And then there were two!

The last six weeks have brought a lot of change in the red house.  My son Rudie has turned into a polite little boy that loves his sister, follows direction easily and uses his words much more than he uses his fists.  I am, of course, speaking generally here.  I mean, he’s definitely no angel.  He’s still a 5-year old boy but for the first time in a really long time, we seem to be dealing with regular old, age appropriate boy stuff (and we’re so happy to do it!).

A few things changed six weeks ago.  Rudie settled into senior kindergarten with an amazing new teacher who keeps learning fun and students interested.  This is also his first year in French Immersion, and that in itself is keeping him challenged and loving school.  Six weeks ago was when I started working part time and that has helped in a huge way.  Not only does it mean there is one less person “handling” him every day, it’s another opportunity for us to chat, play and most importantly, connect as we walk the few blocks to school every morning.

The other thing we did six weeks ago was enroll Rudie in a karate club.  Three days a week he gets dressed in his gi, offers his courtesy, and for thirty minutes practices his jabs, crosses and hi-yas.  He’s learning discipline and respect and having a crazy amount of fun while he’s at it.  An added bonus?  They talk about how to talk to and listen to mom and dad at home, and they go over stranger danger strategies every few weeks.

We’ve been so happy with the progress we’ve seen in Rudie over this past month and a half that we decided to enrol Edie in karate as well.  She’s there three days a week watching her big brother anyway, so why not?  And selfishly, it's great for me to actually get to sit and watch the class with both of them in it rather than trying to watch him and keep her entertained at the same time. 

Maybe it's a combination of all these changes that have made such an impact lately.  I know for a fact that karate has been a huge part of it.  Martial Arts played an important role in my husband’s life as he was growing up and I can see it becoming just as important in our lives going forward.  It's fun, it tires them out, it teaches them really important life-skills and for that, I am thankful.  Courtesy.