• beyondtheveil said on Sep 06, 2008....

  fallyn- First grade is a bear for some kids. Then again, maybe they think they're in charge since they are "working". 

• Fallyn said on Sep 06, 2008....

  i don't know but i'm seriously tired of it.
  
  and i wish i could figure out how to get them to be nice to each other and to me.
  
  

• secretlife said on Sep 06, 2008....

  yes, it's a total change of routine for kids-  and kids LOVE routine even if they tell you otherwise.
   
  have you tried getting them to bed earlier?  that always helped mine (they didn't always like it, but it's best for them...honest)....i always had a "bed time"-
  in fact, my son who is 12 and in7th grade STILL has a bed time-
   
  Another stressful thing is being in school all day, and then finally getting home and having homework.  some kids do better doing their homework right after school (i always favored this method) but others need a break- maybe an hour or two....then homework time.
   
  also,kids aren't the best at knowing how to "organize" themselves.  things can overwhelm them easy.  if you stay calm and break down their "big" tasks into little ones, I think that makes them feel better...
   
  I cannot stress to you how important it is for you and for them to have routines.

• Fallyn said on Sep 06, 2008....

  i've always struggled horribly with routines...i'm just learning how to have them at all.

• secretlife said on Sep 06, 2008....

  they will make your life SO much easier.
   

• queenparanoia said on Sep 06, 2008....

  maybe they just need to adjust or something... relax fallyn.. okay... ;-)

• silver_phoenix said on Sep 06, 2008....

  i remember getting that way myself when school was in session (especially in elementary school). i was like that because being at school was so awful. i had no friends and was bullied by everyone. it may not be that way for your kids. maybe it's just tough for them to get back into the routine of getting along with other kids.

• Twylarants said on Sep 06, 2008....

  I was like that as a kid because I didn't get enough sleep. I've never been a morning person.  Maybe the girls need to go to bed earlier and get up earlier so they have time to really wake up before they have to get ready for school.
  I always felt the school day began much too early.  Children should be able to sleep later, though it would make it tough for the working parent. Oh well, so much for that idea.
  The routine idea is definitely a good one. How are you in the morning and when they come home? Are you stressed or are you doing "Mommy" stuff with them?
  Like Secret said, routine and calm. Even if you have to fake it for a while, try to smile and let stuff roll off your back. They may calm down if they see you're not stressed.
  

• Fallyn said on Sep 07, 2008....

  twy....school starts at 7:40 in the frickin morning. ......oldest needs 12 hours of sleep to wake up on her own......which means she should be in bed by 6pm. NOT gonna happen. .....*sigh*  even getting them to bed by 7 has proved nearly impossible...the littler ones just aren't that tired.....and she REFUSES to go to bed earlier than her little sisters......i know i'd have a fit over that too at her age.
  
  they get out of school at 2 pm......she has about half an hours worth of homework that takes her about an hour and a half.......i start fixing dinner at 4:30 and it's usually on the table by 5:30 sometimes 5. then it's bath time for one.....they rotate...sorry but my kids only get bathed every three days.....there just isn't TIME to do all three in the evening.
  everyone in their pajamas, and then story time.
  
  they are SOOOOO wound up by this point that it's like herding cats.
  they are jumping from one bed to the other....i don't understand it...but why would calm activities get them MORE wound up?
  
  i've tried having them help with dinner, so they get more time with me......but that just plain hasn't worked.
  
  i'm at a loss. there just isn't enough time in the day.
  

• Fallyn said on Sep 07, 2008....

  silver pheonix. my oldest has autistic sensory problems.....one of which is needing LOTS of alone time.
  
  she shares a room with two hyper little girls....and is at school all day with other people.....she's not getting ANY alone time.
  

• silver_phoenix said on Sep 07, 2008....

  that sucks that your oldest doesn't get to have some alone time. it sounds like maybe the girls don't get to have much fun at school or are more like night owls. that could be why you have trouble getting them to bed. 

• Fallyn said on Sep 07, 2008....

  silver...well, if thy are night owls they come by it honestly. ...i'm a total night owl i HATE having to get up at 6am.....my body protests at every turn...and going to bed at 10 is even HARDER.

• silver_phoenix said on Sep 07, 2008....

  so you can definitely empathize with your girls since it sounds like they inherited it from you if they truly are night owls. i can even empathize because i'm a night owl and cannot seem to shake it.

• Fallyn said on Sep 07, 2008....

  i don't think it's "shakeable" .....i read an essay somewhere about night people and how they should have rights too.

• Twylarants said on Sep 07, 2008....

  I agree. I'm a night owl, always have been. Luckily, the job I have now lets me sleep til 9am. I work 11:30am til 9:30pm.
  For a while when I was about 7 years old, I'd wake up crying from nightmares about having to get up early. I loved school once I got there, but really struggled to wake up. I fell asleep often in my high school classes.
  When my babies woke up during the night I could barely drag myself out of bed to care for them.
  Too bad you can't homeschool the girls, Flyn. I think waking kids up early in the morning for school is torture. No school should start before 9am. It's just uncivilized to throw these poor things out of bed in the dark, for crying out loud!
  

• Fallyn said on Sep 07, 2008....

  soooo totally agree.
  in the midst of winter it's BARELY getting light out by the time we GET to school.
  

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