Brett's First Day of Preschool!!

Brett had his FIRST DAY of preschool on Monday!!! Our whole family was so excited for this big day, an event we had been preparing Brett for all summer. And really, Kyle and I had no idea how it would go. Other than grandparents and our neighbors, Brett has never been without us, especially when it was time to  try something new. One of the great things about the Chelsea Co-op, the preschool we chose for Brett, is that the first week is actually an orientation where the parents come too. A co-op works a little different than a traditional preschool in that it is a non profit organization run by parents (along with the certified teachers). Each class has one teacher, one teacher's assistant, and two parent assists for the day. That is why an orientation is necessary, so that parent's have a chance to learn about the preschool and what their responsibilities entail when it is their turn to assist (which is about once a month). On top of assisting, each family is on a committee to help out with during the year, such as Fund Raising, Ice Cream Social, Holiday Events, etc. I was asked to be the Session Representative for Brett's class, so that is our "committee" this year. I am responsible for  typing up the calendar each month, making sure the assist spots are filled each day, corresponding with parents, and taking any concerns or suggestions to the board. I'm also in charge of organizing "session coffees" for the parents of Brett's class. About once a month all the parents are welcome to meet up to talk about upcoming events, our kids, and just about anything we want! It's a great opportunity to get to know the other families of the co-op and bounce ideas off one another. That's one of the things I love about the co-op - it has the feeling of a little community :-)

Brett ended up doing amazing his first week of preschool! Brett's class was split in two and half of the families came on Monday, and the other half on Wednesday. I helped run the orientation, so since I had to be there both days, Brett got to as well. While the president and I ran the orientation with the parents, the teachers went about a regular school day with the kids.  On Monday, Kyle came along to help with Brett since I would be busy. Brett was a little bit anxious at first, and wanted Kyle right by his side. Towards the end of the day though, he was much more comfortable and didn't mind at all when Kyle had to leave to get back to work. I was so proud of him! After Kyle left, while I was finishing up the orientation, I kept expecting to hear Brett crying in the background, or see a teacher coming my way to tell me Brett needed me....but that never happened! I even got the chance to spy on him a few times, and he was happy as can be :-) On Wednesday Kyle had meetings so he couldn't join that day, so I was a bit anxious myself on how Brett would do the whole time without either one of us. And guess what? He did great! Some of his favorite activities were making salsa, painting with "kitchen tools" and playing with all the cars and trucks. Oh, and during gathering time, when his teacher, Mrs. Aldrich was talking about making salsa, Brett blurted out, "are we going to make popcorn?!". So cute! I think this is going to be one great year, and I can't wait to get to know all the wonderful families that will be at the co-op with us :-)