Claire started preschool last month. She just LOVED it. and yes that needed to be capitalized and the superfluousness period needed to be added, because that is exactly how she said it. After her first day I picked her up and said "did you like preschool?" She replied: "I just LOVED it." And that is pretty much been the state of things since. She goes Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 12:30 to 2:30. Everyday that is not a school day is, by her judgment, dismal. A necessary evil that must be endured until the joyous freedom of school returns.
Ok. That is not an entirely accurate rendering of the situation. She feels the same way about nursery as she does about preschool. So, any day that doesn't include school or nursery is by default bound to be destitute of joy. Let me illustrate.
Typical Monday, Friday, or Saturday morning conversation with Claire. This is pretty much exactly what happens every time. It's automatic. Constant. Unchangeable in its regularity. Like morning in general - you know when you happen to wake up 10 or so minutes earlier than usual and you start wishing desperately that morning will not come today and you can just luxuriate in your sheets instead. But, alas, your hope is wasted against powers beyond your control - it will happen and your luxuriating quickly turns to languishing.
It is 7:06am and she bounds into our room. She goes to Hillary's side of the bed which is farthest from the door. She has learned not to come to my side of the bed first thing in the morning for reasons we shall not discuss at this particular time. She announces her first words of the day: "I need to go potty." This statement is about 98% certain. 60-70% of the time Hillary usually says something like "go ahead and go then sweetie" or "do you need help?" or some other caring phrase. It's hard to know for certain though because she is usually drowned out by my boisterous and possibly semi-critical/sarcastic retort which, while varies in the precise language, usually goes something to the tune of: "well, don't just stand there, GO!" This statement is about 65% certain. It often interchanges with statements like "well, GO!" "GO THEN" and other such phrases.
She then goes potty. Usually in the toilet.
Then she washes her hands. Then she starts doing who knows what in the bathroom but it usually involves running water in the sink, splashing noises, singing, laughing, little exclamations of "oopsies" or uh-oh" and finally comes to climatic crescendo with a boisterous rumbling by me of "Claire, stop messing around and get the heck out of the bathroom." This statement is 100% certain.
She then comes back into our room and announces: "It's morning-time sleepy heads!" "It's time for school!"
To which I say: "It's (insert appropriate day of Monday, Fri, or Sat) you don't have school today."
Claire, absolutely dismayed at the prospect of a day of no school: Awhhhh. But I just want to go to school.
Grumpy morning Will: Too bad.
Hillary: It's ok Claire, you can go to school tomorrow.
Cliare, in the tones of one whose only joy in life has just been dashed upon the rocky shore of reality: Awhh. I just want to go today.
Hillary: Do you want breakfast?
Claire, resigned to her eternal state of misery and woe: No, just school.
Hillary: How about cheerios?
Claire, suddenly cured of her endless sorrow and exulting in the light of a new dawn: I can have cheerios? OK!
Anyway, she likes school and seems to be doing fairly well. I'm sure there will be more posts about her and school in the future.
In other news. One of the women Hillary goes to school with had a party for their one year old son a week or two back and rented out a family farm fun center thing. Basically it is a farm that has a bunch of fun things for kids to do...as if seeing the animals wasn't exciting enough. They give donkey rides, hay rides, do face painting have a little corn maze, a haunted forest and a little playground area. It was fun. Claire loved the hay ride and the donkey ride.
Other stuff has happened and I was going to write about those things - most notably I changed the rotors and brakes on the jeep (which was a joyous occasion for all...as only someone who has worked with a Smith male when things aren't going "the way they should" can truly appreciate)- but I think I will sleep instead.
Here are some pictures of Claire from the last month:
Claire's first day of school! I actually remembered to take a picture.
Claire riding the donkey at the kid farm.
Claire enjoying her Ice Cream cone after her and I took a walk one day.
More ice cream.
