I'm a BIG KID now!

So, yesterday Kapri completed her very first (looong) day at preschool! OMG, I was kiiinda stressing on the drive there. I had butterflies...WTF?? It wasn't MY first day of school! haha

I woke up, got myself ready...then woke her up around 6:30, so we could leave by 7:30ish, be there by 7:45 and leave by 8am. She's never had to be woken up before like this...normally she is our alarm, which is around 7:30/8am...but as soon as I flicked on the light, she woke in a flash..."GooMorring mamma...PRESCHOOL!" - that was her exact, first sentence outta her mouth. We got her changed, fed, took a few pics (tried to anyway...she was a ball of excitement!)...and even squeezed in a little snuggle time on the couch along with a quick book or 2. We grabbed her, her backpack & lunch bag...and headed out. (of course I had to embroider those, to go along with her previously embroidered lamby for nap time!)

wish I had found an Ariel one...she's sooo into Little Mermaid!

As soon as we took her in, she went running around from toy to toy...like a kid in a candy shop, or toyshop (literally) LOL! After going over a few things with the owner, we went to say goodbye...K was oblivious, so naturally I got emotional...didn't think I was going to really...but then it just hit me after a little hug & kiss from her. All day I resisted the urge to call & check in..."would she even NAP...on that sleep-mat (no crib!), with other kids around", "would she use the potty like she does at home", "would she tell them when she's hungry/thirsty...would she STARVE!?" "would kids be mean to her...would SHE be mean to them??" ...oh man, I was a freaking stress basket, tearing up again on the drive to work...but luckily meetings & busy work kept me focused on other things.

After work I anxiously drove to pick her up...I had prepped by scouring the internet for guidance...like this article...that helped assure me that IF she had a mini-meltdown upon my arrival, it was totally normal...and it did in fact totally happen. More so in the sense that she just did. not. want. to. leave! And was most likely exhausted from all the fun she'd had....and *hopefully* missed James & I, haha. She absolutely loved it!! I was able to walk in & head back to the yard area, where I went unnoticed as she excitedly ran & played with another kid - it was a very reassuring moment...that this was a great fit for us all!

Ms. Anne said she did amazingly well...and that one would think she'd been here for years, rather than just her first day. So that meant she was very comfortable right off the bat. She painted a ton of pictures, had fun with playdoh, stacked blocks, ate well, SLEPT well (miracle), loved playing outside...splashing water with others, and actually used the potty all day long...she's such a big girl now!! She cried only once upon waking from her nap, but that was due to being unfamiliar with where she was at first. After a quick, soothing back rub, she fell back asleep for a bit. All in all, it was a fabulous day...happy child...happy parents ;-)

Some of the artwork she made - just realized this wall tucked around the corner from our living room was perfect for hanging up a few of her masterpieces!

PRE pre-school stats

Oh man...we're just 9 days away from Kapri's first day in home pre-school. I'm excited for her...and nervous of course, though I'm more at peace with this step than I would've been had we entered her into a 'daycare' type of place when she was younger. We've been so fortunate to have K stay at home the last 2 years & 3 months with James & I while we work mostly opposite schedules, along with his mother helping every other Friday.

We found a wonderful place down the street from our house, ran by a super sweet woman and other teachers/assistants as well. This place is spacious (for it being run out of a private home)...it's on about an acre of land with a huge outdoor play area. We took her there a few weeks ago, stayed for an hour and practically had to pry K out - she loved it! There was just soooo much to do and all the other kids seem to really thrive there. It was at that moment that we were sold. And the price for 2 days/wk is definitely better than anything we'd looked at in the past, thank goodness. Also, she isn't required to be completely potty-trained, which is a huge plus, because we're still in the process & haven't been rushing it by choice. Hopefully her being around other kids that ARE trained will help though. All in all, I think this is the perfect fit for us...and we had amazing timing too, when I inquired about enrolling her - they said they had just one 2-yr old spot available for the upcoming school year...score!!

Anyway, I've been in full on pre-school prep mode...got her a "princess" backpack (for her extra clothes/diapers/undies, blanket, lamby, etc.) & matching lunch bag, 2 new sippy cups, and have been telling her all about 'school' and what to expect....among the list of 'to-dos' I have for myself...including labeling like crazy! She seems to understand the concept somewhat. The other day a friend of mine bought her a fun new book called "My New Preschool", which is her new fav. And later today we'll go to the library to find some additional books/movies about pre-school. Can never be too prepared, right?!

Thanks for the awesome book Val!

So in anticipation of this new chapter in her life, I wanted to compile a little list of her 'pre' pre-school stats, so I can look back to compare and see how far she has come at the end of the school year.

1. She can count to about twelve by herself, after that she jumps to 14, 18, 19, 20, then back to 12, hahaha - she cracks me up
2. She can't quite sing the entire ABC song by herself, BUT she can tell you a letter if you draw it or point it out, she can tell you maybe 98% of them correctly. Oh, and she knows her name if you write it out. Smart lil cookie ;-)
3. She uses somewhat lengthy sentences these days, typically 4-7 words, like this: "mamma, mika...downstairs...sleeping" or "bye Laylie...see you...'morrow!" or "mamma, shoes on...outside...play bubbles" or "LeeLee...come over...in li-ull (little) bit", or my fav: "mamma, hold my hand....thank you"...awww *melt*
4. After using the potty, she knows to take some toilet paper & wipe, then get down & flush the toilet, then step up onto the step stool to wash & dry her hands.
5. She's got 9 basic colors down (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, brown, black & white)
6. She washes her body all clean with a washcloth in the bath - saves my back from leaning over & doing it, haha
7. She knows some basic shapes...let's see...circle, heart, square, rectangle, triangle, star, oval, diamond
8. Oh, and my fav....she asks for a napkin during meal times and wipes her hands/mouth clean throughout eating...so adorable! Actually, just after writing this sentence, I went to get her a snack. She asked for a blueberry fruit bar...so I told her she needed to sit up in her highchair to eat it. She replied, "mamma, bluebee bar...is messy...need napkin"!!! Yes, I know we lucked out in this area, LOL!

We think she's ready...she needs to learn to play with others well and make more friends, cannot believe we're at this point...where did the last 2 years go??? sheesh