Parent Teacher Conferences

Last night we had G and K's Parent Teacher Conferences. Working mother that I am, I managed to finagle an evening spot for each of them, both on the same night. Not an easy feat in the world of elementary school.

K's conference was first. We weren't surprised to hear that she's doing well, is a fast learner, and is progressing nicely on all of her skills. We spoke briefly about K's recent acting out, and Mrs. E suggested K see the school counselor again to talk over her frustrations.

After that, it was brief interlude for dinner before G's conference. Because of the time constraint, I chose to bring them to the evil empire of McDonald's. I feel guilty just writing it. But, in the name of time and convenience, it had to be done.

Unfortunately, it seemed everyone else in town had the same idea for dinner. For the first time ever, I ordered our food, and then had to stand and wait for a good 15 minutes for our food. The kids were thrilled by the extra time to cavort in the play room, but I grew steadily more anxious as G's conference time grew nearer. When the food finally arrived, I chanted for the kids to bolt down their food, another big parental no-no, I know.

With only seconds to spare, we made it to G's conference. His teacher gave us a glowing report, assuring us that G had been doing well at controlling his outbursts, and was very kind and courteous. She did note however, that more often than not, he chose to play alone, or "parallel play" with other children. He also had trouble recognizing his own spacial boundaries in regards to other children. Of course, this only goes further in reinforcing what we already knew.

Good reports well in hand, we headed home after another long evening. I can't wait until tonight, with an actual dinner at home, and maybe some real, honest-to-goodness time to relax.