We woke up to a snow-blanketed Madrid on Monday and it was indeed lovely. The snow was new enough that it was powdery and Brodie and Kyle were able to make a tiny snowman. Despite the fact or maybe because of the fact that Brodie's been out of school for three weeks, she did not want to go. We tried to convince her that she loves school and loves playing with children, but she wasn't buying it. That girl really knows how to work the guilt angle already. She said she wanted to stay home "with her family and keep mama company." My other favorite is, "but you're my mama and I love you!" How do you resist that?! Anyway, everything went pretty smoothly considering we've been way off any kind of morning schedule and we were out of the house about 15 minutes earlier than usual. It was so nice to stroll to school leisurely and play our language games instead of mad dashing and cursing under my breath everyone in my path. However, when we got to school it was clear something was up. It was absolutely empty and the gate was locked. Some cigarette-smoking teenagers leaning up against the wall informed me that it was a snow day and school was closed. Argh......I have to admit I was looking forward to managing only one child (the crying one, not the whining one) and maybe even getting a nap in. Cursed snow. So we were all trapped in the house and no one was happy about it. Tuesday was a whole different day. Brodie not only went to school, but she's now staying the FULL day, which means I don't pick her up until 4:45. I have to admit this feels too late, but that's the only option. She was leaving at 12:30, but that was a special concession to help her transition more easily. Now she stays for English class (I'm hoping this will help her forge relationships with the other children and boost her confidence) lunch, a little nap and a whole other hour of lessons. She's resistant and there were tears today, but I finally figured out that what she was most opposed to is having to eat the served lunch. She's super picky, but I'm hoping that this will force her to try some new things. Tuesday night we had some success with this as she ate and actually enjoyed the chicken curry soup I made for dinner. (See how casually I dropped that I made homemade curry soup?) We're having trouble with the neighbors again, but I'm going to save that rant for later. I may have to write an ode along the lines of counting the ways they suck.
Monday, January 11, 2010
We woke up to a snow-blanketed Madrid on Monday and it was indeed lovely. The snow was new enough that it was powdery and Brodie and Kyle were able to make a tiny snowman. Despite the fact or maybe because of the fact that Brodie's been out of school for three weeks, she did not want to go. We tried to convince her that she loves school and loves playing with children, but she wasn't buying it. That girl really knows how to work the guilt angle already. She said she wanted to stay home "with her family and keep mama company." My other favorite is, "but you're my mama and I love you!" How do you resist that?! Anyway, everything went pretty smoothly considering we've been way off any kind of morning schedule and we were out of the house about 15 minutes earlier than usual. It was so nice to stroll to school leisurely and play our language games instead of mad dashing and cursing under my breath everyone in my path. However, when we got to school it was clear something was up. It was absolutely empty and the gate was locked. Some cigarette-smoking teenagers leaning up against the wall informed me that it was a snow day and school was closed. Argh......I have to admit I was looking forward to managing only one child (the crying one, not the whining one) and maybe even getting a nap in. Cursed snow. So we were all trapped in the house and no one was happy about it. Tuesday was a whole different day. Brodie not only went to school, but she's now staying the FULL day, which means I don't pick her up until 4:45. I have to admit this feels too late, but that's the only option. She was leaving at 12:30, but that was a special concession to help her transition more easily. Now she stays for English class (I'm hoping this will help her forge relationships with the other children and boost her confidence) lunch, a little nap and a whole other hour of lessons. She's resistant and there were tears today, but I finally figured out that what she was most opposed to is having to eat the served lunch. She's super picky, but I'm hoping that this will force her to try some new things. Tuesday night we had some success with this as she ate and actually enjoyed the chicken curry soup I made for dinner. (See how casually I dropped that I made homemade curry soup?) We're having trouble with the neighbors again, but I'm going to save that rant for later. I may have to write an ode along the lines of counting the ways they suck.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment