Getting ready for Daycare

Red Barn, here we come. I have to say, I give all of the staff there props for allowing Anna Claire and me to hang out and visit as we please the past few weeks. I can't imagine doing it any other way, and feel so blessed to have the summer off, allowing us the time to pull it off.

Anna Claire's teachers are absolutely wonderful. They have been so supportive, kind, and full of suggestions of how to make the transition easier for her. I shared my concerns about their outdoor play being on pavement, as Anna Claire is still crawling. Thanks to their guidance, I purchased her first pair of shoes, which she now wears everyday. I now have ironed on patches to the knees of all of my soon-to-be-walking-toddler's pants.

We have also taken their advice and weened her off her morning nap (naps were 9:30-10:30 and 1-2, now we're doing 11:30-1 and going to bed a half hour earlier - 7:30). Along with the change in napping, we give her an earlier lunch (was previously 12. Now she's eating at 10:30). This mimics the schedule she'll be following at "school".

We also now have a chair which she enjoys sitting in regularly.

I have gathered and turned in the requisite supplies: wipes, paste, sunscreen, comfort toy, change of clothes, bib, sippy cup, etc. Still needing a backpack for her fitted sheet and blanket. Not finding one that I like just yet. I'm also struggling with what I should do about her blanket. She LOVES her Little Giraffe blanket that she received from her "Aunt Kelly". Not sure if I should take it back and forth between school and home, get a second Little Giraffe blanket, OR see how she does with a second blanket that we already have. Still pondering...

I'll tell you what made my day. I was of the understanding that Anna Claire's teachers did not arrive until 7:30 am. I need to be at work by 7, so I have been worrying about leaving her for the first time with someone I do not know and that neither of us have ever met. Today I found out Miss Ashley (one of her two main teachers) will be there at 6:45 when I drop her off. When she told me, I just lost it. I started bawling. What a weight lifted. How much easier will this be knowing and TRUSTING who I am leaving her with. Thank you God!