Carys started Preschool this week! She is going two mornings a week and I think she is going to love it. Scott and I weren't exactly sure how she would do at first, so we've been trying to prep her for her big day. We went to the open house a couple weeks ago to meet her teacher and check out her classroom. Both Carys and Harper loved playing with all the toys and Carys was excited to find cookies in the music room! She also immediately seemed comfortable with her teacher, Mrs. K, so that was reassuring.
When the big day arrived we were fortunate that Daddy was able to rearrange his schedule so he could be with us that morning to help us get ready and make breakfast! I woke Carys up that morning and like most mornings she sleepily asked, "What is today?" and I told her, "you get to go to school today." She sat right up and said, "can we go right now?" So, I think she was excited. We ate our breakfast , finished getting ready, and of course had to take some "first day" pictures on the porch.
So, here she is with Daddy,
and being a goofball!
Next, a picture with mama and little sister peeking out!
Hi Harper!
We got to school a little early and had to wait outside to be let in, so we took a couple more pictures.
There was a road crew working on the road near the school and Carys was watching the front end loader. When the director opened the doors for everyone to come in, we were near the front of a long line. Carys stopped right in the middle of the doorway and had to explain to Mrs. R that "there were construction workers and I saw a front end loader". Mrs. R wasn't quite listening the first time, so Carys had to repeat this a couple of times while we were trying to convince her to get moving because she was holding up the line. She wouldn't budge though until she was sure Mrs. R heard AND acknowledged her! Finally, we made it to her classroom. She found her cubby with her name on it, so we left her backpack and headed down to the music room. At this school, all the kids meet in the music room every morning and sing songs and dance before heading to their classrooms. I really like this idea and Carys seems pretty excited about it too.
When we got to the music room, we found her teacher and Carys got her name tag. At this point, some kids were starting to lose it as parents were trying to leave and the room was full of people and loud, so Carys got a little nervous. She even scooted backward and grabbed onto another lady's pants thinking it was me. Scott got her attention and showed her where I was, and it was pretty funny when she saw me and then realized she was holding on to a stranger. She seemed to calm back down a little bit after talking to Scott, and then her teacher brought over another little girl and asked them both to sit together on the line to wait for the music to begin. Carys seemed willing to do this and Scott needed to get to work, so we thought it was a good time to make our exit. She said good-bye and that was it. It was hard for Scott and I to leave, so I was very thankful that she seemed okay with it.
Carys and her sweet teacher, Mrs. K.
Carys only goes for a couple of hours in the morning, so by the time I ran an errand and got Harper down for her nap it seemed like no time before we needed to leave to go get her. I was really excited (and anxious) to get there and see how her day went. When I got to her classroom I waved at her from the door. Mrs. K saw me and told her she could leave. Her little smile from when she first saw me quickly faded and she sat as still as a rock doing everything she could to avoid eye contact. I walked in the classroom and was telling her it was time to go. As soon as I got close to her, she hopped up and bolted to the opposite side of the table. Mrs. K was trying to explain to her that she was going to come back, but every time I tried to get close to the little stinker, she would take off in the opposite direction! I could sense a major meltdown coming, so I did what every stellar parent does and whispered a quick bribe as soon as I was close enough for her to hear me. At the promise of a treat on the way home, her mood instantly changed and she was happy to grab her backpack and say goodbye! I'm really glad that she enjoyed her day so much that she wanted to stay, but at the same time I'm hoping it's not going to be an issue every time! I know I'm certainly not going to hit the drive thru for Tim-bits every time she needs to leave!!
Even though it's hard to believe how fast she is growing up, I'm really looking forward to this school year. I know that we still may have a period of adjustment as she gets used to this change in our routine, but I really think she is going to love school and that makes me so happy and excited for her!
