Pre-school Preview

I went to bed with a few nerves in my tummy last night.

I was anxious about how the girls would do at their 'preschool preview' this morning.

It was a chance to visit their classroom for a few hours before they officially start next week.

Ms. K rose early (shocker!) and so she had plenty of time to eat a good breakfast, use the potty and get dressed.

In the meantime - Ms. A woke -- we fed and changed her and she was ready for the day!

And - then... we waited for Ms. R.

The clock was tick, tick, ticking...

She was still fast asleep because she'd been up a bit throughout the night.

We needed to leave the house by 8:30 - so at 8:05 I went in to wake the sleeping beauty.

She wasn't thrilled, but once I mentioned school - she had a bit more pep in her step.

After getting Ms. R fed and dressed - it was 8:30 on the dot.

Our neighbor came to stay with Ms. A and were on our way!

But not before a quick pic!

Here are the girls screaming ... "SCHOOL"!

On the car ride to school I reminded them I'd be dropping them off, running a few errands and then be back to take them home for lunch.

They both looked a bit skeptical, but didn't fuss.

I think because we'd just been to pre-school orientation last week - they remembered the building when we arrived.

"My school" ... Ms. K proclaimed!

I wish I could have filmed her marching proudly in like she owned the place.  Ms. R followed closely behind.

Upon arrival in their classroom - several older girls rushed up and asked my girls to sit next to them (it was snack time).  They are enrolled in a school with a multi-age classroom.  I love this about the program.  And, seeing the older girls eager to help their two new (and much younger) classmates really solidified this for me.

The girls will be together with 3, 4 and 5 year old's this year.  In this setting the teachers feel there is much to be gained from the little ones learning from the older kids and from the older kids learning to be leaders and mentors. I think it's a good fit for my girls.

After a couple of minutes of chit chat with their teacher I could tell it was time for me to go.

I said goodbye, but turned around for one more quick glance. My heart dropped to my feet as two sets of beautiful eyes carefully watched me leave the room.

At that moment my heart was both happy and sad.

Knowing they'd be just fine caused both emotions to flood over me at the same exact time.

The one thought I kept having as I drove away was -- they have each other..... and what a comfort that is for them and for me.

So, then it was off to my happy place -- Target, of course.  I had a little less than 2 hours to kill while they experienced "school" for the very first time.

After an hour of shopping (aka: restocking the empty shelves in our home) and a stop for a cup of coffee I was back in the parking lot at 10:50.  I waited impatiently until 10:55 and then bee lined it for their classroom!

I could not wait!

I quietly entered their room and they were both busy working.

Ms. Alicia came over and said three words that made me one happy and proud mama....

"They've done beautifully"!!

I watched a little longer from the sidelines before they saw me and I enjoyed every minute of watching them learn.

Ms. Alicia reported that they'd teamed up with an older classmate for the morning and it went really well.

And, they both asked to use the potty.  I was thrilled!

After big hugs from both of them - it was time to go home and reunite with their baby sister which they seemed very eager to do!

We were all ready!

Proudly displaying their art projects below!

 BIG smiles outside of school!!

 Two sweet little souls.  Oh how I love them.

Driving home they shared some highlights - playing outside, singing, doing art projects.  I was feeling so proud and happy for them.  They seemed like such big girls.

And, as much as they've grown -- they are still my babies and thankfully we have a lot of time left in our week to be home together -- playing and being silly.

They are already looking forward to going back next week for their first official day of pre-school.... and I can already see I'm going to need a lot of wall space to proudly display all their beautiful works of art.

With love,
Cuz I'm the mama!