Me and You Day

Yay, it's Me and Matthew Day!

With the new semester, we are lucky enough to have two Me and You Days every week - Tuesday and Thursday. Mondays are reserved for Daddy while I'm at school, and he has half-day preschool on Wednesdays and a full day on Fridays. I like Fridays at this school because there are a lot fewer kids enrolled that day so he gets a lot of quality time.

So far today we have played Sorry Spin and Sorry Sliders. We had a candy cane (well, he had a candy cane - I pocketed mine 'for later.') We went to a grocery store that we don't usually go to since I found a gift card that had a remaining balance. I don't know if they're having a sale or something, but I found great prices in their meat section so I stocked up on some stuff to make this week. I also ran across a huge box of Cheerios that was half price just because the box was torn up. The inner bag was completely fine and sealed. Now, we're watching Blue's Clues on Netflix; soon we'll have lunch.

I know it probably sounds boring to some people, but we just love these days that are so laid back. After lunch, he'll play quietly by himself and I'll get some homework done. Since he's our last baby, I know all too well that before I know it, he'll be in school all day and it will be a lot harder to find time to do these little things together. I'm treasuring this time with him.

Me and You Friday - 12/10

Yesterday was "Me and You Day" with Matthew. I guess it sounds a little weird to dedicate a day as such, but Matthew is the kind of kid who likes to associate each day with something.

Weekends are when the girls are out of school.
Monday is Matthew and Daddy day, when he gets Tyler all to himself until the girls get home, and it's his Taekwondo day.
Tuesday is a short day at his school while I am in class.
Wednesday is a short day at his school while I study. It's also Taekwondo day.
Thursday is his long day at his school while I am in class and lab.
Friday is Me and You day.

He just needs to know what day it is (and with that comes What Time Is It? and Where Are We?) to keep himself centered. I bet he would like a calendar that he could mark the days with a big X to have a visual cue. Hmm ... maybe Santa will bring him something like that!

Anyway, yesterday was Me and You day. We headed down to Grammy's neck of the woods for lunch and then he and I went shopping together. He picked out some great little gifts for his sisters. Mancala for Hannah, Connect 4 x 4 for Clara, and Color Fillz for Rebecca.

And he picked out a coloring book for himself, ha ha. I colored with him for a while, and then he colored in that book the entire rest of the day, breaking only for supper! He was still coloring when it was time for lights out and when I got up in the moring, he was sitting in bed coloring again! He was dedicated, that is for sure. There are only a few pages left in the book that aren't colored but the desire to color has finally worn off.

Me and You Friday

Today is Mommy and Matthew Day, otherwise known as Me and You Day! I love that I don't have school on Fridays and that we have established this time together. He looks forward to it as much as I do!

The girls have an early dismissal from school today, so we get to share part of our day with them as well. Here they are, coming in the door just a few minutes ago!



This morning we played and played with trains. We built a huge track on the floor and mixed in some ZhuZhu pet houses as tunnels and bridges. We had a good time and Matthew was a happy boy. Here is a part of the big track we built.


Hannah and Clara are happily making cookies and Rebecca and Matthew are playing with the train track. Hannah is leaving for a weekend Girl Scout camp later today so I'm glad to get a little extra time with her this afternoon.

Lazy day, but we're having fun!

Mommy and Matthew Friday - How It Came About

Mommy and Matthew Day - otherwise known as Me and You Day.

Since starting classes a couple of years ago, the kids have definitely noticed that my time with them has been reduced. When I first started, Hannah really struggled with having me gone. She came right out and asked me why taking care of her and the other kids wasn't enough and wanted to know why I was 'leaving them.' It took some explaining and some time to get used to the change, but now I am glad to say that she is proud of me and sees me as an educational role model.

Anyway, Matthew was only 2 when I started back to school, so he has been hit the hardest with my absence. A couple of semesters ago, I ended up with classes all 5 days of the week, and 5 days at the school's childcare proved just too much for Matthew, who has some sensory issues, to bear. By Saturday, he was a stressed out bundle of nerves and we would have to spend the whole weekend just calming him down - only to have it start back again on Monday. Since that semester, I have made absolute certain that I have at least one full day during the week with Matthew - just me and him.

This semester, Me and You day has been on Friday. And he's had the added bonus of Matthew and Daddy day on Monday since Ty is off of work on Mondays. It's been a great semester having a whole day to spend together while the girls are in school. It's nice to have that time with him! Now ... I just need to come up with a way of having that kind of time with each of the girls as well.