You would think they would be more different

Well yesterday was a busy day. Happily so, as nothing was too much, yet the day went by so fast because we had so much going on. Grocery store, playdate, closing on our refinance, getting Gwen's new dresser, playdate, and Gwen's preschool conference. In addition, it is nice to get some things done that needed to finally be over with. Our refinance started before Labor Day, and we closed in November. Wow.

And we went to Gwen's conference at her preschool. The kids were able to play in the childcare room where there are tons of toys, and the meeting was just 20 minutes. Now, I do have to remember that Gwen is going to preschool a year earlier than Trevor did, but really, just about everything that she was evaluated on, she came out just like Trevor. I guess there is something to say about the strong characteristics of nature and nurture. Gender and birth order don't have a whole lot to do with it, at least in our family. Wait, I do have to say that she was reported to be in love with their dress-up corner, and playing princesses and house. I can't say that Trevor was ever that into those things. He much preferred cars and blocks.

She is doing a great job learning to share, developing friendships, knowing her number relationships, and she is working on listening to instructions, and fine motor skills with cutting and drawing her name. She also is learning about her emotions and how to label them and deal with them. I guess that would be one other difference between her and Trevor. She is a lot more emotional quicker. At the conference, I hit a big light-bulb moment. I had been noticing that she had been a lot more whiny lately, even to the point of not wanting to talk about what she wanted, more cry about it. All you really can do in that situation is explain that I need her to tell me what is going on, that I cannot understand her when she cries. When her teacher said that she noticed it had increased in the last week or so, that is when the light bulb hit. While we don't have a new baby in our house, we do have a new baby in our extended family, and one that I have been lucky enough to spend a decent amount of time with, and Gwen knows that. I'm guessing that if we were to have a new baby in the house at this point, this behavior would only be many times worse. So her teacher noted that she would read some new baby books to see if maybe that may help her understand her feelings more. I'm very thankful that she can get this experience without me having to have another baby!

But bottom line, we were very pleased with both kids' conferences this year. So bring on the holidays!