Morning with Asher one day in January
7:45 am Asher wakes up. Mark manages to get his pajama bottoms off and Asher pees in the potty. While Mark empties the potty, Asher goes back in his room to play.
8:00 am Mark is having the conversation with Asher about getting dressed. The stuffed animals are consulted. Elephant and Bunny think it is a good idea to get dressed. Asher does not think so. “They want to play hide and seek” he says.
8:08 am Mark has to leave for work.
8:10am I pick up Asher and say with a positive attitude “Lets get ready for school!” Asher kicks, wiggles, screams and makes it impossible to get him dressed.
I wait a few minutes and then come back to get Asher dressed.
8:15am “I want to put on this bandaid!” Asher says. He takes off the wrapper slowly, pulls off the little pieces and Ahhhhh (screams and cries) “It bended nooooo, it bended ahhhhhhhh”. We straighten it out and he puts it on my finger. I get the underwear on, pants on, next shirt. “Look,” Asher says, pulling one arm out of his sleeve, “I am a puppet. “A puppet!” I say, and then gently puts Asher’s arm back in. We are running out of time and must focus. “Baaa aaahhhhh it’s not fair, it’s not fair, I was a puppet,” Asher says, falling apart and going boneless. More crying. We still have to get shoes on.
8:29am We are standing in the kitchen as I get a few things ready for myself. Asher has found his scissors and is cutting a paper I want to keep focused. I ask him to stop. More tears. More resistance now to getting shoes on. I say, “Do you want to put on shoes here in the kitchen or in the car?” “In the car, ahhhh wahhhh” Asher cries, then I realize I have to carry Asher, my gym bag, Asher’s lunch and another bag to the car. I also remember that on Saturday I stepped out and almost fell on my back because our concrete steps were icy. I never put Asher’s shoes on in the car. I am trying to use suggestions I heard last night at the preschool meeting. What I need to do is use my intuition.
It is now 8:33am We use the side door since there are fewer steps and I make two trips to the car so I don’t have to carry everything at once. I finally begin driving. It is at least a 15 minute drive. “You know why that wasn’t fair?” Asher says while we are driving. I can’t remember which thing he is talking about. “Why?” I ask. “Because I don’t love you.” He says. “Oh” I say and keep driving.
8:49am. Arrive at Chrysalis. Asher’s mood has brightened, but when he gets out of his car seat he leans over to the front and starts opening and closing the console between the two seats. I am standing in the cold rain testing my last ounce of patience. “I am doing exercise.” Asher says. “I am cold and we need to go into school!” I say nicely. “No, I am not ready.” Asher says. I pull him out of the car screaming and we make our way into school.
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