We’re very blessed, I think, that during the school week, the Monster’s able to cope with how things vary on what’s supposed to be a fixed schedule.

In theory, the morning should be fairly straight forward – get up, go to the bathroom, get breakfast, get dressed, get on the bus.  (Breakfast and dressing can and do often trade positions.)

In practice, it’s never that simple.

This morning’s a good example – we get the impression he’s not feeling wholly well as he slept in a bit today (and did on one of the weekend days as well), and his trip to the bathroom was accompanied by a great deal of shrieking and whining.  In the interim, I’d gotten his breakfast ready and packed his lunch so that we could hurry him out the door when the bus arrived.  The wife managed to get him dressed, and breakfast ended up being over on the couch instead of at the table due to his still shrieking and trying to keep him quiet so the baby would sleep… and then the bus arrived five minutes early, with a different driver.

I know a lot of kids who would be worse when they’re not feeling 100%, who would freak out at the sudden scramble for the bus when its early, and more children like the Monster who would balk at getting on the bus with an unfamiliar face behind the wheel.  Aside from obviously not being at his best, he seems to take most mornings in stride and roll with the punches.

However, serious deviations from this do bring repercussions.  If he’s not finished his homework, for instance, he’s very resistant to doing it first thing in the morning.  He tolerates only certain breakfast choices, and gets upset if they’re not available.  At least these incidents are few and far between, but it is something that’s in the back of our minds…

And it’s all in the name of getting him in a mode where the therapies at school can do what’s best for him, right?