Trapped!

Today has not been fun...Jason's in Minneapolis and both Logan and Zach had fevers last night so I had to keep them home from school. Occasionally, when he's home and working from his office, Jason will have one of those days where he just can't focus on work...he keeps coming out to visit, or play with the kids, or find some other way to goof off. Well, let's just say that today I was having a hard time focusing on my job. I kept the kids fed, and hydrated, and warm, and even gave them baths to help break up the goop in their sinuses, but it was not a stellar day in terms of me keeping them stimulated with activities (OK, what I'm really trying to say is that we had a TV-free-for-all today. So much that the kids actually got bored and asked me to turn the tv off!) The good news is that they eventually got so tired of trying to get me to play with them that they actually played on their own! Without too much sibling conflict! :-)

Anyway, they both seem to be doing much better and I think they'll be back to school tomorrow. And Max appears to be fine - probably protected by the antibodies in my milk.

School, by the way, is going great for Zach. After two days of very minor crying last week, he went through three or four days where he would simply say to me "I'm not going to school" in the mornings as we were getting ready, but by the time we got to class he was fine and there was no visible separation anxiety. And yesterday when we went in he didn't even say that. So I think we're out of the woods.

In other news...some of you may know that I've decided it's time to re-start my consulting business, Biolexica. I'm putting out feelers to my old clients right now and hoping to start getting some assignments soon. Cross your fingers for me!

School progress, and regress...

A quick update on Zach and school - On Friday of last week I was able to drop him off in the morning and pick him up at 11 with nary a tear, so the teacher and I decided we'd try having him stay all day ('till 12:15) on Monday. It went swimmingly both on Monday and Tuesday, and then I think Zach woke up to what was really going on. We've had tears both yesterday and this morning, with lots of "Mommy, are you staying with me?" and "Please stay Mommy!" It's completely heart-wrenching for me, even though  I went through all of this with Logan and I know from experience that Zach will be fine in a week or two, and indeed even now he recovers quickly once I leave the classroom. But it still breaks my heart to leave him when he's crying and asking me to stay with him. I'm dreading tomorrow, especially since he declared this evening that he wasn't going to school any more. Alas, the tuition contract Jason and I signed with the school says otherwise!

It is worth noting that, between Zach's school schedule of 8:30 - 12:15 and his nap, which starts at 1:00 and often lasts for 3 hours, the amount of time we spend together really has been abruptly shortened. I'm going to make a point to make sure he gets quality attention on the weekend and hope that helps (whether this special time is more for his benefit or mine, gentle readers, you may decide for yourselves). 

Zach's First Day of School

One last entry for today - we wanted to document Zachary's first day of preschool yesterday. He started in the toddler program at Jarrow Montessori School, which is the school Logan has been attending since we moved here to Boulder. Zach was very excited and proud to finally get to go, although we're following a soft-entry program to ease him into it. Yesterday Jason and I stayed with him in his class for an hour and then brought him home, and I did the same today. Tomorrow I will take him, stay for about 20 minutes and then try to leave for 20 minutes or so to see how he does. Then if all goes well I will try a regular dropoff on Friday, but it will probably be a short day again. Eventually Zach will be attending the same hours as Logan, 8:30 - 12:30 every day (they didn't have a three-day-per-week option).

Pictures here include Zach showing off his new backpack, putting his belongings in his cubby, washing his hands in his class (a favorite activity of his), doing some of the works and being taught how to self-serve his snack by his teacher, Angelica. The cutest (to me) part of his first morning was when he was getting his snack - Jason and I were sitting across the room, observing, and Zach looked up to say "look Mommy, I'm having a snack. Do you want a snack?" He proceeded to get up and pull out a neighboring chair for me. It was very sweet and more than a little heartbreaking...he doesn't quite realize yet that this is an adventure he will be embarking on by himself. From previous experience I know he'll be fine, will love going to school and will still be my little sweetheart when we are together, but it's still a little tough to know that this is only the beginning of a long process of letting him go.

Tummy time

The last post and the next one don't include pics of Max, so here's a cute one of him working on his upper body strength. He's not crazy about tummy time but getting better, especially now that mommy has a star chart to help her remember to flip him on his tummy from time to time. He'll be crawling after his brothers soon enough!

Mommy and Logan and Zachary Day

With our new little guy needing a lot of my attention (and nursing every few hours or so) over the last three months, my ability and energy for real quality time with Logan and Zachary has been pretty seriously impacted. But we've been working toward getting Max to take a bottle reliably, and this past weekend Jason decided he was ready for a quiet morning with Max while I took Logan and Zach to Denver to visit the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.

This was an especially exciting outing for me because at 2 1/2, Zach is finally at an age where he doesn't automatically run off when presented with a large, crowded space where he could easily be lost. It's sad to say but this is the first time I've taken the two boys out on my own for a fun outing in a loooong time - it was too tiring at the end of my pregnancy and then it's been too difficult since Max was born to do something like this.

Anyway, Sunday morning I packed up a bag with just a few emergency supplies, we kissed Jason and Max goodbye and hopped in the car for the 40-minute drive to Denver. When we got to the museum I decided to take a chance and leave the stroller in the car, and it worked out wonderfully. Both boys were very well-behaved, had lots of fun exploring but stuck reasonably close. The highlight of the trip in my opinion was going to the planetarium to watch a short film about the solar system - both kids are really into planets and space exploration right now, and I was thrilled that Logan overcame his fears about movie theaters long enough to become captivated by the amazing special effects as we toured each planet.

After spending some time in the space exhibit we headed to the Hall of Life to learn about human physiology with lots of fun hands-on activities, then it was time to get lunch before heading home. We stopped at a nearby McDonald's because it has a play place, and I can say I am not a fan. The kids ate the (to me, completely unappetizing) chicken-flavored-nugget-products but the restaurant was out of the milk and apple slices that they supposedly offer with happy meals. So it was fries and apple juice. Ah well, I guess I'll pack lunch next time.

At any rate, we had a really nice time and it was a nice chance to reconnect with the boys after a somewhat tumultuous few months.