Preschool fight club

From the archives... a draft I wrote back in 2010 that never got published for some reason. Probably because it is a bit sad at the end. I feel the need to hug someone...

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From: [Day care director]
Sent: Wednesday, September 15, 2010 9:04 AM
Subject: RE: Staff change - preschool UPDATE

Parents,

I wanted to update you on this process. We continue to look for the perfect candidate for the preschool room. I have had some luck with initial interviews and we will be having working interviews with candidates directly interacting with the children beginning next week.

Please keep in mind that this sometimes can be a difficult time for children when their normal everyday teachers and routines change. [Techer 1] leaving coupled with [Teacher 2] being on vacation this week (previously planned) has thrown some for a loop. You may find some outward signs of this – pushing, rough housing, etc behaviors that seemed to part of the past. This is all typical and rest assured behaviors will return to normal once we get a new team member and our everyday becomes “everyday” again.

Thanks
[Day care director]

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If you read between the lines of the email above, you can see that Ian is following in his father’s illustrious footsteps. A tough cookie. (Cookie being a replacement for the other words you should not call your own child.)

Apparently he and his little buddies know where the blind spots are around the big toy and periodically meet there to pound the crap out of each other. I’ve seen them do it while walking past the playground on my way to the other building (and I brought the Mom voice of doom down upon them).

I’ve had to sign accident reports for the past two days because Ian seems to get punched in the face on a fairly regular basis. I also had to ground him for attempting to push another kid off the big toy because ‘he was in the way.’ *wince* I have noticed that no one has assured me it is a phase he will grow out of. Apparently since he is a boy, he won’t.

The toughest of the toughies is a little boy named [N]. He is only barely 3, completely adorable, and apparently also completely fearless when it comes to taking on the bigger kids. I don’t know whether to be glad Ian is not THAT rough and tumble (oy, hospital bills), or embarrassed that Ian can get taken by a 3 year old. :P Luckily Ian’s middle name is [N], so I just had to boom out IAN [N] as I was walking by and both kids jumped a foot in the air and booked it to the other end of the playground.

Preschool fight club. Yeesh.

Then again, I prefer the proof that he is following in JD's footprints to the proof that he is following in mine.

I popped into Ian's classroom to put his lunch in his cubby and got drawn into the following conversation:

Me: (notices Ian at the art table with three friends -- his lip is trembling and tears are trickling down his face)
Me: (walks over) Hey buddy, what's the matter?
Ian: (crawls onto my lap and mumbles something into my shoulder)
Kid 1: We said we weren't going to play with him.
Kid 2: He ALWAYS cries like that. GROW UP Ian!
Ian: (sobs)
Me: (tries not to sob in sympathy)

Why is it we convince ourselves that our kids won't have to go through what we went through? Why does being a kid have to suck so hard?