OM: 09/01/2011 - 10/01/2011

School has finally started back up as of last week. Marissa is at a new cooperative preschool, we were also at a coop last year, but this school is new to us. We had met her new teacher at a few back to school picnics, but not really any of the kids and most of them already knew each other from last year. I was pretty confident about her first day going well, especially since I had signed up to work in the classroom, so needless to say, I was really surprised that at the end of the day when she and I were walking to get the vacuum to clean up her classroom, she turned to me and her little eyes were filled with tears and she told me that she was "sad and lonely" at preschool today. And, oh my goodness, I had to do everything within myself to keep myself from crying. I felt horribly, I worried that we had picked the wrong school, I worried that we had picked the wrong class, and this was after serious agonizing over what preschool to choose for this year. When we got home and out of the car, it didn't get any easier, she hugged me and started full on crying, saying she didn't want to go back, etc. It was really, really hard. And, I am a big mommy wimp, I totally admit it. I actually thought about if we could switch her school for a minute, or skip a year. Well, flash forward to today, day three of preschool and she is doing AMAZING! She has made a great new buddy, a cute little girl named Tess and she had a gazillion stories to tell of them digging for treasure, playing pirate, and many more. Ahhh, cue Mommy relief. Only to arrive home to a beyond overtired Oliver who was with our sitter because his nap time falls exactly around preschool pickup time. Well, ever since I weaned Oliver, his naps have gone to you know where. This poor little baby boy has been so, so sleep deprived for weeks. Yes, I admit it, I used to nurse him back to sleep mid-nap because it would give him a great two hour nap. Before our sitter was putting him down, I had finally gotten him to go back to sleep mid-nap wake up after weeks of fussing around with how to get him back to sleep, because he wakes up ANGRY! I am talking, nothing, nothing will calm him down. Not going outside, not a sippy, not tv, not rocking, not reading, etc. It has been stressful! But, he finally was getting back to sleep mid nap, but for our sitter he has been waking up after only half an hour and today only ten minutes. And, oh my goodness he was a train wreck by 5:30 pm. Yes, I tried a second nap, but no go, well, 30 minutes of full sobbing was all I could take. I think these last two teeth that are coming through have been driving him crazy and taking forever to come through, I think he is having some major physical/mental growth spurts (he is talking up a storm!) In sum, I feel guilty, I hate it that he is sleeping so poorly, I feel guilty when I'm away from him and he is with the sitter, especially when I come home and he has been having a rough time, and I should say, I love our sitter and the kids love her. Oliver blows a million and one kisses to her at the window when she leaves and even cried for a second the other day when she left! But, ugh, I can't handle these terrible naps, he should be sleeping at least 1.5 hours a day. So of course, just when something starts going right, something else tanks. I really hope we get some of his sleep issues resolved soon, I'm just not even sure what to do at this point. Let me know if you have any tips at all! Oh and we went to the LA County Fair (my choice) and it was so ghetto, never again! I don't think the kids minded it, but someone remind me next time I am thinking of going that it is pretty nasty. I think the Vermont country fairs may have spoiled me just a bit!