Archive for the “School” Category
Getting Ready for School
Natalie starts going to day care this Monday. That’s just two days away!! I’m not sure it’s hit me yet…either that or I have no anxiety about it, which I can’t imagine is true. I think I’m just not allowing myself to get nervous about it. We’ve been busy preparing and gathering all the supplies we need. Part of the reason we picked the Goddard School was that we supply all the diapers, wipes, and food. While it might be easier to send her to a school where we don’t have to worry about packing lunches or diapers, we felt better being able to provide the diapers that we know work for Natalie and food we know she likes. Everything that goes into school must be labeled with her first and last name, so we’ve fired up the label-maker!
The other thing we are required to supply is a toddler-size sleeping bag for Natalie to take naps on. When I explained to the school director that Natalie has never fallen asleep without nursing or being in motion (stroller, car, walking, beco carrier, etc) she assured me that once Natalie sees all the other kids laying on their sleeping bags taking naps, she’ll follow suit. We hope she’s right! So we chose a cute fleece sleeping bag with airplanes on it. When I took it out of the package and laid it on the ground to see how big it was, Natalie immediately laid down on it. Maybe there’s hope that she’ll actually take a nap at school:
Since she’s going to have to learn to fall asleep without her usual comforts, we at least wanted her to have her lovey. But we didn’t want to risk losing her mouse by taking it back and forth to school. So we bought one just for school plus a few spares. We didn’t realize how worn her mouse had gotten until we saw the comparison:
We’re hoping for as smooth a transition as possible. We’ll keep you posted.
Re-entering the work force…
That’s right! This Mama is returning to the world of full-time paid work. Although my plan all along had been to go back to Womanspace full-time at some point, it was still a difficult decision. In early January I approached my boss about coming back full-time in June when Natalie turned 18-months-old. She agreed, then came back to me a couple of weeks later and said there was an immediate opening for a full-time counselor. There might be another position in 6 months, but no guarantees. My initial reaction to think, “Oh, no! I can’t possibly ABANDON my BABY this soon!!!” Just a bit irrational, I know. After much thought and debate, I feel confident that this is the right choice for our family. And ever since we made the decision, I’m finding that I can’t wait until March 3 when I start.
Part of what made us feel better about the decision was finding the right day care. After doing much research and a few site-visits, we settled on The Goddard School in Hamilton. We liked the center, the directors, the teachers in the infant room, and the school’s policies. It feels like a community, whereas other day cares we visited felt like institutions. We know the adjustment period may be hard on Natalie, but we’re confident that once she gets used to the routine, she’ll love going to school. We’ve been the school twice now, and both times Natalie was eager to explore the classrooms, point out all the animals on the hallway mural, and interact with the other children. Natalie’s grandmothers have generously agreed to continue spending 1 day a week with her, so she’ll only go to Goddard on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
We’ll keep you posted on how the transition goes.