Aidan is having a tough time this month. Everything at school is Advent**, everything on TV is Christmas, and even all the announcements at karate are holiday related. Each morning he wakes up and asks me, "Is it Christmas yet?"
(He even tried to convince me that if I light all 4 candles on his Advent Wreath Christmas would come more quickly.)
Put Aidan's impatience together with the lack of sleep from excitement and you've got one very cranky little boy. But I came up with a plan.
Today I went to Target at lunch and bought both kids 20 $1 toys and candies. Each day until Christmas they get to unwrap a small gift. Each gift has a letter A - S on it. Rather than have them randomly draw a letter out of a hat, I made origami fortune tellers (three for each kid - one red, one green, and one white) and made each letter be a fortune. Once they choose a letter I have stickers to cover it up so we won't choose that again.
When I ran the idea of a small(I emphasized small) gift every day until Christmas by Aidan last night be thought it was great. Even better, he behaved all evening and was in a great mood this morning.
Hopefully it will work and Advent won't be such an overwhelming time for him.
** Next week is the Christmas concert at school. Sain is excited to wear her new boots. (I can actually fit my foot in her new boots -- she's getting too big!) The following week is the kindergarten Christmas play. I have to brag and say that Aidan has a speaking role. He's the lead shepard. That is a huge accomplishment for a little boy who is in speech therapy twice a week and will probably continue that way for the next few years.
(He even tried to convince me that if I light all 4 candles on his Advent Wreath Christmas would come more quickly.)
Put Aidan's impatience together with the lack of sleep from excitement and you've got one very cranky little boy. But I came up with a plan.
Today I went to Target at lunch and bought both kids 20 $1 toys and candies. Each day until Christmas they get to unwrap a small gift. Each gift has a letter A - S on it. Rather than have them randomly draw a letter out of a hat, I made origami fortune tellers (three for each kid - one red, one green, and one white) and made each letter be a fortune. Once they choose a letter I have stickers to cover it up so we won't choose that again.
When I ran the idea of a small(I emphasized small) gift every day until Christmas by Aidan last night be thought it was great. Even better, he behaved all evening and was in a great mood this morning.
Hopefully it will work and Advent won't be such an overwhelming time for him.
** Next week is the Christmas concert at school. Sain is excited to wear her new boots. (I can actually fit my foot in her new boots -- she's getting too big!) The following week is the kindergarten Christmas play. I have to brag and say that Aidan has a speaking role. He's the lead shepard. That is a huge accomplishment for a little boy who is in speech therapy twice a week and will probably continue that way for the next few years.
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