Last week didn't start out too well for our family. Brooklyn had told me Monday or Tuesday that she was switching to the "Big Kid Room" the next day and it was very clear she wasn't too excited about it. She was upset that two of her friends would not be transitioning with her (they won't be going to Kindergarten next year due to their birthdays). . . and was insisting that she was going to play only with LJ in the School Age room. LJ is one of her little boy friends that she adores playing with. I told her that it would be tons of fun to be in the big kid room - and that she is lucky to get to go there. Little Miss Brooklyn did not agree with my opinion and said "I don't think that the big boys want to play with me". I insisted that it would be great fun and that she didn't have to play with all the kiddos and we moved on to other topics.
When the morning came Brooklyn was clearly apprehensive about what the day had in-store. By the time Matt got her to school she was tearing up and not excited at all about going. Matt wanted to check her preschool room to see if it was officially the day for transition, and Brooklyn said to her preschool teacher "I get to stay here, right? Please." Augh. . my heart breaks just typing this out. The teacher told Brooklyn that indeed she needed to start going to the School Age Room (she has been gradually transitioning during the past two weeks). Matt managed to get her to the room and encouraged her to the point where she was tolerant . . but it was clear to him that she was scared and sad.
I can totally understand why my precious girl is sad and worried. She has had SO much change in the past three months. . . she's been torn away from her Belgian school and transitioned into a preschool class that she was loving. . and now she is changing from that room to the school age room which operates as a Kindergarten wrap-around program during the school hours, and a before and after school program during non-school hours. But. . it's summer. . so there are kids in her class all the way up to the age of 10. It's not a bad thing as it functions similar to a Montessori program which Brooklyn was previously used to. . but it's new right now. . and different. . and apparently pretty scary for my baby girl who just wants a bit of stability in her life.
My kid is courageous and independent with social skills that can trump most older kids'. She's fearless on most occasions and will play with anyone who comes her way. But, I think the time has come that we've pushed the change button one too many times and she's "over it". I can't blame her - I'm ready for some stability too but I am old enough to understand the path of changes has stopped until August. . and at that point her current school will remain stable and she will just add in new Kindergarten. After that we should be on a once-a-year change path that should be well managed. But, I think I've lost some trust with my pretty little diva. . she doesn't know what's beyond the next turn. . where this crazy path of life is taking her.
Fortunately the first day she was in the room she ended the day by telling me that Miss Laura was the "best teacher ever" and that a boy named Kyle had been very nice to her and put things in her cubby when she couldn't reach. By the second day she genuinely seemed to be having an apprehensively good time. I liken Brooklyn to Tenderheart bear from the Care Bears, she is just the sweetest little girl I have ever met and wants everyone to be happy. She will yell across parking lots to complete strangers "I like your shirt!" or tell the cashier "I really like your hair today". It's as though God's mission in her life is to bring others joy. I just hope that the positive trend we saw towards the end of the week continues and that she finds a way to be happy in her new school room. I think we're on the right track.
Another symptom of our everchanging world had been a sudden onset of potty accidents for Miss Brooklyn. She had resorted to having a couple potty accidents each day. It was frustrating for both us and her teachers and none of us knew quite what to do about it. Each day came with a slightly different reasoning. . most centered around not wanting to inconvenience others. "My teacher was busy with another kid". . ."Someone was already in the bathroom". . . "We aren't supposed to get off of our cots during nap time". . etc. After several weeks of pure frustration for both Brooklyn and us it finally clicked and she hasn't had an accident in almost a full week. Phew! It seems I have my little girl back. . . and I'm nearly 100% positive that the incidents were linked to her feeling out of control in her world. Solid proof that "kids are resiliant" does have it's limits.
On that note I think I'll close this blog post. No pictures. . no excitement. . but at least I got some things off my chest and can clear the way for a more exciting topic next time :)
1 comment:
Big changes for little Brooklyn! I'm glad that she seems to be doing better with everything.
Post a Comment