Curtsies and Chaos... Our Life... Unrehearsed

I have been a pubic school teacher in North Carolina for 6 years.  Six long and tiring years.  To say that I've loved every minute of it would be a lie, but I couldn't image myself doing anything different.  Year 6 has been my hardest year yet.  Why after 6 years would something be the hardest?  Shouldn't it get easier?  I blame CHANGE for all of my struggles this year.  This year, my family returned to Concord, NC after an extended vacation (8 months) in Wilmington, NC.  We had a new baby.  WE moved in with our friends and then moved in to our own house.  We both started new jobs.  We started a small business.  Lilly started dance and Clay decided he wasn't going to sleep at night. To make matters even more interesting, my class was the most challenging class I have ever had.  The kids started the year at different levels and some didn't even know how to read.  I was expected to make 80% growth by the end of the ...

 My daughter, Lilly, is 4.  Her entire life, she has been the easy kid.  The kid that you can take anywhere and not worry about.  One was easy and terrible two's was not a thing.  Then she turned 3 and started to have an opinion about everything.  We could deal with that.  She ate well, slept well, and listened well.  She has always been that kid who you can talk to and explain things to her and she understands. Then, Clay was born.  It is like the world said to us, "Y'all have had it easy for a long time.  Now let's see how you do with this one!"  Not cool world, not cool.  It's like a constant battle with Lilly every day about everything.  Literally everything!  "Mommy, you didn't come get me last night to go potty." "Mommy, I don't want to do that."  "That's not how you play this mommy."  It's like she is the queen and we are the sorry people. She is now four.  Her new battle is bed time....