Teacher - Mommy

I had the opportunity to volunteer my time on my day off at Mateusz's school today. I had 2 things on my agenda - 1. Help his teacher out in any way I could since the aide was not in until the afternoon and 2. spy on Te. I was introduced to the children as Mrs. Waring and although I know that my last name IS Waring, I was thrown off a bit and found myself looking for Mom Waring (Nonni). I also instantly felt my age. That moment left me wondering when life moved on and how lucky I was to have Te as my son. I am a Mommy and LOVE it! I was able to work with all the children and we made mice out of various shapes. I actually made the time a bit longer and incorporated letter sounds, rhyming words, spelling, and memory. I enjoyed every bit of it and look forward to my time next week (yup - I volunteered for more!). I had several children want to give me a hug when I left and feel I made Te proud. He waved to me throughout the class and asked me to stay and teach them more. Te calls me "Teacher - Mommy" when we do homework or play school to practice his writing etc. He seems to truly enjoy the learning process even though his focus can shift like the track of a hurricane. I am very proud of Te and love watching him grow into such a wonderful little gentleman. Thanks for reading!

Happy Tuesday!

The start of the school year has been fun. Mateusz has adapted well to his class although he still can't remember anybody's name to talk about with me. His favorite part of the day right now seems to be snack time (honestly, who can fault him) and gym. Te says he gets to throw a ball at a green duck and knock him down. He gets rather excited talking about smashing it then being able to do it again. Should I be worried? :) He has gotten "talked to" already, though. During the 2nd day of class he called someone a "Jack-wagon" during play time. Thanks to a commercial he saw on TV and his parents laughing at it, he felt it was appropriate to repeat and now has added the word to he ever expanding vocabulary. Just to clarify, a "jack-wagon" is not a bad word and, yes, Mom, I corrected him and told him not to repeat it again. The other minor detail of his 2nd day of school was that he made a girl cry because he told her that her lunch looked like "poo poo". Again, who could blame him when he gets a fabulous lunch made for him every day? :) Yes, Mom, I corrected him and told him not to repeat that again. So onward we go!

First Week at Bay Vista

The first week of "big boy" school is over and according to Te it's been "good". Yup - that's it - "good". Not "I've made new friends and have fun" or "we learned about xyz", nope, just "good". I know he likes it because when he wakes in the morning he asks about going back but I seem to be the only one talking when I ask about his day. Kind of reminds me of my brother at the dinner table growing up. All the girls talked and my brother would give one word answers about his day. Fun conversation. :) Anyway, we made it on time every day and had all papers signed and returned. Since this is a fundamental school, EVERYTHING makes a difference. The family gets demerits if late, or daily homework is not checked and signed by the parent, if 30 minutes of reading is not done nightly, or if meeting are missed etc. It really keeps the parent involved and on top of things but at the same time, it is a wee bit stressful. I was very impressed with his teacher who has a very hefty agenda for these kids. I really feel Te will be successful with her because she seems to have a kind but firm way of teaching - just perfect for Te. The first project I was shown was a picture she had the kids draw on the first day. The task was to draw a picture and tell a story from start to finish about something you did over the summer. Te drew a circle. The teacher asked him why a circle and he replied "We did a lot and it holds all my stories together." Pretty smart if ya ask me. Here's hoping the rest of the year will be as fun!

25 Things about Mateusz at 5 Years Old

Since I am in the mood to update this blog I felt compelled to return to an older post where I listed fun facts about Mateusz. Without further adieu:
1. Favorite movie series: Transformers, Cars and Ice Age
2. Te continues to suck his thumb and have his "gully" at night.
3. When asked what he wants to be when he grows up he stated "a crab". When asked again he stated "Well maybe a fireman or racecar driver or pilot". P.S. NOT a Physical Therapist.
4. The first thing Mateusz will ask anyone (especially Mimi, Pops and Nonni)"Do you have a surprise for me?"
5. Current favorite food: Chips and M&Ms
6. When asking for Daddy, Te now says "Where's my Father".
7. Mateusz has turned into a very polite little gentleman holding doors for Mommy and saying "Ladies first and boys second". He also continues with "Ma'am" and "sir". (We'll see how long that lasts!)
8. Handy Manny is his favorite cartoon along with Seseame Street /Elmo. OK - SpongeBob really is his favorite but I hated to admit that. (Thanks Daddy!).
9. If something can be taken apart, Te will figure out how to do it (or at least have Daddy do it with him).
10. Te is able to help read books and is able to get through sentences on his own.
11. Mateusz was 1 of 3 students to count to 100 on his own in front of his pre-school class last year.
12. Mateusz talks about his cousins, aunts and uncles often during movies and gives each one a role.
13. Te loves roller coasters and called Mommy a "wimp" for screaming on the Scorpion at Busch Gardens. In my defense - it has a 360 degree loop that turns you upside down and we were in the front seat.
14. Mateusz tells elaborate stories which all seem to end up with a crash of some sort.
15. Weight: 44.8 pounds Height: 44.5 inches
16. When the ice cream man drives through the neighborhood, Te runs out screaming "Icccceee Creammmmmmmm".
17. Mateusz took swim lessons and is able to go under water and hold his breath which he calls swimming. (It's a great start!)
18. If Te had it his way he would spend every day swimming at the beach or "surfing" on his boogie board.
19. Favorite racecar driver: Dario Franchitti (or as he would say "My best-franchitti")
20. Te went to the movies for the first time this year and saw "How to Tame Your Dragon" and "Toy Story 3". Best date nights i had in a longgggg time! :)
21. Mateusz loves Legos - Mommy does not (I curse the man who made all those little pieces that are found all over the house).
22. Te has one front tooth that got lost during an epic battle between him and our dining room hutch.
23. Dinners continue to be a challenge. Thank the good Lord for mac-n-cheese, PB&J, ABCs and 123s and grilled cheese.
24. Te has discovered hopping on one foot and bounces about the house.
25. Mateusz continues to be a wonderful little boy who brings a smile to our face every day. He is funny, witty, smart and full of life. Life with Te is a continuous adventure!

How Time Does Fly

It seems as if it were only yesterday that Brooke and I decided to adopt a 16 month old beautiful baby boy from Warsaw. Today, 4 years later, that little baby grew up into a little boy and started kindergarten. Te was so excited to start his first day of "big boy school" at Bay Vista Fundamental. He wore his new Sketcher light up sneakers that made him run really fast (yes - he ran up and down the aisles of the store when he picked them out to test their speed). I packed his new Transformer backpack and old school Transformer lunch kit with a delicious lunch and a special note from Mommy and Daddy. We were both able to take him to school and walk him into his classroom. He politely greeted his teacher (Mrs. Moyer-think perfect kindergarten type of teacher)with a "Good morning Mrs. Moyer" and walked over to his cubby hole, stored his stuff and sat down ready to begin. We gave him a kiss good-bye and left the classroom. Funny thing was, I think Te wanted us to leave more then we wanted to let go. As we walked away, we realized several very important things:
1.Time does not stop no matter how much you want it to; 2. Mateusz was ready for kindergarten even though in my eyes he is still that 16 month old baby in Warsaw; 3. we have done a pretty good job getting him ready for this big adjustment since he let go of us a lot quicker then we let go of him; 4. Mommy cries very easily; and finally, 5. Daddy will be able to go fishing on his days off once again!
Mateusz had a great first day of school and is ready for day 2 to begin. Here's hoping for a very successful school year!

26 Things About Mateusz at 3 1/2 years old

OK - so I admit that I am addicted to Facebook and have loved getting in touch with lots of old friends and keeping up with everybody. One of the things that I really have enjoyed is finding out 25 things people have posted about themselves. Therefore, I thought it would be neat to post a few items about Te at this point.
1. He loves cars, trucks, wheels and taking them all apart. (I hate finding all the pieces!)
2. He named his blanket "Gully" when we first adopted him in Poland. Picture him in his stroller, thumb in his mouth while waving his fingers syaing: "Gully, gully, gully, gully." We actually say this is the Waring Welcome sign.
3. Favorite movie: Cars
4. He currently weighs 38 pounds and is about 42 inches tall. Keep in mind I am about 60 inches tall - carrying him is getting to be a challenge.
5. Favorite color today is: Pink
6. Whe asked what he wants to be when he grows up he always says first: "A good boy". Then when asked again he says: "A race car driver".
7. He continues to be picky with what he eats but loves strawberries, cheese, pizza, mashed potatoes, waffles, peanut butter, and pasta pockets.
8. He loves to crawl into bed with us and will wake us up with a kiss and the "Good Morning" song.
9. Favorite books: "Because a Bug Went Ka Choo" and any book that has animals and their Mommies.
10. Favorite TV shows: Handy Manny, Winnie the Pooh, and Meteor and the Monster Trucks
11. He continues to work on potty training but will easily and quite happily revert back if placed in a pull up. (Thanks Daddy!)
12. Whining has become his irritation of choice when he does not get what he wants. To me, it's worse then nails on a chalk board but I can ignore it.
13. He loves to be chased and plays "Hide and Sneak" instead of "seek".
14. His sport of choice at this time is soccer and he starts on his first team at the YMCA in March. :)
15. He can count to 20, knows his ABCs, knows all colors, helps pick up his toys and puts his plate into the sink, loves to sit and read, and is really creative with playing.
16. Te just started dancing "like Daddy" and hopefully will develop a few better moves then that (wink, wink).
17. Funniest sentence he has stated: He climbed into bed, placed his hands behind his head and said: "Wow this is very exciting. I am exhausted and need to rest." Cracked me up at the time.
18. Mateusz climbed the rock wall at the YMCA all by himself and made it to the top on the 1st try. He does it every day now and loves it.
19. Loves to exercise with Daddy in the garage.
20. Loves to smell flowers, chase bees, and find worms in the garden.
21. Has started swimming and enjoys holding the kickboard and splashing "like an alligator".
22. Te will strip naked in 2 seconds flat when he hears the water running for a bath but hates showers.
23. Mateusz thinks that everyone should give him presents every time they see him.
24. When we are mad at him or when he knows that he has done something wrong he will ask for "hugs and kisses" and say "I'm sorry" very quickly.
25. When Te hurts himself he will immediately ask to be taken to the hospital "for a flu shot".
26. He loves to watch cookies bake and gets very excited waiting for them to cool.

I probably could have kept going and smile as I read this list. He has grown up so much and I cannot believe that life is moving so quickly. I hope he looks back on this list someday and loves thinking about these cute times as much as I do and will.