First Day of Pre-School

Let me start by saying there are no pictures. Daddy was in charge and you can't expect him to pack lunches, wrangle two 2 year-olds, and walk to school with two 2 year-olds by himself AND take pictures.

One moment while I try to recover my breath. I'm still trying to get over the whole "walk to school with two 2 year-olds by himself" image in my mind.

Monday night, Daddy and I were up late preparing our very first school lunches for Gracie and Luke. We had no clue what to pack for them. Well, we did, but we weren't exactly sure what they would eat. They are very inconsistent about what they will eat and when they will eat it. In the end, their first "take to school" lunch was peanut butter and strawberry jelly sandwiches, string cheese, grape tomatoes, and apple sauce for snack. I was in charge of labeling the lunch bags (Gracie has Elmo and Lukie has a firetruck) and labeling their plastic ware.

Here is Daddy's accounting of yesterday (please note I have no way to corroborate this story in any way):

He woke up at 6:40 am, got himself dressed, packed the kiddos' lunches, took all of their various bags to the car and came back inside to wake Gracie and Luke up at 7 am. Everyone put on their shoes and followed Daddy out to the car to go to Grandma and Grandpa's house.

At Grandma and Grandpa's, they had breakfast (which they scarfed down) and got dressed for school. They ate a banana because they were still hungry and then it was time to start walking to school.

Grandma was unavailable to walk with Daddy and the Twinsies, so Daddy put a backpack on each of them, handed them their lunch bags, and the three of them started off down the street. Gracie and Luke walked behind Daddy as they looked at the flowers, bees, the sky, and anything else that caught their eyes. When it came time to cross Devonshire Blvd, Daddy told Gracie and Lukie to stop and taught them about red lights and green lights. He had them pass their lunch bags to him and hold hands. When the light turned green, they carefully crossed the street, no problem!

Hold on. Deep breath. Okay, I'm fine.

They arrived at the school and Daddy told them that this was where their new teacher and friends could be found. Gracie was a little hesitant, but she wandered off when she felt safe to meet new people. Lucas, on the other hand, was having none of it. He knew exactly what the new school meant and started to cry. Daddy tried to calm him and reassure him, but it wouldn't work. Eventually, Lucas found his sister and Daddy left (read: sneaked out). Daddy felt horrible leaving Lukie when he was so sad and he cried all the way back to Grandma and Grandpa's house.

After his dialysis, Daddy returned at 2:30 pm sharp. Recently up from their naps, Gracie was very happy to see her Daddy. Lukie was still waking up and cried to be held. Gracie patted him on the back and helped Lukie wake up a bit more. As they left the school with Daddy, Gracie and Lukie chatted about their day (At least that's what Daddy assumed they were doing. It sounded like they were speaking Japanese to him!)

When they got home, they turned on the "elphant!" (aka Horton Hears a Who) and snacked on some crackers until I got home and made dinner. They were both very tired, so we made quick work of dinner, bath and books. They were in bed and asleep about a half an hour early.

All in all, it was a good day. Daddy and I both noticed that despite their sleepiness, they were both very talkative and happy to see us. It will take some time for them to get adjusted to their new school. This week, they are just playing and getting to know each other. Next week, the individual instruction will begin.

What a two year-old should be learning, I haven't the faintest!