Lexi - Junior Kindergarten

Dear Lexi,

Last week, you began your full-time school journey. On Wednesday, we went for a one-hour ‘meet the teacher’ sessions, where we got to see your new cubby, explore your new classroom, play at some of thestations set up, and get to chat with your teachers a little bit. We already knew your teachers of course, because they were Mercedes’ teachers last year. Which I am super-thankful for, since they are a FABULOUS team. They are caring and thoughtful and encouraging and place a very high emphasis on fostering independence and outdoor education (making full use of the outdoor classroom, the forests and trails surrounding the school, etc.) You will have an absolute blast with them – Mercedes did, and I know that you will be the same. You were nervous to go for that one hour meeting, but by the end of it you didn’t want to leave! I was happy but still not very optimistic that your first days would be tearless (and I was right).

On Thursday morning, I had to drop you off to the Before School program, which unfortunately was not agreeable to you. Mercedes is also in the program of course, but being two years older she is in a different classroom during Kids Club. The kindergarten students are placed in the actual kindergarten classrooms (your Kids Club class is actually IN your daytime class, which hopefully makes the daily transition a little easier in the long run). However, on Thursday and Friday last week, she had to come and spend time with you in your class to help ease you in (which of course, she relished – she loves beinga helpful big sister). On Thursday (the first day) you came home and said you cried all day and that you were “ZERO excited” to go back the next day, which broke our hearts a bit of course. I know how rough it is to be in a new place, with new teachers, a new routine, new peers… it would be daunting for me, let alone a four year old! But by the end of Day Two, you came home proudly exclaiming that you “had a gooder day today!” and that you had made a new friend and that now you LOVE school.

This morning’s drop-off was still a little tearful, although thankfully I was able to distract you from the idea of Mercedes joining your before-school class again. I have to keep reminding myself that for the entire past year and a half of daycare, you have always been dropped off WITH Holden (likewise, Holden cried for you last week, since he is used to sibling back up as well). It is a big adjustment to be left alone in a new class, on top of all of the other adjustments you are trying to make.

So while it makes me sad, it also warms my heart a bit to see how much you all love each other. I know you fight like cats and dogs sometimes, but fundamentally, I think that the three of you absolutely worship each other. So much so, that we’ve agreed that you and Mercedes can have ‘sleepovers’ in her bed each Friday and Saturday night (no school nights!) – something that you especially seem to love. I am so thankful that you all have each other to lean on.

I am curious to see how your second week of school unfolds, but however long the transition takes, I know that you will thrive in kindergarten, just like Mercedes did. I can’t wait to see it all happen.

Love,

Mama