Adjusting

Since our move, one of the most asked questions is, 'How are the kids adjusting?' There are a few things that we've had to adjust to. One of the biggest is rising A LOT earlier than we had to in PG. (The boys would get up at 7 or 7:30 to be to the Jr. High by 8:15, and the other 3 kids were up by 7:30 or 8 to be out to the bus by 8:45). Brady started early morning seminary the 2nd day we were here. And hasn't missed a day...guess it's still kind of new. There was even one morning that first week where he still wasn't able to start school and I was SO TIRED, and I thought...'Oh he'll sleep in' so I just laid there hoping he'd turn off his alarm. But nope I heard the shower going, and a few minutes later he was rummaging in the kitchen for cereal. Pretty proud of that boy for getting up. There was one day last week though, that we didn't hear him. He slept through his alarm, when I went to get him up, he wanted to 'sleep in'. Guess what...sleeping in isn't the best option. Even if he slept in...he'd still have to get up in 20 minutes anyways for school. And the funny thing about his bus is that it will drop him off, but doesn't have a pick up spot that is close. So we'd have to take him. The crazy thing about Birmingham, is that there are NO SIDEWALKS! Threw me off at first too. They bus EVERY SINGLE STUDENT for the most part (or parents drop them off). Even if you only live 2 blocks from the school...there is no safe way to walk to school. The youth in our ward are great...we take Brady to seminary at 6am and he catches a ride with a boy named Colby to school everyday. When Nate or I take Brady at 5:50...the other one starts rising the 4 kiddos at the same time, since the 3 younger have to be out to the bus at 6:40am, and Zack's bus picks him up at 6:50am. It is a long bus ride...just under an hour, but with traffic so bad, if we were to take them to be at school by 7:50, we'd be on the road about an hour oursleves. Hannah also had to adjust to full day kindergarten. That is a long 9 hours...when she was only gone for 3 in PG. She rarely makes it past 8pm before her eyes are closing during reading time or sciptures. Can't drive anywhere with her after school either, or else she is a gonner! But if she's out playing, all is well, and we haven't had a melt down yet. When I asked her about how school was going...she said she 'Loves it...especially since I get to eat breakfast!' Umm...that's why her lunch account is depleating quickly...I didn't know she was going to breakfast too. At this point if it's keeping her happy it's worth the $1.50. But our little Seth has been having the hardest time adjusting. Almost everyday at lunch time he asks me where Hannah is. He's used to her coming home for lunch. Now he's just got boring old mom for 9 hours. And I'm not much fun trying to unpack and organize everything. He was fully potty trained through the night, and started wetting the bed again. So back to pull ups we go... and now it's just off and on. He's always saying to me, 'I need you' and rarely wants Nate, Zack or Rachel (his favorites)...but they will do sometimes. The 1st day of Sunbeams yesterday was a complete failure...so we'll try again next week. So this morning when he only wanted me, I just laid on the couch with him and we talked after the kids left for school. That seemed to help a little. After we got him dressed upstairs he said he wanted to play with blocks. I told him that I needed to go downstairs and clean. He said something that hit me like a ton a bricks, 'Mom if you leave, I will be lost.' Broke my heart. I just held him for a minute and we talked some more about how I'd never leave him, but I'd always come back, and how this was his fun new house and bedroom. He did end up playing in his room for about 20 minutes by himself. So hopefully we are taking baby steps to feeling more at ease here. I remember when we moved from Cedar to Springville when Brady was 1 1/2. The whole time we were packing up the Uhaul, he cried and cried. He'd follow me from room to room crying as our trailer got more and more empty. I finally realized that he was feeling like we were going to leave him too...so I ended up strapping him into his car seat where he could see us loading the Uhaul. He was fine and sat there for over 2 hours, because he knew that we were going to take him with us. It's so sad how these little ones don't quite get it, no matter how much you talk to them about it. But we'll just keep loving little Seth, and he'll be my little shadow for as long as he needs.