Just a bit, a handful, is sitting near my sternum, unsure where to go.
Yesterday started out exciting. I am always happy to go to well-baby check-ups as it's fun to focus, and have someone else, focus on my sweet kids. But Karl was tired and cranky, so it started off unpleasant. Then Liam didn't show off his vocabulary, didn't enchant the doctor with stories of our "storm chasing" adventures, or do any of the things as a parent you hope your child will demonstrate for others.
Liam got on the floor and climbed under the doctor's chair and grabbed his leg. Liam interrupted. Liam reached up, touched the doctors hair, and questioned him as to why it was standing up like that. Liam didn't hear the doctor tell him to "give him five" until we had all prompted him.
When the cute doctor (ahem, did I say that?) started with the questions, I knew where he was going. Is he a contemplative thinker or a doer. I tried to say thinker, but Karl butted in, "He's a doer." And I guess he is. We discussed that yes, he was almost always on the move, but..he isn't always racing, more...plodding, that's how I would describe it. Does he run off in stores. Karl said, yes, but not far. But I was reminded of a couple weeks ago when we tried to take a trip to Target. I foolishly let Liam out of the cart, and Liam ran for it. Of course, I took his hand, once I got him, and we left the store, but that coupled with the lack of boundaries does suggest a certain impulsiveness.
But he is three. And three year old boys are often on the go and impulsive. Some kids do talk a constantly. Tierney did. Liam can sit for a chapter book that only has a picture every three or four pages. He is interested in "academics".
But, then I can't help but realize the doctor sees kids all day long. He sees them in a specific context, and can easily compare Liam to other children of similar age. He might not see the great I do, but he sees him on a level playing field with other kids.
I mentioned that as long as he isn't acting this way in two years, I wasn't too worried. To which the doctor replied, "I think he will be."
As that particular barb twisted in, my mind shut off. No, I am not ready to deal with this.
ADHD has a lot to do with behavior. The parents are feeding the kids junk food and letting them watch too much TV, right? They aren't enforcing behavior.
And with Liam, all that is partially true. We have been disorganized and too relaxed for several months. And ADHD has to be partially hard-wired, at least. Simply because most American kids would have ADHD otherwise. While a sizable amount do, most do not.
So what can I do? First, we must get better organized in our routines. I know how important this is for children, but I have serious organizational problems. I would say I have ADHD, ha! except that I have really good powers of concentration when necessary. We are going to cut TV to one morning show and one afternoon show. This will be the hardest. We will take the little ones out more and eat in places like fast food, so we can practice sitting still and behaving appropriately. We will discipline more consistently. If the problem persists, we will deal with it then.
Deep breath.
Yesterday started out exciting. I am always happy to go to well-baby check-ups as it's fun to focus, and have someone else, focus on my sweet kids. But Karl was tired and cranky, so it started off unpleasant. Then Liam didn't show off his vocabulary, didn't enchant the doctor with stories of our "storm chasing" adventures, or do any of the things as a parent you hope your child will demonstrate for others.
Liam got on the floor and climbed under the doctor's chair and grabbed his leg. Liam interrupted. Liam reached up, touched the doctors hair, and questioned him as to why it was standing up like that. Liam didn't hear the doctor tell him to "give him five" until we had all prompted him.
When the cute doctor (ahem, did I say that?) started with the questions, I knew where he was going. Is he a contemplative thinker or a doer. I tried to say thinker, but Karl butted in, "He's a doer." And I guess he is. We discussed that yes, he was almost always on the move, but..he isn't always racing, more...plodding, that's how I would describe it. Does he run off in stores. Karl said, yes, but not far. But I was reminded of a couple weeks ago when we tried to take a trip to Target. I foolishly let Liam out of the cart, and Liam ran for it. Of course, I took his hand, once I got him, and we left the store, but that coupled with the lack of boundaries does suggest a certain impulsiveness.
But he is three. And three year old boys are often on the go and impulsive. Some kids do talk a constantly. Tierney did. Liam can sit for a chapter book that only has a picture every three or four pages. He is interested in "academics".
But, then I can't help but realize the doctor sees kids all day long. He sees them in a specific context, and can easily compare Liam to other children of similar age. He might not see the great I do, but he sees him on a level playing field with other kids.
I mentioned that as long as he isn't acting this way in two years, I wasn't too worried. To which the doctor replied, "I think he will be."
As that particular barb twisted in, my mind shut off. No, I am not ready to deal with this.
ADHD has a lot to do with behavior. The parents are feeding the kids junk food and letting them watch too much TV, right? They aren't enforcing behavior.
And with Liam, all that is partially true. We have been disorganized and too relaxed for several months. And ADHD has to be partially hard-wired, at least. Simply because most American kids would have ADHD otherwise. While a sizable amount do, most do not.
So what can I do? First, we must get better organized in our routines. I know how important this is for children, but I have serious organizational problems. I would say I have ADHD, ha! except that I have really good powers of concentration when necessary. We are going to cut TV to one morning show and one afternoon show. This will be the hardest. We will take the little ones out more and eat in places like fast food, so we can practice sitting still and behaving appropriately. We will discipline more consistently. If the problem persists, we will deal with it then.
Deep breath.
