I have been reading about where there is “Time in” rather than “Time out” — and for us that consisted of me holding him and rocking on his rocking chair while he wails and I softly sing, telling him that everything is okay. Yesterday this lasted about 30 minutes and life got back to normal.
Today’s drop off went about the same. He was excited for school until we got to the building and then he started with “no school mama, home, new car, go home….” And we talked about how much fun he had yesterday and all the things he did. I made it through drop off (okay, admittedly my heart breaking a bit as I heard him crying) and went to work. I decided today to avoid the hunger issue today and slice up an apple and take that for the car ride home. It worked…for awhile.
When we got home, he excitedly told me all about his day, singing, jumping, more painting, apple juice, etc. He watched a show while I made dinner and then I sat him in his booster seat to eat. At that time, he picked up his cup of milk (we are working on minimizing the sippy cups…) and THREW IT ACROSS THE ROOM! Wow…and then the wailing began.
Covered in milk, I quickly undressed him and rinsed him off in the shower (yes, assume the wailing continues throughout this process…) and wrapped him in a towel and back to the rocking chair we went. We had the same “time in” with the rocking and singing and that lasted about 20 minutes. He finally calmed down and I put his pajamas on him and he wanted to rock some more. We did this for another few minutes until he decided he was ready to eat and said, “sorry mama…” about the milk.
We went out to the kitchen and as he sat down to eat, happily now, I decided it was just one of those days that we needed a cookie…and then I remembered the “stash” my mother in law made when she was here. She makes these amazing chocolate chip, oatmeal, peanut butter things that are to die for. Before she left, she made us a batch and baked them but then also froze the cookie dough so that we could “bake at a later date…” and I did.
Carter and I ended our day with a homemade cookie from Mamere, and loved every last bite! Fingers crossed for shorter crying in the days to come…I’m headed on a work trip and hubby will get his first taste of the after school routine!
