kela's new school!

Yesterday was Kela's first day at her new preschool. This one will be 3 times a week for only half day. I pick her up at 12:30pm. She was so excited to go, since she loves preschool. All the preschool's she's been to thus far have been great fun for her. So, we go and as soon as we get into the classroom, her demeanor changes.

For those who don't know, Kela is pretty shy. She's very outgoing and playful around those she knows well, but around strangers and in new surroundings, she's usually very quiet and pretty introvert. I think she was intimidated by all the new faces, and so when it came time to drop her off, she wouldn't let go of my hand! Finally after a few minutes of walking around and checking the place out, one of the teachers took her to the bathroom & I made my exit (I told her, of course, that I was leaving so as not to shock her when I wasn't there upon her return from the restroom...)

Here we are before walking into school...all smiles!

When I went to pick her up, the teacher mentioned that she did fairly well. She cried only a little bit when they were playing outside in the playground, but for the most part had fun swinging with a new friend and such. I was relieved!

I came in just as they were finishing up their lunch, and when she saw me, she completely broke down in tears. I guess, the first day of school was a bit rough for her. Meeting new kids and being surrounded by all new things was a bit much, it seems. Seeing her sitting there, eating all by herself, not talking to anybody in particular...I couldn't help but feel so sad for her! That's when I sort of lost it, too. A little embarrassing...but couldn't help it! Kela probably gets her emotional fickleness from me. Anyway, I sat next to her while she finished her lunch. We cleaned up and left. Even though she cried, she said she's looking forward to going back on Wednesday. We'll just have to see how well she does on day 2!

All in all, it was a bit of a rough day for me. I think emotionally, I was a little depressed from seeing Kela have such a hard time at her new school. Although I do realize it's something she has to get used to eventually-and will continue to experience it at the beginning of each new school year. Maybe I'm just not ready to see my little girl grow up so quickly. *sigh* The part of parenthood I didn't quite expect to have such a difficult time with!