Almost a month ago we started Daniel at his preschool, Apostles Day School. It's a Montessori school set in an Episcopal church in a nearby suburb. It came highly recommended by our good friends Lisa and Richard, whose 2 older kids go there and love it. We looked at several options but this was immediately my favorite, and after considering them all Kevin agreed this was the place for Daniel. From the first time I set foot there I thought, "I can't wait for Daniel to start here, he's going to LOVE it."
So far, 3 weeks in, he does love it. His first day Kevin and I both took him. He stood nervously by us at first when we arrived, following me into the classroom but then right back out. A minute later though, he walked back in on his own, and a few minutes later after we'd stopped by the director's office we peeked back in to check on him and he was sitting at a table with other kids studying one of the works (projects). His teachers reported a great first day and every day since has been good too. He seems to really enjoy the interaction with other kids, the predictable structure of the school day, and the stimulation of the classroom setting. He's always happy to see me when I pick him up, but always happily playing when I get there.
This school requires parents to send a lunch for their child every day-a negative to some people but a plus to us as it means his lunches will be healthy foods we pick out for him. We pack plenty for him every day-usually a sandwich or some chicken, yogurt, fresh fruit, and milk. He doesn't always finish but nearly always eats most of it. His teachers have commented to us on what a hearty appetite he has and said he's one of the best eaters in the class. Especially when we sent my mom's homemade applesauce with him-they said he wolfed that right down! We pack his lunch in the little red lunchbox we got for him designed like a fire truck-he's very proud of it and loves it!
Here he is when I picked him up after his first day. He was having so much fun with all the toys he didn't want to leave! His lunchbox is by his feet.
One of the things we were really looking forward to with Daniel starting school was the help they'd provide with potty training. We're rookies at this but they're pros, so we knew that when Daniel was ready they'd help him really get the hang of it. Their approach has been much like ours, offering the potty and giving him the chance to sit on it, but since they have him all day they offer it more than we can. Also helping there is that Daniel has the positive peer influence of watching the other kids in his class using the bathroom.
[Disclaimer: If you're not the parent of a little one, you might want to skip this part. You've been warned.] Whatever they're doing, it's working! Daniel used the potty at school once last week, then this past weekend at home, he did #2 in the potty. It was the first time he had ever done that and he was quite proud. Then today was another new milestone. He peed in the potty this morning before Kevin took him to school, then used the potty at school, then tonight used it again once we got home. His first day to use the potty more than once, and he did it 3 times, including a #2. Once he becomes more consistent in his toilet use, it may be time to take Daniel shopping for underwear! My hope is that he'll at least be daytime toilet-trained by the time of Honey Badger's arrival. If nighttime training takes longer, that's fine. I'm surprised but pleased that at barely 2 years old he's already doing so well with this. Thanks preschool!
24 month checkup
Last week Daniel had his latest checkup. He weighed in a little over 25 pounds and stands 35 inches tall-holding par for the course, long and lean. Our pediatrician was impressed with his development and particularly with his vocabulary and articulation and felt that he was on pace for all developmental targets for his age.
It was also a vaccination day for us. At our request, the doctor agreed to delay the Hepatitis A and B series until Daniel was 2. Long story short, these 2 are relatively unimportant at this age (the former is mild, the latter is spread via needles and sexual contact and thus, not really a concern for any but the most rebellious toddlers) and have relatively higher risk of seizures than other vaccines, so we opted to postpone them and focus our attention in his earlier years on more important shots (e.g., DTAP, Hib, PCV). So, this visit he got his first HepA and his second polio shot. He cried during the actual shots but calmed fairly quickly afterwards and had no adverse effects. We'll take him back in a month or two for his seasonal flu shot, then in February we'll bring him along for little bother or sister's first checkup and he'll get his first Hep B shot then. It's a little surreal to think that before long I'll be taking 2 kids to the doctor!
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