We have been preparing for school since February. We've talked about it daily- "you can't do this at preschool" and "you need to learn how to do this by yourself so you can do it at preschool" and "you are going to do things like this ALL the time at preschool- fun!". We've read books, made up school songs...waved to the school every time we drove by.
Last night I put her to bed and we talked about preschool for the last time as a "new" thing. She was over it, she didn't care anymore. Talking about it was old news, she was so ready to GO.
We woke Layla up at 8:00 today. She got up with a smile on her face (whew...that could have gone worse), Daddy got her dressed and gave her a special chocolate donut breakfast. Mommy did her hair and finished getting her ready and before we knew it...we were leaving for school.
We made matching bracelets to wear for today. L was so proud of hers and I think it really helped break the ice with her teachers too!
She was SO excited to get going!
We got to preschool 15 minutes early (last time THAT is happening) and got a few more pictures before it was time to say goodbye.
One of her teachers, Mrs. Silvis, walked her in.
Layla learned how to find her name tag (thank God she recognized her name...I've been having nightmares about her acting like she knows nothing).
She was able to identify her backpack hook and with a little help, hung up her stuff.
She has a fox to match her name tag...she was bummed she could get a turtle like the kid next to her LOL.
I snapped one more picture before we said our "goodbyes". You could tell she was getting a little nervous but her other teacher invited her right over to play and started chatting about her bracelet. After a hug and kiss from Mommy and Daddy she was ready to go.
I pretty much paced at home the whole time. The dogs were pacing, Jack was fussy...things just didn't seem right without sis here. I didn't realize how much I valued having a child that I could actually communicate with...even if it is silly conversations like "what's your favorite color?".
So 11:30 rolled around and we were on our way back to school for pick up. L was playing in the sand by herself when we got there (all the kids were playing by themselves LOL). Her teacher said she had a great day but did cry one time. We finally got it out of her later on in the day (thanks to her BFF's down the street) that she was playing with playdoh and she didn't want to move on to the next activity. I'm OK with that...at least she wasn't crying about us not being there! She's an emotional girl, I expect a few more fits and tears throughout the year. ;o)
She told us she sang songs, did a craft and learned about teddy bears. She says she's excited to go back next week and she's SUUUUUPER excited because Mommy will be there as the helper that day. :) She told me that she won't cry and she'll be really happy that I'm there. Hopefully she realizes I will be busy and will have to help others too. And that having one of us in the classroom isn't a normal thing. Oh boy.
So overall- a GREAT start to L's school career. I hope she's always this excited to go back to school. And I hope I have this much energy to put into every early morning wake up to get her there. Layla and I hate mornings...it's a combination for disaster.
It seems all your conversations about preschool gradually made her more than ready for it. That’s a good thing, as it means that she knows exactly what to expect on this occasion, and there won't be tears or separation anxieties. She did a really great job, thanks to your excellent parenting skills!
ReplyDeleteEd Harper @ Crayon College