Evan and I took Elinor with us to preschool today. Now, technically, this is totally against preschool rules. But, we figured since I work in the classroom on Wednesdays, and Stephen is at work, and I hadn't arranged for a sitter, and there are less than two weeks of school left anyway, hell, let's give it a shot! We weren't sure how Mrs. K was going to take it, so we concocted a plan to follow in case she seemed unhappy about the situation: I would simply say that Evan wanted to bring Elinor as his "show and tell"!
Well, it turned out we didn't have to go to such lengths and the day actually went very well. Evan thought it was a hoot to have his little sister by his side in the classroom. He kept gently putting his arm around her as he showed her the ropes and he looked so proud as the other kids fawned over her. It was also really interesting and fun for me to watch Elinor in the preschool environment. She got a teensy bit restless during Circle Time, but overall handled the afternoon beautifully. She's going to love preschool once she's old enough, no doubt in my mind.
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| Evan explaining "circle time" to Elinor. |
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| Patiently waiting for Circle Time to begin. |
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| Fun with shaving cream, with old friend Mazzy and new friend Eli. |
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| Snack Time! |
While Elinor had a great time at preschool, it became obvious to me that she was also really, really tired (just look at her eyes in the photo below!). Hopefully next year, when she is 3 1/2, a daily nap won't be quite so necessary for her health and happiness. Either that, or a morning preschool class will be available.
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| Cheeeese! |
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| Outside playtime! The sun came out from behind the clouds just in time! |
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| Monkeyin' around with new friend Gemma. |
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| Day 145: I'm ready, Mom! Sign me up! |
Near the end of the day, Evan started to have a bit of a meltdown, whining and laying on the floor saying that he didn't "want to go home!" Mrs. K asked if I thought his behavior was due to all the attention that Elinor had received that day. I said, maybe, but I also knew that he was hungry (due to his refusal to eat lunch because the bread on his sandwich was "weird") and when that kid is hungry, look out. He turns into a big, whiny Grumpasaurus Rex. Not that I can blame him; I'm the exact same way.
Well, it turned out there was a third factor involved with his meltdown: he was completely exhausted. By the time we got home, Elinor was also a bit of a mess, crying and wanting to be held. I picked her up and walked back to her bedroom and within moments, she was out cold:
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| Preschool is hard work! |
After I laid Elinor down, I realized how quiet the house had become. I walked out into the living room and found this:
I guess being a proud, helpful, excited, but underfed big brother is hard work too. :)
