Preschool
With kids comes a restructuring of your year. Suddenly the September-May time frame becomes a “year” vs January – December. So this fall marks the beginning of a new year for us. Personally, I love fall. A big perk of living here (& in Germany prior to the Seattle area) has been the fall! All the trees turn wonderful colors – it’s just marvelous. Growing up in the Dallas area, it often stays hot through October. And I can remember wearing shorts at Thanksgiving.
Anyhow, all of that is just to say we decided to start Madeline at a preschool. Since she’s just now 2, I opted for a cooperative school for a couple of reasons: 1. cost (CHEAP) and 2. location (REALLY CLOSE – 5 min away, maybe). A co-op means I work in the classroom or attend a parenting class in the next room each week. It works for us and Madeline LOVES it. She loves the activities – finger paints, playdough, outdoor playtime, etc. I mean, what’s not to love about all that?!
Madeline’s been in a playgroup since she was 4 months old, so she’s pretty well socialized around other kids and she’s the oldest in the class by a few months. That won’t mean much when everyone’s older, but right now it shows A LOT. The main thing that seemed to surprise the other parents is how much talking she does. Because my kid, she is a talker. Finally, something she inherited from the Luccis!
I think the class is going to be good for both Madeline & me this year – Madeline turning two has already brought some new challenges. We’re definitely starting the Terrible Twos right on time – those parenting classes might come in handy!