College Bound
“Is college after kindergarten?” was the question I heard from the back seat of the car while we were driving through the campus at the University of New Mexico. I take him there often; to feed the ducks at the duck pond, to go to swim class and to attend different events they host throughout the year. Today we are here for a Star Wars display. “No,” I answered with a small laugh of encouragement, so he could finish his thought.
The next question from my five year-old, as we drove past the dorms, “Are those hotel rooms?” I said, “Kind of, they are called dorms and that is where the college students live. They are more like little apartments. Daddy lived in these dorms when he went to school here.”
He continued, “The greatest thing about college is you get to stay up as long as you want. I’m going to stay up and watch TV on my phone.”
“Yeah?” Letting him continue.
“At the dooms, they know you get uncomfortable with girls, so girls have girl roommates and boys have boy roommates.” I responded, “You’re right! Boys live with boys and girls live with girls.” I didn’t correct his “doom” instead of “dorm” talk — I thought it was cute, and really, a more accurate description of life in the dorms.
“Do you get breakfast, lunch and dinner in college?” he asked, his thoughts turning to food. “Yes,” I answered. “You can eat in the cafeteria when you go to college.”
He was on a roll with the college talk. “The good thing about college is you can do what you want after school. You can just roll around outside or go to your doom.”
“Yeah, you have a lot of freedom to do want you want.” I continued to explain who went to college in our family, and who had Bachelor, Graduate and Doctorate degrees.
“I’m going to get one! After Pre-school I’m going to start practicing instead of playing!”
Trying to talk him down a little bit, I looked at him in the rear view mirror and gave him a little wink and said, “Don’t worry you have plenty of time.”
Now, Revenge of the Sixth!
Summer Talk
This week was Azul’s last week of Pre-school and for some crazy emotional Mommy reason it has come to a bittersweet end for me. My baby is going to all-day Kindergarten next year and I’m having some unexpected troubles with it.
We have done the new “big boy” school visit and went through registration, granted I was almost in tears that night after I put him to bed, thinking about how big he is getting. But, in front of him, I have been the shining example of support for my five year-old’s next big step! He is ready and excited and I am a little scared!
There are things I am NOT going to miss about Pre-school, like these little devils that haunt every room in my house! The playground woodchips are in my carpet, couches and I even find them in the beds sometimes.
With Azul’s new school being only five minutes away, the one thing I am going to miss is our twenty-minute commute. We have some of the best conversations in the morning. This has become private time for us and no one else, time where just the two of us can be together and laugh. Today’s conversation consisted of talk about what we were going to do during Summer Break. This is just a slice of our morning commute.
I’m glad we have all summer to hang out and talk, but first ManiPedis!
What’s Black and White and Green All Over?
Azul has really been going through a “stage” recently and not a good one, not the worst one, but he has turned into a little monster. Not the typical screaming, angry, mean monster, more like the questioning, conniving, proving you wrong, you won’t like me when I’m angry so don’t even try it kind of monster.
I know parenting and growing up are full of stages; there are the stages in infancy, sleeping through the night (or not), the screaming and changing diapers. Then there are the fun stages, the laughing and cooing, and then the rolling over and becoming mobile. Soon potty training comes around, and talking, and at that point there seems to be a break in all the chaos, life is good! And just when you get into a groove, here come the stereotypical Terrible-twos, which really didn’t hit us until three. No matter when it comes, you’ll know it when it gets there, the new-found independence and willingness to challenge everything you say. And then it passes, and a new unique personality develops just like a beautiful butterfly breaking out of its cocoon.
The one stage I must have pushed deep into the darkest corner of my brain and don’t really remember is one my mom claims I called the F@cking Fours! Again I don’t remember ever saying that, but it’s not beyond me and really, that is the beauty of parenting and why people do it over and over again, we choose not to remember the bad and boast only about the good.
Now, from what I remember four was pretty good and five has been awesome, until now. This has become the stage of self-righteousness, the willingness to create unnecessary friction and the world I tried to create of thinking in shades of gray has turned into a sharp division of black and white. It is hard to pinpoint exactly what it is, but it seems to be with everything.
Gone are the carefree days of my son just doing whatever I wanted, now the schedule must be approved by him in advance, and if not followed exactly, then it all falls apart. If I suggest out of the blue, maybe, some frozen yogurt, he responds, “Ugh, I wanted ice cream.” This is when the battles begin and I respond with, “Well, that’s fine, we don’t have to go at all.” And he’ll say, “But, I want to go.” In disbelief I say “Then why are we arguing about this? None of this is necessary. I thought it would be nice to get something sweet.” In a show of defeat he succumbs to my wishes with a sigh and an, “Okay.”
Not every encounter ends as pleasantly as that one and sometimes I yell and we just go home and I end up mad. But you get the point — and none of it needed to happen in the first place. This happens with everything from brushing his teeth to eating dinner to playing a game. And yes I know it’s a stage and yes I know I am super lucky overall, because he is a really good kid, and yes I know he’s five and yes I know he is a whole lot of fun and yes it doesn’t always happen, but sometimes all I want is my sweet mini Bruce Banner back!
Carmelina Hart 