Since the horror that was Lumpyhead’s first day of preschool, I’ve talked myself down off the ledge a little bit (with the help of some colleagues who have been doing daycare dropoff for years - who are awesome, thank you, even though they don’t read this).
Yes, Lumpyhead was released early from his first day. While I originally interpreted that as, “Oh god, they couldn’t stand him for another minute,” and “Lumpyhead failed preschool,” I’ve since come to think of it as, “Why torture the kid for another five minutes? He’s completed his day, he's eaten his lunch, his mother is here, let him go.”
I feel better about that.
I worried about the minutes Pete and I spent dicking around outside the school - while Precious suffered inside - but have come to realize that if Lumpyhead was really in trouble, they would have called me. Or, you know, have gone to get Bump, who was in the next room. God, I’m such a shit-for-brains sometimes. (Yeah, hey, those of you who are looking at your computer screens right now and sputtering “sometimes?” with incredulity? Yeah. Fuck you.)
We have not been practicing goodbyes this weekend, because, frankly, goodbye was not the problem. Being in an unfamiliar place without Bump or me or anyone he knew was the problem. And Lumpyhead will learn, soon, that he can be in that situation and have tons of fun and learn new things if he would just stop wailing like an injured hyena.
We have been talking to him about how much fun school is and how he will go back tomorrow and what he will do there, but frankly, I expect he’ll be a hot, sticky mess tomorrow, too. Less of a hot, sticky mess than he was on Thursday, but still a wreck. I think the only way he’ll learn the lesson we need him to learn is if he continues to go to school and is left alone there.
Luckily, we know how to do that. It’s just hard.
Nobody half-asses it like me.
4 comments:
Hope it gets better. The start of school last year wasn't easy here for the first couple of weeks. He starts again tomorrow, and I think it will be MUCH better this time around. I hope.
Raisin is kind of the same way -- she doesn't cry (when I leave, or anytime), but she is definitely -- off -- by the time I pick her up at the end of the day.
She's whiny, and clingy, and obstinate, and I really, really hope that you're right, and that it'll just take time.
Cheers.
Ouch. I hate the crying game. My kids take turns, about once every other month, having a day when they wont let go of me and have to be peeled off of me by their teacher. And I go to work a hot, sweaty, teary mess.
It gets better. Alot better. But those days will still happen occasionally, when they are really tired or getting sick, or after a vacation when they are off of their routine. In the long run, I think pre-school is great. My kids are very social and flexible and curious 99% of the time and I chalk alot of it up to pre-school.
I have every confidence that Lumpyhead will adjust. And you are completely right that they would have called you if anything was really wrong.
Hang in there...
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