Take-back

Did I really say that I don’t mind washing the sheets every other day? Okay, fine, I take that one back. And another thing (this one positive): Austin’s doc said we can ease up on the dietary restrictions, which is obviously great news. Especially since we’ve already been easing up on the dietary restrictions. Now […]

Fifty Percent

As we near the one year mark since the end of Austin’s cancer treatment, he has a series of appointments, scans and lab work scheduled. Today was a visit with his kidney doctor, our first exclusively with her since early last summer. All in all, he’s doing very well and is perfectly positioned in the […]

Registration Day

Soooooo, today was kindergarten registration day at Fairfax. My PTA job doing outreach to the incoming kindergarten families required that I be there for the entire two-and-a-half hour event this evening. I oversaw an art project for the kids who came along with their parents, took families on tours of the building, and answered lots […]

No Regrets

Now that I no longer gasp in surprise every time one of my boys walks in the room with only fuzz on their heads, here’s the full scoop on our St Baldrick’s Day events: Austin was excited all day, asking over and over again when we would go pick up Braedan. Finally, the moment arrived […]

Success

Much too tired right now to tell you the whole St. Baldrick’s story but I will give you just enough — in the form of lovely photos — to satisfy your curiosity. This morning, before heading off to school: Immediately following the group shearing: Look, Mommy’s there too. I don’t get a shirt because I […]

My Hairy Beasts

In a day and a half, I will be surrounded by baldies (yet again). I know both Mark and Braedan look spectacularly handsome without their hair — Braedan in particular becomes all eyes and eyelashes (and man, does that kid have eyelashes!). Here they are, following Braedan’s first at-home head shaving last Christmas: But my […]

Popping Up

You know how once you start thinking hard about something, it seems to pop up everywhere? Well, this kindergarten things seems to be popping up everywhere. Yesterday, I read this article from a recent Newsweek, which focuses on parents who hold their kids back from kindergarten (often upon the recommendation of the private schools to […]

Everybody’s Doing It

OK, this will be my final public mulling over when to send Austin to kindergarten. For a little while at least! My big issue right now is that I feel like sending him this coming fall is the RIGHT thing to do. Yes, he would still be only four for the first few weeks, but […]

Every Advantage

Thank you for the many thoughtful comments. A few responses: I have certainly talked this over with his preschool teacher, but that has still left me hovering between my two choices. She thinks that he is ready both academically and socially for kindergarten. Her concern is the much less predictable “What about when he’s 10 […]

To Send or Not to Send

You know, it’s sort of funny because last spring and summer when we were dealing with the enormous burden of deciding whether or not to remove Austin’s kidney — and even back into the previous fall and winter when we were dealing with the same enormous burden — I kept saying how I wished I […]