School update

After monday's traumatic school-going events (more traumatic for me than Sumayah) the week seems to have improved day by day. There has been no tears all week, in fact yesterday morning when we walked into the class, Sumayah actually shrieked with excitement at the sight of her classmates and teacher. There's nothing that puts a mum more at ease than knowing that your child loves her school. Last night she even asked me if she can go to school again with her school bag. I'm also loving that they have started potty training with her at school. When I fetch her she is usually not wearing a nappy and had been dry all morning. So this weekend we're going to get her some pretty big girl pants and officially start potty training.

Bilaal is also really enjoying school. He's only complaint is that break is shorter so there isn't alot of time to play. He's day is also alot longer now with extra-murals usually only ending at 2.30, but he's been coping really well with all the changes. He's also been surprisingly diligent with the care of his belongings when they have to change for sport etc, let's hope it lasts! This morning is the interhouse gala. It's a normal school day with the gala in the morning, but parents are welcome to attend if they wish. Last year we attended because it was his very first school sporting event he was participating in so both Yaasier and I were there to suport him. But his year I didn't feel it was neccessary to specially take off work. So this morning he actually asked me if we were coming and was quite disappointed when I said both dad and I have to work. I explained to him that it wasn't a family event otherwise they would make it on a weekend, and that his dad and I would always try our best to be there to support him at important events. I guess I underestimated the importance kids place on having parents share in their experiences. Fortunately I start work quite late and his school is on my route, so I promised him I would be there as long as I could stay, but that I would have to leave at a certain time even if he hadn't swam yet. He understood and accepted this, so now I just hope I at least get to see him swim before I have to dash off to work. Just 3 more weeks for more before I officially start the waiting game for baby to arrive!

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So much for 'No Tears'

In a previous post I was very impressed that Sumayah coped so well with her first 3 days of school. Then it was weekend and my folks visited the monday, so I kept her out of school till the thursday. I'm not sure if this is what caused the change, but suddenly the thursday she put up a huge performance that she didn't want to go to school. According the the teacher she cried for a whole hour after I left! The next day was slightly better, she apparently only cried 5 mins after I left. I put this down to the fact that she wanted to be with the grandparents and was hoping today would be better. Alas it wasn't so! She was very enthusiastic about going to school in the morning saying that she would be a good girl and not cry, all the way up to the classroom door in fact. But the minute we stepped into the classroom and she saw another little boy crying, she started to crumble. She started crying saying she wanted to go home and wrapping herself around my neck. There have been times, especially after weekends when she would cry when I left for work and it never bothered me then, perhaps because I knew she was happy and well taken care of at home with her beloved Abegail. But I guess because the school is new to me too, it makes it really hard to leave her like that and trust that we have made the right choice in sending her to school so young. Bilaal started school at the same age and I recall we also had a tearful start, but that just feels like ages ago. We've been so used to a kid who is always excited to go to school, even sometimes asking if he can go to holiday school, that I need to remind myself that Sumayah's reaction is perfectly normal. I just hope that with the normal day to day routine of life settling in this week that the school drop-off will become better. Of course one hurdle overcome usually marks the start of the next in the world of parenthood...for us that next hurdle is Potty Training!

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Exciting week ahead

This is an an exciting week in the Abrahams household. This morning, my parents and brother from the UK arrive. They've been in Cape Town for the past 2 weeks so it been nice just mentally knowing thay were close by, but today they arrive in Jozi and I am so excited! My dad was here very briefly on business some time mid last year, but the last time I spent any real quality time with them was a year ago, when I attended my sister's wedding in the UK. I'm really going to miss not having her and her hubby here too. But I am just so happy the kids will get to bond and enjoy their grandparents, even if only for a week.

This week is also exciting because Bilaal will be starting Grade 1 on Wednesday. I think the hardest thing about living in such a global village, is that loved ones often miss each other's big moments and milestones. So I am so excited that my parents will be here to experience this huge milestone in Bilaal's life. Sure he's going to have a whole fanfare waving him off to school, but what better way to start such an important day?

The other exciting happening is that I will be going for my 31 week scan and my mommy will be able to go along! I'm so excited for her to see the scan and hear the heartbeat of her little grandson that's on the way. From now on my doctor's visits will be 2 weekly, just a reminder of how soon the time is for our new little bundle to arrive.

Happy 2012 everyone!

No tears

My previous post was all about choosing the right school for my little baby girl. So on wednesday was her 1st day and even though I was happy with the school I chose, you can't help being nervous and having doubts, because after all you are putting your precious little one in the trust of others. When we arrived at the school she darted toward the playground so that I had to run after her to take her to class. When I said my brief goodbyes, promising to fetch her later, she didn't even cry, but she was also a bit distracted by another little girl who was bawling her eyes out. As I was pulling out I saw the teacher running after her as she tried to make a dash for the playground again. When I fetched her the teacher said she cried a little bit when she realised I was gone, but it didn't take much to distract her and that she settled nicely. What surprised me the most was that she was actually lying quietly on the mattress at nap time when I fetched her. Just as everyone reassured me, she would follow the structure when she sees all the other children doing it. Because I had only just decided on this school the day before I wasn't mentally prepared that she would suddenly be going to school the next day so I fetched her before nap time thinking it would be best for her. But now in hindsight I think this was a mistake. Yesterday I fetched just a little bit later than usual and when I arrived most of the other kids were asleep and although Sumayah was lying still on her mattress she had just started tearing up and when she saw me, started crying. The teacher said she though it was because Sumayah was expecting me to come as I did the 2 days before. When chatting to my good friend about it she made a good point that I probably should have fetched her after nap time from the 1st day, because now she will always expect me to fetch her when the other kids sleep, so if I ever do need to fetch her a bit later she may not be able to sleep. For now its not such a big problem because I will be able to fetch her at 12.30, but later in the year as Bilaal starts doing extra murals and theres another baby, I may need to fetch her a bit later. So I have started talking to her about sleeping at school and reassuring her that I will always fetch, but that she should try to sleep while she's waiting and so on. My hope is that once she's settled in at school and with the whole routine that this will sort itself out too. But for now, I'm just happy that she is happy and enjoying herself at school.

Choosing a school for Sumayah

Sumayah started her very first day at nursery school yesterday. The build up to this was very stressful for me, only because last week I was frantically phoning around trying to find a suitable school! She was already enrolled in a school for 2012, the same school Bilaal attended before grade R, but we realised quite late in December that there would be some logistical issues with this school. See Bilaal is at a government school, while the preschool follows private school terms. Also, with Bilaal in grade 1 this year, he has to be at school at 7h30 already, while the preschool only opens at 7h30. Now normally this wouldnt be a problem because I could take her to school at 8h30, but with a baby 'pending', means I would be out of action for bit, so Yaasier would have to drop Bilaal then back up on himself to drop Sumayah then back past Bilaal's school to get to work! And then the most compelling aspect of all...the fees. We would now have 2 sets of fees to pay and the preschool fees were way more than when Bilaal was there in 2010. So as soon as the new year arrived the search was on. Many of the schools were still closed so I couldn't find out if they had space or have a visit till finally I had 3 possibles to visit on monday and tuesday this week. I couldn't sleep sunday or monday night, hoping and praying that I would love at least one of the schools. Its such a huge responsibility I feel choosing the right nursery school, because the kids are so little and can't fully communicate yet if theres a problem. I also feel I want them to have a positive first experience of school. So the monday I went to see the first two schools and liked it alot, but was not instinctively excited about either one. This disappointed me because it wasn't good enough and I didn't like that I was relying on the third school which I would be visiting the next day. With Bilaal's preschool when we were selecting a school for him, when we left there both Yaasier and I just knew it would be the right choice so this is the feeling I was looking for in choosing Sumayah's school. I had a chat with a good friend who went through this ordeal not too long ago with her own child and she reminded me of advice I in fact gave her at the time, which was, that there is no such thing as a perfect school, only one that is right for you and your child. Then tuesday finally arrived and voila! The minute I stepped onto the grounds I just knew. Its hard to explain because its not based on anything tangible, like the appearance of the grounds, although these things only confirmed my instincts as I looked around. Its just a sense you get from the staff and the the way they run the school just fitted in with what makes me feel comfortable. And then finally the school also ticked all the logistical boxes, so of course its not the perfect school, but I felt it was the right one. I especially knew by the fact that I was actually excited to phone hubby and tell him all about it. So we took home all the forms and she was to start the very next day, but that's a story for another post.

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More bathroom antics

There's been a number of my previous posts dedicated to Sumayah's bathroom antics. So young and already bathroom usage is a point of contention. Every chance she gets she's in the bathroom 'washing her hands' or brushing her teeth, resulting in soap or toothpaste all over the basin. Usually the minute I hear silence from Sumayah I know she's up to no good so that I am able to intercept these mischievious acts. But of course there are those occassions when her window of opportunity is just wide enough to cause that extra bit of havoc. Case in point, the other day the disturbing silence from upstairs had me racing up the stairs (as fast as a pregnant woman can in this jozi heat!) to find what resembled a gruesome murder scene in the bathroom. Sumayah had the predetermination to fetch the fold out stool in Bilaal's bedroom cupboard, and carry it to the bathroom to reach the her red shampoo on the window sill and proceeded to 'clean' the toilet, the bath and the floor! She then moved onto the bathroom cabinet where she managed to empty the jar of cream (again!) onto her face and in the basin. In the picture you see red smeared all over the bathroom, well it was also all over her nappy and clothes! After dealing with Sumayah I started cleaning it up and then realised I needed tto take a picture to add to my archives for her embarrassing 21st birthday photo montage. So the bathroom actually looked much worse when I just caught her!

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