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Thursday, September 17, 2009

New Thing

What's our "New Thing"?

Well, we've got a crawler!!

Pretty much. She crawled a few feet towards Baby Tyler. I grabbed my video camera and immediately she wouldn't crawl anymore. She's there though. I mean, there is no turning back now and she'll be crawling more and more everyday!

My sis-in-law and her hubs and new baby got here today. I cannot tell you how precious this new baby is! I will post pictures later, but let me say, he's so teenytiny! I'm just so happy they came out here to visit and let us meet little Tyler.

Right now Ava's passed out on Rusty, who is also passed out on the couch. Hannah and Mallorie are in their sleeping bags sacked out. The house is nice and quiet and I am finally feeling like I can relax. This week has been crazy! They got homework everyday and while it wasn't the most difficult homework, it was still homework. Hannah seems to really enjoy her homework and just gets it done. Mallorie fights us almost the entire time. We're working on it and I have let the teacher know about what is going on at home during homework time. She has already come to me after school and let me know she wants to meet up next week and discuss some ideas for helping Mallorie be more productive and less negative about her homework. I am so thankful that she is so willing to help me out. This is the first teacher who is willing to start at the beginning of the year to help me find a solution.

In class, Mallorie is a fantastic student. When she gets home, she turns into another child. She often cries, scribbles her entire page, screams, and sometimes throws her pencil. Of course she is punished for this behavior, but I know it's done out of stress and because I obviously haven't taught her any ways of getting out her frustrations. Maybe she needs an outlet. And while I know that is true, I would still like to help her learn not to become so angry and negative whenever she faces something challenging. I let her go out and play for a few minutes sometimes when I know she's about to have a meltdown, but that is counterproductive because then her homework isn't finished until bedtime and then she has a meltdown because she is being rushed. Our homework time is immediately after school, after they've had a snack and told me about their day. That's the rule and she has to follow it. I would also like to say that this was going on last year and the year before, so I know it has nothing to do with Ava arriving. I have started to really make sure I give her compliments on everything she does correctly or if she atleast gives it her best try. I hope that is helping. I don't see how it couldn't be. So, we shall see how this plays out. I am very optimistic. I know Mallorie is very intelligent, so if we can find a way to relate better to her when it comes to getting her to do her homework, then I think all of our lives will be much happier!

Well, I'm sleepy. I should hit the bed so that I can get up early tomorrow and get the girls to school. I hope you have a nice Friday and a wonderful weekend!

1 comment:

AmyB said...

I'm sorry, how frustrating for you both! Have you tried doing sticker charts and letting her earn some rewards? Maybe a sticker for every assignment she completes correctly with a good attitude?