This and That

It's a funny thing being a parent. I'm in over my head to say the least. Then things happen and surprise me and help me to remember I can chill out. But one thing remains: I am in over my head.

Cade is now in 3rd grade. The magic year of accountability. Kyle and I have discussed giving Cade some freedom so that he feels the natural consequences of things, rather than constantly remind him. The end goal is that Cade, naturally, on his OWN takes initiative with school work as well as extra curricular activities. We want him to WANT to do well in school. We want him to WANT to do his best, work hard, and give life his all.

Take reading for instance. He should be reading 20-30 minutes every night. Starting Cade on a book is really hard. So I decided to let January and February "happen" as he directed it to.  He is supposed to get a paper signed every day that he read. He missed a good solid week in January. At least.  I was hopeful that he would see results in his grades at school and feel the consequences of his choice. Well, come report card time the kid got straight A's. So, what was his consequence really of not reading???  Maybe I was the one who was supposed to learn the lesson? I don't know.

So I let February go, too. The kid only read 8  days out of the month.  Granted, we were gone for 8 days of the month, but still. We might not learn for a while if that really takes its toll on his grades but we will see. I was getting nervous honestly that my kid would hate reading and his comprehension would struggle and then he would struggle with learning for the rest of his life. Thoughts continued to spiral.

I decided March was not going to be a month of Cade calling the shots. So I was firm and said he needed to read.  He didn't throw a fit nor did he refuse to read. He got his Percy Jackson book and joined me in bed last night and read. And I had quite the time peeling him away from his book. The kid has a hard time stopping reading, too.

What a balance act parenting is!

Is there a moral to this story? Not sure. But, Cade doesn't hate reading, he has fine comprehension. All is not lost.

I'm still confused about how to teach him self-motivating life skills though. Food for thought. Oh trust me, I've got a gazillion books, articles, etc etc. Just knowing how to consistently execute it is the trick.

Hmm...what else?

Ruby is back in swimming lessons. She finally decided after the 3rd day she would like it. Funny girl. She is determined to be in charge of her emotions. She loves it now and tells me every day she wants to go back tomorrow. Great!

Savannah and I have been participating in a reading study at BYU. It pretty much goes like this. Fill out a survey, collect $25 dollars. Come to the lab and read a book with your daughter while being secretly watched, collect $25 dollars. We've read 4 books now together and it feels like highway robbery. I go in tomorrow for the final part of the study. $150 total compensation for reading or talking about reading to my daughter. Awesome. Oh, and I failed to mention they provide babysitting for Ruby while this is going on. All very nice indeed.  I'm curious what they find or discover or think of our reading sessions. Hmm.

Kyle was awesome and cleaned out the garage a few days ago. The weather has been sunshine-y and the kids have been playing outside a bunch. I love it. They generally play outside even when it's cold and snowy- but it has been fun watching them on their bikes and scooters and what not. But back to the garage--- yes, it's awesome looking now. Even with all the sleds, bikes, go-carts scooters and what not.

My big sister is amazing and ran a sub 3 marathon this last weekend. Translation to non-runners:  She ran 26.2 miles in less than 3 hours!  Her pace was about 6:30 per mile . Yeah, she is awesome. She is also dedicated and the most self-motivated person I know.

My other sister dropped a bomb on us and is moving to Vernal. In 2 weeks. :(  I'm so sad but really excited for her. I'm kicking myself for not taking more advantage of her living so close. She's been a mere 20 minutes away from me for the last 3 years. And now it's going to be 2.5 hours. Yes, we will survive. But I really like my sisters. Rebecca is a saint and my kids love her. I love my nephew Squishy Cheeks and my niece Bailey. I love my brother-in-law Jake who is really such a great guy. Sigh. But this is all great for them and when it's great for them, I'm happy.

For Christmas for the 2nd year, my parents gave the kids "dates." They love it. They pick a day for each child and let the grandchild pick where to eat and what they want to do. It is a hit. Cade just got to cash in on his and it was pretty awesome.  He wanted to build a secret hiding spot under his window seat with Grandpa. After eating at Burger King of course. My Dad was awesome and designed a great trove for Cade. It took more than an afternoon, naturally. So my Dad came up again Monday to finish it up. Cade, the lucky goose had a minimal day and was home by 2pm so he was thrilled to pieces he was able to finish helping. He had a hard time going to soccer practice at 4:30 though. He kept insisting "Grandpa needs my help! He can't do it without me!"  Pretty awesome stuff. Cade and I are going to paint it and it will be all done! Dads are awesome.