It has been a long time

I haven’t had much of a chance to write as the start of school this year has been a bit of a journey for the family. I am not working for the first time since having kids, the little one has started primary school, the big one has moved into a grade 3/4 class (which means that she is no longer one of the ‘big kids’ and it’s also one of the years where girls take a big step in their interpersonal development) and husband continues to work full time.

It doesn’t help that we have had one of the hottest summers recorded in Melbourne. At least the school is fairly well equipped for temperature control but once the girls get home they get uncomfortably hot and have trouble sleeping because of these ridiculously hot days we’ve been having. I am currently hoping that this is the last week of 30 degree days for the year but I’m not holding my breath.

The little one is taking her time to settle in to school. She struggles with the noise and having to concentrate while others are being distracting to her. There have been a few meltdowns, mostly brought on by a combination of tiredness and confusion. She doesn’t like not knowing what’s going on and once her frustration level hits saturation point it manifests in big tears rolling down her cheeks. At least she’s not a screamer or a hitter (yet), although we have recently discovered that she bites her handheld digital game when it doesn’t do what she wants. We are all keeping a close eye on her at the moment. Husband and I have become more strict with bedtime and I am in fairly constant contact with her teacher (this is one of the reasons why I chose not to work at the start of this year, I wanted to be available for her while she’s settling in).

The big one is dealing with the devastating reality that she is not always going to be the one with the best/most popular ideas. Her teacher has a democratic system in their class and there have been a few situations where things have needed to have the highest number of votes. On these occasions, her ideas have not always won which has led to her feeling dejected. I’ve been working with her on this topic and we’ve spoken about the fact that a popular vote doesn’t reflect on her as a person but that, for whatever reason, her idea at that particular time wasn’t what most people wanted. I’m interested to see how she goes over the course of this year. It’s a big one for girl’s mental/social development and I’m worried that the big one is already showing some signs that she may be lagging behind her peers. That may just be the overprotective mother in me, however, never wanting to see my daughter disappointed or upset.

I’m hoping to start writing more regularly now that the routine is settling down. I have a back-log of stories and tidbits that I would like to share but that’s all for now. It’s too darn hot in the study.