To preschool or not to preschool?

Ok it has been awhile since I last wrote but no time like the present to start again. So here goes... I have Gabe signed up for preschool in September. The thought of him going has me equally excited to have some grown up time to work from home (and make some extra money) but it also has me very, very nervous. Questions keep plaguing my thoughts: Is he too young? Is he still too attached? What if he needs me and I'm not there? Am I pushing him into preschool because his friends (and moms) are doing it? Am I doing it for selfish reasons (me time)? My other concern is that it is a German immersion preschool that is completely play based, and completely in German (in preparance for his K-8 German school in our neighborhood). Will he get overly frustrated? Will he feel lonely? What if he needs me? I'm 99% sure that I'm transferring. I mean first, PLENTY of kids learn second languages and they don't feel lonely - they just don't know what the person is talking about at first, simple as that. Also, every time I leave him at a friends house, he never wants to come home. Half the time when I go somewhere without him, he doesn't care if I'm gone. But its the other half that pulls at the heart strings. I mean, he will still be under 3 in September (ok, two months away from being three) but still...am I pushing him to socialize, to become well adjusted, to join the rat-race too soon? These are all questions and concerns coming from a stay-at-home mom, mind you, but he is a stay-at-home kid. We love spending time together, with other friends, but he still likes having me there.

I am torn but we will give it a try. Fortunately, he has two other friends that will be carpooling with us and one will be part of his class so he will never be dropped off alone. He tends to do better in these situations. And I will probably attend the school with him the first couple of times. I am hoping he loves it and looks forward to it each week.

On another note, I am part of a preschool coop where 8 moms and children get together once a week at alternating homes to provide our kids with preschool related tasks, friends, and overall environment. We read stories and sing songs and try to have circle time. The kids are learning to transition from playing to learning time to lunch to playtime. Its a great group of women. I absolutely love being a mom. I think it is amazing how parenthood introduces you to so many things that you cannot possibly experience outside of parenting and so many people that you probably never would have been friends with (or even met for that matter) were it not for kid. The picture below is from the coop preschool. Our theme for the week was bugs (that is what they are looking at). The top picture is of Gabe in a tent at our house with some preschool buddies.

Pennies for the fireplace

Today I was sitting on the couch doing my afternoon Su Doku when Gabe started playing on the hearth in front of our fireplace. He said, "Mommy, owls live in fireplace." For a while he has thought that all or some owls live in our fireplace - and they very well may. But then he started removing the screen. I said, "oh no Gabe, the fireplace is no place to play. Its where we have fires and its very dirty." He said, "I want a fire. Make a fire mommy." I tried to explain that the fireplace needed cleaning and that it cost money and we don't have money for the fireplace right now. So no fires." He stood there for a minute and then ran out of the room. When he came back he had four pennies for me. He said, "here mommy, money for the fireplace." So cute and might I add, pretty genius.

Gabe's first major haircut

Yesterday (Monday) was Gabe's first major haircut (it took me a day to recover from it). I was going to get an inch cut off and then decided hey - since I'm paying for it - why not do something a little different? Big mistake. Before the lady could even finish (which was fortunately close to the end), he jumps out of the chair, runs across the room and starts pulling at his hair crying, "mommy, I want my hair back, please mommy, put it back." I felt like the worst mom - EVER. We immediately went to the playground - lolly pop in hand. When we got home, he let me trim it a little to even things out (I'm guessing out of fear of me taking him back to the haircut place). Today, we looked in the mirror and he asked for another lolly pop. I gave him one and he said, "I wanna another haircut." Here's his cool new do - he insisted I be in the picture too.

Yoga - March 31 (6:30AM class)

I did it! Today I finished my yoga challenge. I completed 28 days total, 25 in a row. For those of you that know me well (type A), you know that not completing a whole amount (e.g., the full 31 days of March) makes me a little crazy. But the point is, I challenged myself and met the challenge.

Below are a few things I have gained (or lost) from my 25 day Bikram experience…
• I lost 4 lbs! Unfortunately the 4lbs were not localized to my abs. I also noticed that I only ate what I needed and had no cravings (except on Easter Sunday).
• I discovered that one hour of Bikram yoga burns 635 calories and the class is an hour and a half long.
• To attend Bikram everyday, my body needs 3L (plus) of water to feel hydrated. By hydrated I mean not feeling any soreness from a class or fatigued for the next class.
• I discovered that if you take it easy, you can heal a pulled/strained muscle while taking Bikram classes. It actually promotes healing versus adding stress.
• I feel happier and calmer, especially in stressful situations.
• I have gained self-confidence in my poses and in my life and self-discipline (because there were some mornings that I did NOT want to go).
• I gained increased flexibility overall and improved symmetry in my poses (although one side is still stronger). I have increased strength and stamina and rarely feel fatigued after a pose or class. I also exceeded many of my goals for individual poses: 1) Camel Pose: I no longer use my aid and I am now doing the full extension of the posture, which I had not even planned to do 2) Half Moon with Hands to Feet Pose: I got my legs locked (once, but still) 3) Triangle Pose: Seems much, much easier and I actually got a compliment in it one day.

I completed 25 consecutive days of yoga - through 6:30AM classes and several sleepless nights, a cold, Easter Sunday logistics, and a pulled muscle in my back – so no more excuses not to go (got that little voice in my head)?

Yoga - March 26-30

March 26 (Wednesday) 6:30AM class - Only 5 days left and I'm ready to take a break. Back is slowly healing and I'm dreading getting up in the mornings. Instead of being something I want to do, it is something I have to do. I will get a better attitude when I'm done.
March 27 (Thursday) 6:30AM class - Ditto.
March 28 (Friday) 6:30AM class - I'm excited for Leslie to get here. She may take a class with me. I'm taking it easy still to heal my back (left mid). It now feels more annoying than painful and I can get back into Fixed Firm, Head to Knee with Stretching Pose, and Spine Twisting (but barely).
March 29 (Saturday) 8AM class - Felt good today. Looking forward to a fun afternoon.
March 30 (Sunday) 8AM class - One more day! I can't wait too because I was dragging today. It was painful. I felt so fatigued. I'm guessing I didn't drink enough water yesterday hanging out with the girls. I thought I was going to cry in a couple of poses because I was so tired physically. I went in with a pretty good attitude too. Sometimes your body just needs some rest.

Yoga - March 24-25 (6:30AM class)

March 24 (Monday) – After Sunday, I really took it easy. I notice that I feel a strain in my left side during Triangle and Fixed Firm really aggravates it. I stayed out of Fixed Firm and did a mild version of Triangle (on my left, right-side was normal). I am also avoiding Head To Knee Pose w/Stretching Pose and Final Spine Twisting Pose (left side only). The pain has mostly localized in my left trap and shoulder blade but I can still feel it (a little) in my middle back. I did all other poses normally but did not push myself in them. I took 2 Advil and had no pain or soreness after class.
March 25 (Tuesday) – I felt a lot better today. No pain in my trap although the middle back pain (left side still) was more pronounced. I took it easy in the same poses mentioned above. I am hoping tomorrow to get back into a few of them, even if mildly. Even though my muscle felt slightly strained in class, I did not feel any soreness after class today and took no medication. Only 6 more days!

Yoga - March 23 (4:30 PM class)

So, on the way to yoga today I'm thinking, "the 4:30 PM class is going to be soooo hot (because it was a hot day and afternoon classes are always hotter than my 6:30 AM class)...it's going to kick my butt." Well, it was hotter but it wasn't harder. It was actually easier. For some reason, I felt super strong (but alas, my back was bugging me). My legs felt strong and I didn't even mind Awkward Pose (and that's unheard of!). I reached my goal of "locking my knees" in Half-Moon with Hands to Feet Pose (second set). My goal was to do it just once, and just once it is going to be (for a while) because my hamstrings are going to be sore tomorrow. I also touched my head to my left knee in Standing Separate Leg Head to Knee Pose. If my back was 100%, it would have been a great day. It hurt in Fixed Firm and it was down hill from there. I have 8 days left in my challenge and I'm concerned that the strain is not going to heal properly because I am not giving it a chance to rest. I guess the next 8 days will be a test of that. Can an injury heal if you continue to exert it?
PS - My back felt great at the end of yesterday and all day today before yoga. No pain. I drank more than 3L of water yesterday and I'm thinking that has a lot to do with it.