We had this last week. Jay and I both looked forward to sitting down one-on-one with Ms. Voya and Ms. Gilly to really get a sense of how Theo has been doing in school. We all know the past couple months have been tough on all of us, but we continue to hope that with many changes also comes growth.
On a positive note, in the short time Theo has been going to preschool, his ability to express his many emotions with words and to move forward passed frustration and anger has certainly improved. He is a bright, loving, affectionate little boy and the teachers see that side of him very much. He continues to choose to be that way mostly with the teachers and not as much with friends in his class. He has this interesting demeanor that I can’t describe. He is an extroverted, social being yet he doesn’t care too much for interacting a whole lot with the other kids. The teachers said even when it comes to outdoor activities he sort of sticks to the beat of his own drum. As I think I’ve always said, he likes smaller groups, just like me. I think he gets overwhelmed and uncomfortable. It can’t (I suppose it could) be sheer coincidence that since three kids have left his program (leaving only six friends in total) he seems to be more comfortable and flourishing a bit more.
They showed us a slideshow of Theo from the start of school until now and gave us a play-by-play of what he has been doing in the classroom, both inside and outside. I like the teachers very much and know that they have a wealth of experience and are directly in line with our beliefs as far as nurturing and teaching Theo to treat others with kindness, have empathy and to be able to feel comfortable genuinely expressing his emotions. He is building trust with them. As things have improved on the home front, they seem to have improved with school too. We hear him expressing his emotions often and we are all processing this move, the impending arrival of our new family member and the struggles of separation from Daddy and the occasional separation from Mama.
We have new traditions that have helped us tremendously with our transitions and Theo is more comfortable expressing his feelings knowing they are normal feelings and we all have them. I am watching my child before my very eyes develop and grow into such a lovely kid. He is not without tantrums and frustrations, and we continue to teach him (and ourselves!) how to emotionally regulate. In the past week I have seen a happier kid bouncing into school. And that makes for a happier everyone.