The Queen's Rambles

What a day we’ve had. The crazy started when Erik couldn’t find his Wii-mote, which meant he couldn’t play a video game for five minutes before getting ready for school.

If there were reports of earthquakes in the DC area, my home was probably the epicenter. He did a full on meltdown, complete with laying on the floor kicking and screaming. He doesn’t do that very often because it has never once gotten him what he wanted. Is it bad that it makes me laugh more than anything else? It is just so ridiculous. I know it’s totally fake because I told him his friends were going to think he was a baby if they heard him when they walked by the house and he stopped it instantly. That was probably the wrong thing to say according to the book I’ve been reading, but it made him pull himself together. I’m not so sure about this book. I am trying to do things like reflect his feelings back to him and let him know I am listening, but it just pisses him off even more.

The good in this whole debacle? He was throwing such a tantrum that we left the house with about 60 seconds to spare. That meant I didn’t have to stand out in the freezing cold for very long.

I went down in the basement and found the Wii-mote next to the pillow he was sitting on. I swear that boy is blind.

The day was very peaceful until he arrived home seven hours later. He was calm and happy when he got home. I fed him a good snack. He got to watch a little TV. Everything was cool. We were enjoying life.

He very kindly asked if Elsa had a turn to watch Elmo today, since he usually has to give her an Elmo turn. I totally thought he was being nice and offering to turn it to Elmo but he completely FLIPPED when I told him that she doesn’t get to watch TV much while he’s at school, so it was her turn to watch Elmo.

He was going off the deep end with another tantrum, but I got Elmo going and Mr. Noodle was doing his weird stuff. Erik couldn’t maintain his rage in the face of Mr. Noodle. He got interested in the show and calmed down.

These outbursts are almost making me think he needs some counseling or anger management–something!

In other news, I have been a busy little bee trying to take care of MOMS Club and Campfire stuff. I can’t ever seem to just sit back, relax, and let other people take charge. I suppose it is good to keep my brain busy.

We went on a tour of a super fancy preschool-8th grade academy on Wednesday. It was really pretty and colorful, but all the teachers were dressed up and had that kind of phony interaction with kids that drives me crazy. I can’t really put a finger on what makes it phony, but I’m sure you know what I mean. The words are perfectly nice, but it just feels like a show?

I’d actually love to send Erik there for elementary school. They have small classes, lots of outdoor time and are not constrained by state tests. They get to follow the children’s lead and do things the kids and teachers actually enjoy. It’s just a dream, though. Their preschool is double the price of my little church basement preschool. I didn’t even look at the tuition for elementary school.

I am quite happy with the preschool Erik attended. The teachers are all older women who love their jobs. They wouldn’t be doing it if they didn’t love it. You can just tell they are genuine when you talk to them and see them interact with the children. They love the kids and don’t sound fakey-fake when speaking to them. They have seen it all and don’t let anything fluster them. It may not be fancy, but it is certainly Just Fine. And way, way cheaper.

I took my neighbor along on the tour just to give her something to do. I think I am about to give up on this pseudo-friendship. She completely wears me out. I hate to be a judgey pants. But. . . ha. . isn’t there always a but? I don’t give a crap about the average mommy war stuff, but when someone hands my toddler a king sized pack of candy without asking me, I’m going to get irked. When that same person calms her 8 month old by giving her a sour gummy rope my eyes are going to pop out of my head. She even told me that her 2 year old doesn’t drink water or milk–she only likes Coke.

She also told me that I was mean because I strapped both he girls into the car seats and fastened them properly. Apparently she only ever uses the chest clips and not the five point harness part. Ho-lee Crap. I can’t really deal with a person who doesn’t understand basic child safety guidelines.

I will still be kind. She is still in a pretty dire situation that I can’t even imagine. I will have a really hard time keeping my mouth shut, though.