Kindergarten Bound

After much debate we decided to take Jake out of his preschool/daycare and try him at Foothills with me. Being as this decision was made last minute, there were no more openings in the early learners program so we started him in their Primary program- which is a K-1 classroom. We enrolled him with the intention of him completing a Kindergarten year at Foothills then a "real" year of K at the public school next year. He was really excited to come to "mommy's school" and although he had some sadness at leaving his friends and teachers in daycare, he mostly was feeling positive.

His last day of daycare was so special. His teachers all expressed their joy at having had him there and their sadness at his leaving. He has always had a special place in his teachers hearts and this has never been more evident than on Friday. Miss Pam ( the tough Southern lady that even scares me a little) gave him a huge bag of gifts and cried. At naptime Jake asked Rhonda (the owner) if he would be allowed to come back if it turned out he didn't like Kindergarten. She took his face in her hands and assured him that he would always have a home there. More tears were shed. Despite the fact that I wasn't thrilled with their pre-k program, I never had any doubt that he was very loved and I am so glad Tanner and Faith are still there to grow with that loving care.

He has had a great first week at Foothills. Although he is smaller than most of the other students he fits right in. He is in the classroom right next door (and I use the term "door" loosely as the school has no real doors between rooms...) so I can stop by and have snack with him each day or participate in read aloud or art, etc... So far I am loving it and I think Jake is, too. I had a lot of anxiety about the move and it became obvious that I was pestering him too much about his feelings about the change because on Day 2 he finally looked at me and said quite matter-of-factly, "Mom, I'm not sad. I'm not upset. I'm just really tired!" I took that as my hint to back off :) Carry on, Little Man.

(On a similar note, Tanne was moved into the toddler room today. We all feared he would take it hard, not being one that embraces change easily. But he proved us wrong. He participated in circle time, slept on his mat, ate at the table, and generally was amenable to all the changes this brought to his day. We are both really proud of our guy.)