Fragments 11.06

Click on the image above to go visit the fabulous Mrs.4444! Check out her Fragments for today, visit other Fragmenters, and share your own link if you are Fragmented today!

***

What a week it's been! If you read down the page for this past week, you'll see that I had a mini breakdown over the weekend over my daughter's lack of happiness, we celebrated Halloween, I worked through my mommy stress, thanked the people in my life who helped me through it, got an award, wrote about a teachable moment that had a major impact on my life, and shared some thoughts on Christmas gift giving. Whew! And the stuff I didn't share? Well- that's what fragments are for!

***

Tuesday was an INSANELY busy day for me. The day started at 7:30 with a meeting at Teagan's school. Got to work by 8:30. Conference call at 9:45 that went until 10. Conf call at 10:30 that went until 11. Last minute department meeting from 11:10-11:30. Business lunch with my boss and a supplier until 12:45. Conference call at 1, another at 2, and another at 3. Had to leave work at 3:15 for Zach's 2 year well baby doctor visit. From there, we went to pick up Teagan from school and then it was home for dinner. I couldn't catch my breath! Whew!

***

That meeting at Teagan's school? It was about Teagan and her issues in getting along with this one other girl. The other girl and her mom came to meet us, too. We all came up with a big plan- daily reward system, sticker chart, earning a big reward after 10 stickers, etc. Teagan was great during the meeting. She even talked about how she feels tired when she is having a hard day. Both girls earned their stickers on day one. Teagan did not earn her sticker on day two. Teagan did not earn her sticker today. Everything was set up, she saw how it worked, and now she is testing to see what the limits and expectations really are. Wednesday was a horrid evening. We don't punish for things that happen at school- but the meltdown started when she realized she wasn't getting her daily reward (Halloween candy in the car). And it continued downhill from there and never fully recovered. Thursday morning was rough. But then...

***

I expected Thursday evening to be hard. She didn't get her sticker. She did get a lot of praise for handling a really hard situation exceptionally well (she got spit on and instead of retaliating, she went to a teacher). But she didn't get the sticker because she took all the praise, didn't let go of her anger, and took it out on a very innocent child in her class. She was apparently very cruel. It breaks my heart to think that my child can be so purposefully cruel. She was in a fine mood on her way home. I greeted her at the door with smiles and a hug. I praised her for how she handled the spitting situation. I asked about being angry and hurting the other child. She loved the praise and she handled the discussion about her anger really well. Dinner went well, bath time went well, bedtime went well (especially considering I handled the last 2 on my own since Jeff was busy talking to the mortgage company). And Jeff and I both praised her and thanked her for being so pleasant and being such an important part of our family being a happy family this evening.

***

I'm fighting a bug and I'm pretty sure it's winning.

***

I love my husband. Very much.

***

Now that dance class is on hiatus, I am eager to use that Saturday morning time for some of the fun things we used to do. I really miss going to the Children's Museum. It's been long enough that everything will basically be new to both kids now.

***

I am part of a local mom's discussion board. There was a discussion posted yesterday about "Who are your mom role models on this site?" I was really flattered to have a few moms list me as a role model! And the part that made me giggle? Each said that I seem to really "have it together." I'm calm and collected and I have a good angle on parenting and discipline. Man was that a great pick up! I don't have it all together and I don't try to act like I do. I'm very honest about how life goes around here- all my readers can vouch for that after my post during one of Teagan's meltdowns last week. I just take it one day at a time, one challenge at a time.

***

If you haven't already, would you mind clicking the link in the top right box on this page and dropping me a vote? If you already have- thank you! I'm hoping to secure a spot on Indiana's Top 50 Blogs. Voting closes in just a few days! Spread the word- no registration, just 2 clicks. I get nothing except my name on a list. I just think it'd be cool to be able to say that I'm one of Indiana's Top Bloggers!

***

Enjoy your weekend! Happy Friday!