Chores

Trying to run our home more smoothly is a priority for us and this next thing I am going to write about does nothing but add to the chaos. At least for now. We decided Jacob needs to contribute to the workload and now is the time to teach/train him. I revamped this chore chart I found on the internet to suit Jacob's age level and abilities.

We put this chart on the fridge. Above it are the "menus" I created when Jacob was asking for weird things to eat or things we didn't have. That worked like a charm because you can argue with mom and dad but you can't argue with a chart. :) Funny how that works. 

We decided that we wanted Jacob to understand that every person in the home contributes to the home, without 'reward' except for a nice home and a good feeling. He also has been asking a lot for money to buy this or that so we decided it was a good time to teach him the value of money and the value of earning money. The two charts on the left are his daily chores.

When I explained his chores to him he immediately said "What is 'make your bed'?" Sorry mom, I am not a good example! He now knows what it is and does a good job. I, on the other hand, am still not a good example. He also has to either read by himself for 5 minutes or do his workbook for 5 minutes. For his silverware chore I pull out all the utensils and measuring spoons, pile them on the counter, and he puts them away. I loves doing this and is is great at sorting the big spoons and forks from the small ones. For his last chore of pick up toys he has to pick up whatever batch of toys we ask him to. Today I had him do all his weapons (Nerf guns and stuff) and dinosaurs. His room isn't totally clean after this but that is hard to do as a 4 year old.  We will work up to that. 

One the right of the chore chart is his extra chores. We have been calling these 'quarter chores'. Here is where he can potentially earn up to $4.75 a week. Max was concerned about this amount for him but this first week he only earned about $1.50. He will also need to pay 10% to tithing and later when he starts earning more we will have him save 50%. This was the first week and he loves it. We don't have him do chores on Sunday because it is a day of rest but last Sunday morning, before he had been taught how to make his bed, he showed us his bed. He was so proud of how he spread his blankie out, put his blue dog on one side and his tv remote control and a toy on the other. As I have been writing this he finished his chores, ending with his 5 minute reading. We have found that he gets so involved with his reading or workbook that he wants to do it longer to earn quarters. So, like I said, all of this chore stuff doesn't really help with running our home more smoothly. It actually makes it a tad more difficult because it would be easier if we did everything (I think that is why it has taken us so long to get his chores going). But that isn't the point of being a parent, is it?

School

A few months ago we applied to have Jacob enrolled in pre-kindergarten at Shenandoah Elementary. It was a lottery and we received a letter that he got in. A few of his friends got in as well. We were very excited because he needs something more as he grows older and smarter and gets bored at home. He is a child that needs stimulation and thrives on learning. I received a call a few days ago from the director of the program at the school and somehow his age slipped past her and the office until that day. She explained that the state has a strick age rule for pre-k and children can only turn 5 after Sept 30th. Since Jacob turns 5 five days before he cannot attend the program. This put us in a bind. He is now enrolled in kindergarten for next fall and even though he will probably attend it seems too early. Of course, we are looking at him when he is 4 1/2 but he is so small. My friend told me there are a few small kids in her daughter's kindergarten class but at this age it isn't such a big deal. We feel that he would be fine in the education and structure part of the program. The director stated that it isn't uncommon for parents of younger, smaller children to have their child be in kindergarten another year. I know the Homer twins across the street did that. Another option would be to have him do BREC for another year and then do kindergarten but most of the kids in that program are younger than him even now. I am planning on visiting one of the K classrooms at Shenandoah to see how Jacob might fit in. Our little guy will most likely go to kindergarten the next school year. That sounds so strange, but he really has grown and progressed over the last year.

InnieOuttie

A few months ago when Jacob's Dr was examining him she thought she felt an Umbilical Hernia under his belly button. We took him to a pediatric surgeon and it was confirmed that he does have one. Here is some info about the condition:

An umbilical hernia occurs when part of the bowel or fatty tissue pokes through an area near the belly button (navel, umbilicus), pushing through a weak spot in the surrounding abdominal wall. Approximately 1 in every 10 infants is affected by an umbilical hernia - they are common in premature babies. Babies and children - in the majority of cases the hernia closes on its own by the age of 12 months. Sometimes the doctor may be able to push the lump back into the abdomen (it is important that only the doctor do this). Surgery may be ordered if: The hernia grows after the child is one or two years old, The bulge is still there by the age of four years, If the hernia blocks the intestines, If the hernia becomes trapped. The surgeon makes an incision at the base of the belly button and pushes either the fatty lump or bowel back into the abdomen. Muscle layers are stitched over the weak area in the abdomen wall, effectively strengthening it. Dissolvable stitches or a special glue are used to close the wound. Sometimes the surgeon will place a pressure dressing, which remains there for four to five days. An umbilical hernia operation usually takes about 20 or 30 minutes.

There is nothing to be concerned about and since there is no pain we can wait to have the surgery when we are prepared for it. He will need to have about 2 weeks of nothing too active. That will be hard for him for sure. Because Jacob has a non-group insurance plan and a high deductible we will have to pay all out of pocket. We are making sure that our taxes our correct and if so this will pay for the surgery. This, of course, comes right after we finished paying off Jacob's birth expenses. :)  We have been so blessed these 4 years with a very healthy boy who rarely needs extra care and attention from professionals.

Jacob asked me later why the Dr had said that he would go to sleep for his tummy. I explained that the Dr was going to fix a small hole under his skin and that he would be given medicine to help him sleep while the Dr did this. Jacob became distraught and I explained that he wouldn't have to go to the Dr for a while and he decided not to worry about it. I think it is good we have time to prepare him. Right now he refers to the surgery as the Dr fixing his innie/outtie. The hernia is not the reason Jacob has an innie/outtie (his was probably because his umbilical cord took a while to fall off) but it is a common symptom when children have umbilical hernias.

What a Relief

You would think that after a month of having the Hughes kids over every afternoon for a couple of hours the newness would be gone. That is the case for me, but not for Jacob. Every day he gets so excited that they are coming over and asks if they are here yet a thousand times. When they get here he is a bouncing ball of craziness, no matter how much I have prepared him to be calm. He wants to play so bad but the boys aren't that enthusiastic. I have to keep the TV off in order to get them to play a little. Most of the time they will start playing 'too much' and get into trouble or get hurt. Jacob's excitement is pumping so fast that he runs everywhere. When the boys aren't willing to do what he wants to do he gets very emotional and angry, almost forcing them to play. By the time the boys leave I feel like I am in that children's book where the guy complains to the wise man that his house is too small and noisy and the wise man tells him every day to add an animal to his house and then the last day he is to get rid of all the animals and then his house suddenly isn't too small and noisy. During these times I feel blessed that I don't have 4 kids under 4!!!