Our First Day of "Cool"

I don't know if I've mentioned it on the blog or not, but I GOT A NEW JOB!  It's just part-time, but this summer I really felt God leading me to apply for the Assistant Director position at our church's "Footprints Pre-School" (formerly Mother's Day Out).  I got the job, and have been working a couple of days a week since July to help get the program up and running.  We completely revamped the curriculum.  The curriculum focuses on a chronological walk through the Bible with specific themes and Bible stories for each week and we have a character focus with a memory verse for each month.  We also made the curriculum more academic.  We have BEEN BUSY!  I think the best part of my job is that I do a little bit of everything...help with check-in, help the teachers with center activities and craft stuff, get snacks ready, do the shopping, keep track of tuition and office stuff, etc.  There is NEVER a dull moment and each day will be different.  I liked subbing last year, since it allowed me to work part-time and be around "education stuff."  However, this job has a lot of perks...I have a SET schedule (something that subbing just doesn't really offer), I get to help educate little kiddos and CAN TALK about how much Jesus loves them (which I did as a kindergarten teacher, but always had to be careful about it), and Brynn gets to go with me (for free!)

Thankfully, we still get to see Nonna because Emory will go there in January, but Brynn goes with me to Footprints, where she is in the two-year-old class!  Today (Tuesday) was our first official day of school!  She has a really hard time saying words that start with an s-blend, so "school" sounds like "cool."

Last week we had "Back To School" night, which I helped work, but Ryan went and met her teachers, took supplies, etc.  It was a very weird/surreal/exciting/scary feeling to buy little supplies with her and show her where her CLASS would be.  

On Monday night, the night before school, we set out all her clothes, packed her lunch, and talked about how much fun school was going to be.  It's only from 8:45-2:15, but still, it's a big deal!!!

The night before we set out her backpack and nap-mat.  We also asked her a few questions and wrote
them on her chalkboard easel to use for a picture the next morning.

 After she went to bed, I packed her lunch....what a WEIRD moment.  I was definitely feeling excited and emotional at the same time.  I will totally be one of those parents who cries when I take her to kindergarten!  HA!

Here is how I was feeling...

A little nervous for her...

A little sad because she doesn't seem like our little baby anymore....

 Tuesday we got her up bright and early (partly because she has to nap at school at 12, but more on that later) so I could see her before I headed to church.  Thankfully, Ryan is off on Tuesdays so he was able to help get her ready and feed her some breakfast before he brought her.  We took a couple of "First Day of School" pictures...

The night before when we asked her the questions about her favorite food and color she was so funny.  She immediately said "noodles" and then said "like mac and cheese!"  She also loves purple, so those were no surprise.  When we asked her about her friends I really had no idea what she would say.  I about cried when she said Emory...I thought that was so sweet!  (But let's be honest...once Emory is born and Brynn realizes she has to share her time with mommy and daddy, I wonder if she will think the same thing!  HA!)  Ryan asked her "and who else?"  And she said MOMMY!  I was in heaven.  Ryan started laughing and says "and who else" thinking she would say daddy.  She says "Ansley" and he was laughing and goes "that's not the answer I was looking for!"  HA!

As I was helping with check-in and getting paperwork from families...these two walked in!  SO CUTE!

Ryan checked her in and walked her down to her little class.  She already knows one of her teachers because Miss Sheila helped with childcare during our Wednesday morning Bible studies.

Ryan came out and said she was doing great!  I figured she would be fine, and went on doing all my stuff...things were CRAZY with it being the first day.

About thirty minutes later I was in the preschool area (making sure she couldn't see me) and working on something and I hear this WAILING coming from Brynn's class.  I knew it wasn't Brynn, but I felt so bad for the little kid.  He was screaming bloody murder.  As I'm thinking "man, I'm so glad that isn't Brynn" I hear her crying "MOMMY, MOMMY, etc."  WHAT?  Oh my gosh, it was terrible.  It went on for at least twenty minutes, and I couldn't really get away from it because the job I was doing was right by her room.  I seriously about lost it, and I was texting Ryan, my mom, and my sister and asking them to pray.  I guess it was even worse because I just TOTALLY didn't expect it.  Sure, she's fussed before, but she really hasn't had ANY separation anxiety in FOREVER.  One of her teachers came out in the hallway, and I'm like "oh my gosh, why is she doing that?"  They were really sweet, but you know how it is when it is your child...you just feel terrible for them.  All kinds of irrational things were running through my mind...will she do this the whole day, should I just pack up and leave? (HA!), am I doing the right thing by bringing her?, why is she doing this?, etc.  It was not a very fun twenty minutes.  Christy and Chasidy (my two bosses) were SO SWEET and checked on her for me, and it wasn't much later that she was fine (and stayed that way for the rest of the day) but I'm telling you what...it was just a rough morning.  And of course I was walking around teary for thirty minutes, which was embarrassing!  HA!  One of her sweet teachers told me that she was fine and doing great until that little boy lost it and that's what probably set her off...I'm hoping that's right.

I didn't spend anytime thinking that she would be upset on the first day, but one thing I HAD been stressing about is that she normally naps from about 2-4 each day, and when she's at Footprints her class naps from 12-2.  I don't think she's gone down for a nap that early since she was 12 or 13 months old!  AHHH!  We've been slowly trying to move her nap up a little bit, but I still knew it would be hard for her to go to sleep that early.  I'm in the hallway about 1:00 when I hear one of her teachers saying "Brynn...lay down sweetie."  OH MY.  Sure enough, my child spent the entire nap-time AWAKE and doing head-stands on her nap mat and playing with her baby.  AHHH!  I told her teacher to get stern with her tomorrow!  LOL!  When Ryan picked her up I heard them tell him that she hadn't slept.  He was like "oh boy!"  I had to stay at church for another half hour or so, and I told him I didn't think we should put her down for a nap at home.  I knew the evening would probably be rough, but I figure she has to learn to sleep at school, and we should start from the beginning teaching her that if she doesn't sleep at school she won't get to do it once we get home.  I have no idea if that's right or wrong, but it's what we decided to do.  I'm hoping that a few days of us being consistent will help her get in the groove.  I guess our new normal will just be getting up earlier, napping earlier, and going to bed earlier.

When I got home they were playing and she was fine.  She had about a fifteen minute spell where she was a BEAR but surprisingly the evening went really well.  (I'm thinking that might mean that tomorrow night is terrible, but I'm praying not??).  We put her to bed tonight around 8/8:15 and I'm hoping that maybe she will sleep a little bit tomorrow at school??? I'm PRAYING that she will sleep a little bit tomorrow at school!  HA!

Today has been exciting, exhausting, emotionally draining, but also an exciting milestone in our lives.  I truly believe I'm where God wants me (and Brynn) to be, and I'm going to trust HIM that these little kinks will work out.  (I'm also going to be praying that my child learns to sleep at 12 pm!) HA!