Brooklyn and School: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

The Good



Brooklyn LOVES school!!  When I drop her off in the morning, she gives me a big hug and pretty much walks in by herself (sometimes with a little nudge from behind), but never cries or makes it any more difficult for me than it has to be.

They start off their day with a color sheet

This next picture really cracks me up.  I don't know if you can see it or not, but there is a little twinkle in her eye that is clearly telling me she is about to do something wild.  =)  I'm  guessing she's about to pull out every crayon in the box.  The child next to her is probably her best buddy at school, Hudson.  The teachers say they really like to play together.

Then they play on the playground.

with Hudson again

Does this sweet face look like the face of someone who could terrorize her teachers???

Oh...just wait until we get to the bad and the ugly.  =(

After play time is snack time

Then, Circle Time/Bible Story time

They say that sometimes she runs and hides under the table during cirlce time until one of the teachers goes and gets her and lets B sit in her lap...they are not sure why.  But here she is participating.

Then they do a craft

Towards the beginning of the year, the teachers said she would just tear up whatever craft they were working on, but now she actually does the craft like she's supposed to!!  YEA B!

Then on to "Centers."  I really have no idea what that is, but I know that they did have a fireman/firetruck come one day and an EMT/ambulance come one day.

Next up:  Music Time and this is her FAVORITE!!

(but apprently not for the little boy sitting next to her =))

Then Lunch

This was on pizza day and she's actually eating it.  They said she wouldn't eat it until they cut it into squares for her...are you getting the picture that she may be a little high maintenance?  =)

After lunch, they have story time.

Sitting by Hudson in the picture above and below.

After story time is naptime...and this is where we get to "The Bad."

So, my biggest concern with putting Brooklyn in Mother's Day Out has been naptime.  I just could not imagine her laying on the floor (on a mat, course), surrounded by other children and being able to sleep.  I mentioned my concern to several other mothers and they said that they had the exact same concern about their children, but it is amazing how it just works out.  Despite their encouragement, I still just COULD NOT envision Brooklyn doing this.  Then, on "Meet the Teacher" Day, I told the teachers that this was my only concern.  The teachers reassured me as well.  They said that last year on the first day that none of the students slept, but by the end of the year, they were all taking naps, but 1.  (When I came home and told Eddie this, his response was that Brooklyn would totally be "that 1."  This particular program does not accept children until the age of 2, so all of the children would be learning how to nap this way together.  At last, I felt like their was hope.  Surely, if all of the other kids could learn to do it, so could she.  I WAS WRONG!!

Her poor teachers have tried patting her to sleep, scratching her back, moving her to a room of her own, bringing in a special crib just for her, giving her books, giving her a sippy cup, giving her baby dolls, etc, etc, etc and nothing has seemed to help.  They have gotten to the point where naptime makes Brooklyn ANGRY and she SCREAMS!!  They are way beyond trying to get her to nap.  At this point, they would settle for her just being QUIET during naptime because not only is she disrupting their class, but several of the other classes around them that are also trying to nap.  CAN WE SAY MORTIFIED?!?

And now to THE UGLY!!

It has gotten so bad, that Brooklyn has now been officially KICKED OUT OF NAPTIME!!!  Yes, you are reading that correctly.  The teachers are now through with trying different ways of dealing with Brooklyn and I'm now required to pick her up after lunch so that everyone else can sleep.  =(  Seriously???  KICKED OUT???

Anyone want any parenting tips from me?  =)

Poor Chandler, I'm finding the noiseiest  and brightest room in the house now and making her learn to take naps on the floor on a napmat so that I never have to go through this again!!  I'm totally kidding...kind-of.

If you are waiting on the happy ending to this story, I'll let you know if there ever is one.  But for now, that's the wrap on my STRONG-WILLED 2-year-old and school.  I'm praying that this will one day just be something funny to look back at and laugh about.

p.s.  She still is an amazing napper at home.  It is never a fight to put her to bed.  In fact, often, she comes and gets us and tells us that she is sleepy and wants to go "night-night", which is part of what makes this situation so bizarre.