First Impressions

From 2004-2008 I thought I was an awesome parent. I had a very well-behaved, well-mannered little boy that never got into trouble and a baby girl that, for the most part, slept well, smiled, coo-ed and played happily. Zoe's babyhood was in sharp contrast to Noah's. He was a very cranky baby and toddler, but once he hit 18 months old, he turned into a dream child.

Awesome parenting skills, right? You know.. some people were just born to be parents. Some people are just awesome.

Yeah... RIGHT!

So, while I was sitting on my smug little awesome pedestal judging others, my awesome baby girl was approaching eighteen months of age. The age that everything in my household apparently does a one-eighty.

Zoe hit eighteen months and I swear her red hair glowed a little brighter, that temper began to shine through, she started asserting her independence and we buckled down for the storm.

Because I still thought I was an awesome parent, Noah's terrible two's weren't so bad and we handled them well. Again, I erroneously attributed that to my stellar parenting skills.

Then Zoe turned two and it only got worse.

Zoe turned three and still... tantrums, strong-willed, EVERYTHING. IS. A. STRUGGLE. Resistance at every turn. I feel like I am beating my head against a brick wall. Hourly.

I know. It's the moment the parents of the children that throw public tantrums wait silently for. When the parents of the good children get their comeuppance. Karma. Smack in the back of their puffed up little heads.

Well, alright, already. I get it. It isn't my parenting skills. I was NOT an awesome parent, I was a LUCKY parent. I totally get it now. So, when does my lesson end? When will Zoe fall into compliance?

When Noah started preschool at age three, all I ever got was praise and compliments about what a sweet and well-behaved little boy he was. I took Zoe to meet her teacher and see her classroom today for preschool. It was a little different experience than the first time around.

Noah clung nervously to me, hid behind my leg and finally after 30 minutes or so, warmed up enough to play with some of the toys in the room, but never venturing far from me. When it was time to leave, all I had to do was tell him so and he was at my side for fear I might leave him.

Back to this morning. Zoe and I walked into her classroom (coincidentally the exact same classroom Noah had, but the teachers are different). She walked right in with her backpack, parked her butt on the little couch and began spreading out her blanket and stuffed cat. Another child wanted to sit on the couch too and Zoe was kicking and swatting at him. I was trying to contain her all the while the teacher was welcoming the parents and telling us about her classroom. I glanced down at Zoe again and she was lying upside down hanging off the couch, legs spread-eagle in her dress. I quietly asked her to sit up which she answered with a screech.

Since she couldn't play nicely and share the couch, I made her get up at which point- while the teacher was still giving her speech- Zoe proceeded to lie down on her back in the middle of the floor and start kicking her legs. She wasn't screaming, just sort of grunting with each kick, so I chose to ignore her. It was then that I could see it. The other parents were staring, judging. I was THAT mother. With THAT kid.

Just ten minutes earlier, in the parent meeting upstairs, they were explaining that if there were behavioral problems with the children, the parents would be required to accompany their child on the field trips. It wasn't an option. I was thinking I would chaperone all the field trips anyway, because they are fun. I went on all of them with Noah. But it would be mortifying to be that parent that HAD to go on all the field trips because their kid was a discipline problem.

And now, ten minutes later, I realized it was going to be ME. *I* was going to be the parent with the phone calls, incident reports, required to go on the field trips and the one the other newbies stare at, shake their heads and "tsk tsk".

Preschool is going to be an adventure...

...and a bit of entertainment.

I am just not sure WHOSE entertainment yet.

Oh, and if your child is in the same room as my child, get used to the name, "Zoe". I feel like it might come up a lot.

One more thing: I apologize in advance.

** I should note that once the teacher was finished speaking, Zoe happily went and played with the toys, but then it was time for us to leave and we had a mini-meltdown over leaving.

*** Dumb Mom is having Mom Tip Tuesday today and although I can't offer any tips, since it is pretty obvious my full-of-myself parenting skills have been invalidated and clearly I can only offer tips on how NOT to raise a child, she is generously offering the chance to link up school related posts too. So, if you have a Mom Tip or a school-related post- go on over and link up!