Schedules and circumstances being what they are, we decided it would be best to have Gabriel in morning kindergarten and Lily in afternoon preschool. Trust me; it makes something resembling sense if you know all the details. However, what I neglected to take into account when making this decision is that it means I only have a short time in the morning to convince Gabriel, who isn't very social and doesn't enjoy new things, that he wants to go to school, while I have most of the morning to listen to Lily, who is VERY social and is already familiar with the preschool from picking up Gabriel, complain that she wants to leave for school NOW. It was a fun week.
Lily spent most of summer asking if it was over so that she could start preschool. She doesn't really have any grasp on the concept of time, but she got very excited any time I would tell her something like, "Only six more weeks!"
On the first day, almost all the parents hung around for a while to make sure their child was situated, comfortable, and ready for the day. I tried to do the same, giving her reminders, asking her questions, and even trying to play with her before the teacher was ready to get started. She scolded me. She was at preschool and I wasn't supposed to be there. After the first day, a routine was established for the class. As kids walk in, there are a few things they are supposed to do. I always did these with Gabriel until he got to the part where he was supposed to sit and look at a book until the teacher was ready. Sometimes I would even read a quick book to him. Lily does all of it while I'm still signing her in and says no when I ask if she wants me to read to her.
While it hurts a little that she clearly doesn't need me, I'm very proud of her independence and I think I can say that I had a hand in her being that way. If she didn't feel loved and safe and comfortable at home, she probably wouldn't be so confident taking on this new environment without at least a little guidance. And she's always very excited to see me when I pick her up, so that makes up for it.
Gabriel liked preschool, but he has been saying for a long time that he doesn't like going to school because he would rather be with his family. It's cute, in a way. The last day or so of summer, though, he said that he was actually getting a little excited for kindergarten. Yes! The first day went fine. Nothing too out of the ordinary. Second day was okay, but there was a hiccup or two. The night before his third day, he starts panicking. He remembered that they were going to use a behavior chart the next day, and he just KNEW he was going to clip down (that's bad). After doing my best to calm him and explain things in the most comforting way possible, he went to bed. The next day, he did clip down, but then he clipped back up! The next day he clipped up without clipping down, and the next day he clipped up TWICE with no clip downs. Exciting, right?
Well, if you ask how he's liking kindergarten, he will tell you that he doesn't like his teacher because he doesn't like to follow her rules. With some of the anxiety he had throughout the week, I was really worried about him! But he seems to be adjusting just fine aside from not being a fan of the adjustment. On Friday, he even came up with rewards he could earn at home for each time he clipped up. He wasn't asking for much, and I was still worried at the time, so I agreed, and he got brownies with frosting! That was kind of a reward for all of us.
Gideon is loving getting to play with his siblings toys while they're at school. He also enjoys "helping" around the house and eating all the bananas that Jeff buys to put in his shakes.
Since I made sure to get the nice back to school pictures on Facebook, here are these...
