Claire's first day at "school"

One of my friends from our international adoption group told us about a nursery school in our neighbourhood where your child can go for two and 1/2 hours a day for two days a week. The toddler class is very small - just 9 kids - and the teacher and her assistant came highly recommended.

I knew immediately that I wanted to look into this for Claire. Although we do several classes and other activities together, she rarely is comfortable enough to really be herself in those settings for several possible reasons: too many kids, not a good fit in terms of the activity, or too large a physical environment. I've often thought that my presence may hinder as much as it helps in those settings: although I offer comfort, she would rather be in my arms than join in the play and be her usual fun self.

Claire and I observed at the nursery school last week and it was obvious Claire would love it there. The teacher and her assistant are incredibly warm and genuine people, the atmosphere is cozy and calm, and the kids all very gentle. I was thrilled to receive the good news that Claire could attend in the fall on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. I was just as happy to learn that a spot was immediately available on Tuesday mornings.

This morning, Claire started "school". As per the teacher's instructions, I stayed until she was settled in and then I quickly sang our goodbye song, wished her a fun morning and left. She began howling as I left the room. Yow. The way she was soon sobbing left me to think she'd cry the entire time, which just tore at my heart. We have left her with family and a couple of close friends before but never with people she barely knows.

Thankfully, my friend Marianne knew how tough a morning it would be for me. We arranged in advance that we'd go for coffee and then shop, shop, shop. Of course I couldn't stop thinking about Claire but Marianne definitely helped to distract me. Perhaps more importantly, my morning plans ensured that I wouldn't go back to the nursery school and disrupt Claire's adjustment to her new surroundings.

When I returned to the nursery school, Claire was fine! The teachers were so happy to be able to give me the good news that she had done really well. She cried very hard for the first 45 minutes but from there they were able to calm her down. From that point until I arrived, she had jumped, danced, and laughed! Hooray! She had such a good time in fact that when it came time for Claire and I to leave together, she didn't want to go. Definitely a good sign!

Claire is very much looking forward to going back to school and keeps saying "tomorrow?" I found out that there is no class next week because of spring break unfortunately, but I'm sure she'll get back in the groove the following week.

Here's Claire outside her school doors on her very first day of nursery school. What a big girl!