sea's first lost tooth

i was having trouble moving past the last post where sea drew us in matching outfits...until today when she lost her first tooth. i probably won't be able to follow this post with any bigger news anytime soon...here she is first telling me it was "wiggly" (last night)...we went to visit uncle matthew and uncle dave (a surgeon) checked out her tooth to ascertain when he thought it might fall out...he gave it at least 2 or 3 days (not remembering my spirited daughter's persistent nature to MAKE THINGS HAPPEN)...
here she is this morning showing me how it moves even more...
we went to the beach for the day...she showed me how it was still hanging on...
and then, while showing it's wiggliness to a stranger, it popped right out of her mouth!
she turned and showed me...
and here is the final look...just like a jack-o-lantern and just in time for halloween...

"i play wi mi mom"

this weekend our family went out to dinner and sea chose an outfit to be dressed like her mom...we were both wearing jean skirts and purplish tops...
today she brought home her first real project entitled "mom"...on the back it instructed us to read this book together tonight...
inside was a picture she drew of me wearing brown matching clothes ("with rainbow fingers that can reach as high as the sun but not really touching" as sea described) and sea's wearing a hat with yellow hair and a purse...she tried to sound out the "i play with my mom"
and presumably her teacher wrote what she was trying to say on the next page...the most touching part of this booklet is the last drawing of the two of us...similar to our matching outfits, we are both wearing green with yellow hair (she added a little brown in mine so it would look more realistic)...i am wearing a purse and we are holding hands...
i asked sea several times what the assignment was...what the teacher asked them to draw...and she said "draw something about your life" and so i asked her why she chose to write about me and she said "because i love you and i play with you and i want you sometimes and you come and you see me"

catching up

sea's mood matched the foggy overcast weather yesterday morning on our way to school...
she and her brother were sharing "flags" (weeds they picked on the way)...she has had this look of concern, borderline-sadness on her face all week...on wednesday they checked out their own books at the library...sea chose something by dr. seuss...
here she is at the end of the line waiting to be picked up, reflective...
right after school we went to our friend char's house for a drumming class...
sea was really tired but did seem to enjoy it...


afterwards the girls all ran around together, spinning one another on the swing...
then after our potluck dinner we were off to our first "back to school night" at the school...here is sea's folder...
this morning i went to a co-op organic food pick up...lots of moms and preschool and younger children drinking coffee, comparing notes, buying bulk health goods and food, eating snacks and potluck style...here story made a new friend alexander born the day before him...they have similar spirited personalities and it was nice talking with his mom and comparing notes...
now sea is making ms. baker a card...she is sounding out the words and trying to spell on her own...i'm not ready for this! i feel like she is closer to story's age, putting dollies to bed...but growth happens whether i acknowledge it or not...i'll have to take a photo of said card with all her sounded out words and drawing of ms. baker and her mom...

i've made a few friends with parents of other kindergarteners...one even has a mommy blog with similar themes...interesting to read parallel lives...i'll see if she is alright with me posting the link...

now story is going "ah-ah-ah" like he is a baby and sea is his mom. she carries him around and he cries and then nuzzles in to her...next sea grabbed my phone and started taking videos...story is still trying to get her attention and she is walking around narrating her world..."my mom is typing on the computer..."...lost my train of thought...i'm going to get off so i can engage with them instead of capture it all...

adjustments

i had such a long post planned for last night...yesterday was story's first "mommy-and-me" waldorf preschool class (details but no photos to follow) and sea's first after school drumming class with her old co-op friends (a few photos before my camera battery gave out) followed by our first back to school open house of sorts where we met with sea's teacher and learned what is going on in her classroom and her adjustment...i feel so depressed and slow moving and doubting everything we have been doing and deciding and experiencing (i should add i'm part way through a book i've been milling over in my mind for a LONG time and needing to read and am finally beginning in hopes of finding practical solutions...the book is called unconditional parenting by alfie kohn and it totally makes philosophical sense to me and with my attachment parenting style and striving for integrity and love-based decision making but it is so HARD and i could write several posts just on my childhood and sense of self and independence/dependence etc.) but like i've been telling those who ask (or those whose advice i seek on these adjustments), if anyone else had told me about the adjustments sea is going through i would say "oh those sound normal" even though they are SO hard to experience with your own child...

so more on all that later...for now i just wanted to add that i enthusiastically raised my hand, waived it around and more or less shouted "pick me! want me! choose me!" from the front row of the parent meeting and i am now the official room parent...will find out what that entails in the next few days. i really enjoyed planning my 20 year high school reunion and i figure this will be similar in some ways delegating tasks and coordinating different needs and agendas while at the same time being more hands-on and involved in sea's classroom.

i'm exhausted and it is a ridiculous hour so i'm going back to bed. looking forward to the challenges but hoping sea's emotional adjustments get easier for us both.

visiting matthew

today we were able to visit matthew in his rehab unit...this first card was made by sea (her and her brother)...
our family (he is inspired by photos and drawings of those he loves and who love him so we took this one in his room to send him)...
matthew and story "played ball"...
i love this one of sea and story just hanging out and matthew, contemplative...
story and matt...peace out...
matt and sea being silly together...
sea, breezy and story...
right before we left and matt was going to rest, sea jumped in bed with him to give him some extra snuggles...story joined her soon after but this photo with movement all around except the peace of the two of them was more powerful as a closing to our visit...we love you matthew!!!

kindergarten adjustments

sea's been having a hard time going to kindergarten "i don't want to leave you, mommy" and i've been questioning my parenting, priorities in choosing this school, was she ready, should i have done preschool, should i home-school, etc. even though this reaction would seem totally normal if it was anyone else's child...just SO hard to look into her sad eyes, watch her quivering lip trying to be strong clutching her little lunch pail...i realized these two photos i took today show both our anxiety in the first followed by an "it will be ok" smile which i guess is the bottom line without too much more analysis and heartache...off to our first PTA meeting...

fixing brother's hair

saturday night we attended a "mexican fiesta" party for one of manuel's colleagues. sea has just recently started primping and slowly combing her hair in front of a mirror...spraying de-tangler, adding her own hair clips...so she helped get her brother ready by covering him with every colored barrette she could find...
very carefully...concentrating on the task...you can see the top of her mexican dress...
i like this shot where you can see them in the mirror...
sea had a really hard time in kindergarten today but i don't have the energy (mainly psychological though i am also physically tired) to post details...hopefully i will tomorrow...
she requested we wake up early together to have extra time together...we are going to plant a secret aloe plant in the front yard to show dad and brother and have a special story together...off to bed...

walking to school

part of our vision in choosing our neighborhood school (literally less than a mile down the same street we live on) was that we could walk to school...so far i've walked 1 of 4 days she's attended...if i can just time/plan better i should be able to do this every day. sea LOVED walking (or as julie, my neighbor and friend commented as i was rushing to brush teeth and get children to bed, not sure if i would be able to write words so i "published" photos only...sea loved RUNNING to school)...she thought it would be too far but she was only in the stroller long enough for this first photo and then she was off...sun in her hair...

sea passed the swim test at our pool!

she was 1 lap in when her dad said "sea is doing the swim test!" just like her to accidentally decide she will do it a couple laps in and then not look back or even wait for mom to grab her camera! here she is accepting her patch from her favorite lifeguard, danny...and then admiring it up close....
off to jump off the diving board for the first time...
bye mom!
i love this shot of spontaneity, freedom, flyyyyyyyinnnnnggggggggg..........