This, That, and The Other

• Yesterday we finalized the baby's adoption - he's 100% ours forever and always now! It's wonderful to have that milestone out of the way (now for a birth certificate and social security number and all those little paperwork things that go with having a child.)
• It's seeming like the older boy is in the process of giving up his nap. I knew this time would come, but I've been dreading it. He still really needs a nap (if his attitude without a nap is any indication), so I think we'll move his bedtime forward an hour and see if that helps. I am trying to do as my mom did and have "quiet time" wherein he must be on his bed but can look at books. The problem I'm running into is that he doesn't stay on his bed. I can hear him up there now clomping around. I guess I should go and correct him, but I'm getting really tired of always having to be the heavy around here.
• Related to the above, Tim has been working crazy hours the past two weeks. This has resulted in more attitude from the older one, less tolerance from me, and a general feeling of wanting to just throw my hands in the air and let him be a brat if it means I don't have to hear about how much better he likes daddy. I know not to take it personally, but man it's hard not to. 
• I leave on Sunday for four days - it'll be interesting to see if daddy is still way better than mama at the end of it. I suspect he will be simply because this is a novelty and daddy's going to make it a fun vacation time rather than the daily grind of life that carries on. Still, maybe Tim will get a better idea of why I'm tired all the time. 
• On the one hand, I'm really looking forward to the trip. On the other, I have some issues with it. First and foremost being that I really don't like the idea of separate vacations. And while this is a conference (not really a vacation, per se), Tim has to take vacation to watch the kids, eating up time that we might otherwise get to use for a family vacation. And then, since I'm doing this, I didn't really have a toe to stand on when he presented the idea that some of the other men at church want to do for three days, guys only. And there goes more of our family vacation time (plus, yay, more time where I'm the only responsible adult around here.) Lastly, it'll be the first time I've been away from either boy for any significant period of time. Three days ago I was a lot more concerned about that aspect of it, but then the "I only love daddy, he's better than you" started up and maybe a little break from one another is just what the doctor ordered.
• I mentioned the daddy thing to my one mommy friend and her response is that I should give up on homeschooling and put him in preschool. What kills me is that she homeschools...so it's not like she's anti-homeschooling. Lesson learned. No venting to this friend. (So yay, you all get to hear me vent. Trust me, it's just venting. I know it will pass.)
• On the homeschool front, I've decided to start Kindy in the fall. The older boy is totally ready, regardless of when his birthday happens to coincide with the school's cut off date. I think we're going to do the following:
• Explode the Code - for phonics/reading (along with some other stuff that I already have)
• Horizons Math - and yes, starting with the 1 book (vs. the K) because he already has the K concepts down pat.
• Five in a Row - This is kind of supplemental, but we love our reading time and the little lessons that go along are nice.
• Handwriting Without Tears - We've been doing a lot of the manipulative activities that go along with this for a while, but we'll start "in earnest" with the workbook (maybe sooner than the fall, he's starting to actually be interested in writing now, so I'll strike while the iron is hot.)

• We've also joined a homeschool Kindy playgroup. It's actually going to start meeting during the summer, but it'll be good to have scheduled time with other kids his age. Maybe there'll be a mom or two for me to enjoy as well. Stranger things have happened.