Kara-tay

(A Friends title reference for my friends J&T-unagi!)

We did a sibling split tonight-I took Ian on errands with me, while Tom got to hang out with Connor. Ian and I stopped at Kinko's to run off a million copies for the chorale scholarship program. He enjoyed "catching" the papers as they came out of the feed. Over a thousand papers later, we decided to stop by Michael's for a few more letters for our wall. I found the final "O" for Connor's name (originally CONNR) and Ian got his name as well.

Our final stop was a Martial Arts center that just opened a block away from our house. I popped in to see if they taught young children and to get a schedule. The owner, who just finished a class, invited us in and gave Ian a short introductory lesson on the spot. He had to stop at the door, bow and say "Hello, Sir" and "Hello Ma'am" before he would be allowed to walk in. After that, he learned to also bow to the mat and stand on a star. Following that, the instructor talked to me about what they work on. Apparently, in order to move along in his belts, he has to be doing well at home and at school. He isn't in school yet, but the teacher would have to talk to the instructor and ensure that Ian was behaving and disciplined in school. I liked that part a lot.

Ian learned a few stances and had to follow a series of arm movements and repeat what he was told to say in a strong voice. He did a few kicks and also had to practice sitting still and making good eye contact. Physically, it was challenging just because he is little, but he followed all of the directions exactly. I am just not sure what to do, but it is something to consider. Anyone with thoughts on Martial Arts for little boys, I would be happy to hear any and all opinions. Because I love the idea of how disciplined it would be, but beyond that, I don't have any clue.

Aside from that, it is 10:34pm and Ian is still awake. This I am not happy about in the least. My heart is starting to feel conflicted that he might not be in the right place to serve his best needs during the day. I feel very strongly about set bedtimes and lately, he is in bed for about three hours, completely awake past his bedtime. I am going to think carefully about how to change this, since I cannot control everything, as nice as that would be.

On a different note, my husband is having a bout with pneumonia this week and he is looking worse for wear, but still very cute. May he have his health back soon!