Day 1203 - Day One: Preschool Week

For the kids' first day of preschool, we were suppose to arrive at 9am and stay three hours. The past few weeks, I've been timing myself to see how long it takes me to get the kids ready in the morning and it has always taken me under an hour. And today was no different except for the fact that the kids woke up earlier than expected so I was finished with them at 8:10am.

Certainly seems like it's no problem having the kids all ready to leave for preschool, but Emma was being very impatient and did not understand why we could not leave right away.

"Let's go! Why can't we go? Why are we at home still?" Emma questioned incessantly.

Meanwhile, Andrew was just playing with his Cars toys and screaming, "And Chick Hicks BUMPS the King! BOOOOM!"

After thirty five minutes of Emma badgering me to take her to school, we finally left. As a dutiful father and Japanese, I brought my camera along to document this day. I took a few pictures of the kids outside carrying their massive lunch boxes; you'd think they were carrying half of Costco in there. And I thought how weird that three years has passed and the kids are ready to attend preschool. Instead of playing and peeing on the floor at home, we are now paying a preschool to have the kids play and pee at school.

As we walked through the classrooms, the teachers greeted the kids warmly and showed them where they could hang their coats, put away their lunch, and store their nap time supplies. I took the kids outside to the play yard, and they immediately ran away from me as if I didn't exist; it reminded me of my first date with Lisa.

One of the kids' teachers asked if I had a moment so she could show me the sign-in book and where our mailbox is. I took a glance at the kids and they were happily playing in the sandbox, so I went inside for a few minutes. But when I returned, I was greeted with a crying Andrew.

During that brief moment inside the preschool office, Andrew was trying to find me and had separation anxiety. The preschool director told me that the reason she has the parents attend the first two days of school with their children is to make sure they feel secure and to make the transition easier. And the next time I leave the kids, I should make sure I tell them where I'm going and when I'll be back.

Man...I had flashbacks of elementary school when I was scolded by my teachers. Granted the incident in first grade when I poured rubber cement into my teacher's purse was an accident, but I swear it wasn't me who followed up with the bags of glitter.

At around 9:30a, the teachers gathered the kids and sang a song and read a book. She then brought them inside to wash their hands to have a yummy snack of hash brown, turkey bacon, and milk. For the next hour or so, the kids were either able to play at activity centers or do free play in the classroom. Then it was another forty minutes outside, and it was time to leave at noon.

I'd have to say the kids had a rather positive first day at preschool. Personally, I also think this is going to be a preschool that will have a positive influence on the kids' development. It's not an academic preschool, but that was not something we were looking for. We just wanted a preschool where the kids could learn to socialize and develop themselves into individuals. The whole curriculum with the preschool is based on learning through playing and active parental involvement. And the fact that it was a block away from our home and had an opening for us in January greatly influenced our decision too.

So bring on Day 2 with all the germs, boogies, and drool!