back to school

It’s back-to-school time! Yesterday was the first day of school for Matt and Matteo. Vincent started going to daycare last Thursday for half the day and today is his first full day.

Here’s Matteo – first day of preschool:

He’s in a mixed age class of 3-5 year olds and has three new teachers. He loves it! I walked him up the stairs to his new room yesterday and he sauntered right in like he already owned the place. I talked with his afternoon teacher at pick-up yesterday and she said he had a great day. He picked up on all the class routines right away and loved it when the older kids introduced themselves to the little ones as the ‘classroom helpers’. She said she watched his face as they introduced themselves and she could just tell he was thinking to himself, “I want to be a helper one day!”

His lead teacher called last night and left a message, also giving him a very good report. I love that she took the time to do that. He’s in such a great place.

Vincent is also in a great place. He has the same teachers that Matteo had and they are so wonderful with little ones. The lead teacher told me this morning that he laughs and plays all day. Here they are together, and here is a shot of him playing in the room. Can you see his little head there? (Yes, I’m the weird mom lurking outside and watching through the window after I’ve said my goodbyes.)

Here he is yesterday after a walk. He loves being outside. Whenever he is fussy, as soon as you wheel him outside he calms down. Since he was tiny he’s always loved sitting in the stroller, looking up at the leaves and watching the world around him.

Here is a shot of Matteo from three years ago, at almost the exact same age in that same buggy:

After I picked him up yesterday we took another walk around the neighborhood. He napped and I stopped for an iced coffee and a cookie at our favorite coffee shop. This has been our routine for the last several months but now the boys are both in school and I’m back to work full time.

Goodbye summer. I have to say that you were especially awesome this year.

appreciating matteo

During the summer, Matteo’s class learns about appreciating each other. Each child gets a week where their classmates tell them what they appreciate about them, and their parents are invited in to present to the class something about their family.

Our family presentation was all about sports and how Matteo’s Mom and Dad are coaches. We spent about 30 seconds talking about lacrosse (I had to cut it short once Matteo got a hold of his stick and started chopping with it), and then Matt talked about basketball. He demonstrated some ball-handling tricks and then had the kids each practice dribbling.

the last day

Today is Matteo’s last day of school before he moves to his new school next week. He’s been here since he was four months old and we’ve grown very attached to the teachers. I shed more than a few tears this morning and I’m sure there will be more when I pick him up for the last time this afternoon.

This is a very bittersweet transition. Matteo had some challenging behavior issues this spring and at the beginning of this school year where he was being really aggressive with other kids. I felt helpless and terrible but his teachers were really supportive and comforting. I know it’s time for him to move on, and there are so many wonderful things waiting for him at his new school, but I’m nervous. I also worry about him leaving his friends. I know he’ll really miss them.

As a goodbye gift, the teachers made him a photo album of pictures of his class and a scrapbook with pages from each of the other kids.

Goodbye for now Wee Start. We look forward to seeing you every day again next fall with Baby #2!

new school

When Matteo turns two and a half (in less than three weeks!) he is going to move to a different school. He’ll be switching from his daycare to a Montessori school where he will most likely stay until kindergarten.

He went to visit his new class for the first time on Tuesday morning and absolutely loved it. He even cried when it was time to leave. He’s been at the same school since he was four months old and I wasn’t sure what he was going to think of such a big change. But he dove right in, greeting the other kids, playing nicely with them, and helping himself to snack all by himself. I was so relieved!

We planned our visit so he could be in the class picture for the year, and when it was time to line up to go get the picture taken he got to be first in line. He was thrilled!

The new classroom is a little smaller than his current classroom, and there are more than twice as many kids (and almost all of them are boys, what a crazy bunch that must be!), but the Montessori method is based on purposeful independence and order and I think it’s a good fit for Matteo. I attended a Montessori school from two and a half through the first part of kindergarten and still credit that experience to instilling in me a lifelong love of learning.

We’re all going to miss our friends at the old school, both the kids and the teachers who have been wonderfully supportive and nurturing these last two years. But it’s exciting to see Matteo move on to a new environment with new challenges where I know he’ll thrive.

field trip

Matteo went on a field trip today to Eugster’s Farm. I went along with his class and we all rode on a little school bus that has special seats for tiny kids. They fed goats, picked out pumpkins, went in a room filled with kittens you could pet, and saw lots of other baby animals.