Registration Requirements

Today, Mandy got a big letter from the local school -in a nice large manila envelope. The letter had with it a list of requirements that children entering Kindergarten must have when they start school.

Things like being able to identify the letters of the alphabet, counting to 10, etc. I'd love to be able to type in all these requirements from that list here but unfortunately, I can't find the paper! Normally, Mandy tends to leave all kinds of papers of hers, stuff pertaining to Maya and Kurtis too, all over my computer desk but the one time I actually want to use one of those things, she has evitdently put it away someplace. Kids! Always doing things it seems to go against the grain I guess, regardless of how old they are.

But anyway, this list -as Mandy read down the list of things the kindergarten child is supposed to be able to do, we were ticking each one off -mentally -and Maya is way ahead with respect to all the requirements.

Or so it seemed, anyway. Until Mandy got to the very last one on the list.

Must be able to follow simple three word directives!

And upon reading that one, Mandy and I looked at each other, shook our heads -simultaneously -and laughed!

Maya can follow simple commands, three word directives with no problem. Sure, she can.

But only if she is in the mood, wants to do what she is being told or directed to do.

It makes no never-mind to her how you word these things, the tone of voice you use or any other manner you might think of to give her a directive, because if she decides at the time she hears these things that she doesn't want to listen, doesn't want to obey, you -and the directive then -are dead in the water.

Pure and simple there, huh?

Guess this means we are going to have to spend the next four months readying her for school by trying to find ways around this quirk of hers. Ways to wheedle her into doing the bidding of the teacher.

Thankfully, we've already been told that she will have a TSS -or wrap-around aide -attending to her during her classes to help keep her on track, on target, doing the assignments and such but still, once this child digs in her feet and decides she isn't going to do something, life can suddenly get extremely difficult.

Going off in a slightly different direction here for a bit too -I have a little something to mention about Kurtis too.

Normally, if I talk to him, try to get him to come to me, he will take one look at me, scream and run in the opposite direction. None of us knows the reason of course for his reacting in that manner to me but it's just what he usually does. I pretty sure I've mentioned -frequently -how he gets huge attacks of separation anxiety and begins looking for Mandy, calling out "Unny, Unny" (which is his pronunciation of "Honey" -his name for his mother) if she leaves the room. And if he realizes she has left the house, he really goes ballistic.

But me -I can generally go and do whatever I want and he pays no attention to whether I am present and accounted for or out of range.

Or so we thought.

Tuesday evening, I had a meetting to attend at church and a good friend of mine was going to pick me up to ride out there with her since my Jeep is currently in the shop, being given a new head gasket by my son-in-law.

Mary Kaye (my friend) pulled up in front of the house, I pulled my coat on, grabbed my purase and headed out to hop in her car. She was sitting there waving away when I got in and she motioned to the living room window where Kurtis was perched up on the back of the sofa, looking out the window, watching me get in the car. And he was crying -or at least that is what it appeared to be. Mary Kaye said she was waving to him, trying to get his attention but to no avail and then she said "Oh my! It looks like he is crying, poor little guy."

I told her if he's crying it's most likely because Mandy is probably yelling at him to get down off the back of the couch, to get away from that window sill. He -like Maya -doesn't particularly like to be reprimanded either.

When I got home about three hours later, Mandy informed me that when I left with Mary Kay earlier, that Kurtis cried, sobbed she said, real crocodile tears too, no less, for a good twenty minutes if not more, after I left the house. He wouldn't even come near her, his mother, and the one person he normally runs to over every little unsettling event in his life.

Needless to say, I was more than a bit surprised to hear that he'd had a reaction like that to my going someplace. This was a first for him to acknowledge my presence or non-presence, as it were, in any way, shape or form!

Kind o made the old ego go up a notch, ya know, to realize maybe he likes old Grammy a bit after all!

Wednesday afternoon, Mandy, the kids and I went up to the local grocery store to get a few things I wanted, that we needed, that are on sale this week and also, Wednesday being senior-citizen discount day -a whopping big 5 percent discount ya know -I try to coordinate from their weekly sales flyer to our needs and get the stuff then so I can get my big discount.

As we walked in the store, I was pushing a cart and Maya immediately announced that she wanted to ride in the seat part of the cart. Usually, when she goes there with me, I have to try to sweet-talk her into getting into that seat. I prefer having her in there because that way I don't have to hang on to her arm the whole time we are in the store, risk having her go into a meltdown on me and throwing her self, screaming and kicking, onto the floor. But today, no -she WANTED to ride in the cart. Fine with me! I lifted her up, helped get her legs into tthe openings and started down the aisle to the produce section. Meanwhile, Mandy was behind me -without a cart - carrying Kurtis but also, occaisonally she would put him down and let him walk with her a bit.

When Maya realized Kurtis was not going to be riding in a cart, suddenly that worm turned -in the blink of an eye - and of course, then she wanted down too, wanted to walk beside me, walk with her Mom and her brother, wanted to be anywhere at all except as a passenger in that cart!

So for the entire time we were in the store, she whined and wailed and cried and sobbed -sounded like she was darned near getting beaten within an inch of her life at times too, all because she had to ride in the cart! Then, when finally we were through and went out to the car, she decided to pitch a royal fit and didn't want to sit in her booster chair in the car but wanted to sit in a "baby seat" (Meaning a regulation car seat for babies and toddlers) like Kurtis has! So, for a good while then, in the car we had to listen to more of her whining, crying, sobbing about this huge slight she thought was being dealt her!

Always something, isn't there?