Preschooler Parents, We Now Are.

So it's been 2 weeks since our little girl started going to school. We've technically wrapped up the 3rd week today and somehow, we've already gotten into the rhythm of things. Our body clocks (the entire household including ate inday) are now adjusted. Little girl wakes up just as her dad starts his office preps routine. We say our morning prayers and we get up to do homework and review for the days lessons while Ate Inday prepares breakfast which is already pre-planned the night before so we don't cram in the mornings. We always try to come up with something carb-heavy so that the little girl has plenty of packed energy for the long day ahead. Homework-wise, Ate Inday usually goes through her notes for day right after she gets home from school and relays them to me through the phone so if she needs to bring something to school the next day and we don't have it at home, I still have time to drop by the store and get it on my way home.

The first week was mostly about getting the kids familiarized with the new surroundings. So my problems mostly evolved around what to pack for her lunch since her class schedule falls right smack on the middle of lunchtime. On the second week, they started doing actual class activities and teachers started giving them homework as well. Since I had a co-worker who's kids also went to ESS, I had already been forewarned: EXPECT HOMEWORK EVERY DAY. So every day when I call, ate inday would check Maia's diary for homework and other notes from her class adviser. Some days, ate inday would miss it but yes for the last two weeks there was never a day when we don't have to do homework. What's good though is that it's training the little girl to set aside about 10 minutes in the morning with me to do some school stuff. The homework itself is an easy-peasy task for the little girl but what we're actually trying to train her to do is to pay attention. And the trying part is really TRYING in its truest essence. But I'm just glad we're getting things done. It's a good thing that we've parted with most of her toddler toys so there's not a lot of distractions in the house. And we've already made a rule of no-TV time (and we've been successful for the past 3 weeks, hurray for us!) during school day so the tiny space that we had set up for the little girl's study area in our cramped, little home is not as big of an issue as I'd expected it to be. 

So we've somehow adjusted. But we know deep in our heart that the real adjustment is just beginning and with that new fears as parents now just starting to creep in. 

• What if somebody bullies her in school? Or what if she bullies someone in school? 
• How is her appetite in school? Is her immune system now strong enough to protect her from communicable diseases now that she's more exposed to them?
• Can she withstand the commute to and fro our house to the school in the long run? 

Wishing for a smooth first year! 

The list could go on. I get very anxious at times especially when I'm about to sleep and I start thinking of how she might be in school. My anxiety would sometimes rub off on the husband as well and we'd eventually see ourselves up till midnight contemplating on whether we chose the right place for our daughter's schooling. I guess somehow, we're still hung up on Waldorf and in the back of our mind, we still dream of sending Maia there. Some days when fond memories of summer at St Michael would revisit her, she'd announce - "you see Mommy, I have 2 schools. Today I go to Seton, pero pumapasok din ako sa St Michael." I'm just thankful she's still enjoying every minute that she's in ESS. Although there have already been several mornings where she would tell us she doesn't like to go to school. But our morning routine of reviewing their topic for the day and accomplishing assignments always manages to shoo the blues away. By the time we finish the assignment and the topic review she'd be all excited ("Gusto ko na dumating si Ate A - referring to the school service assistant - excited na ako pumasok sa school, Mommy!").

The worries just never go away, don't they? (how many times have I posed this question in this blog alone?) They just seem to come in phases. But the fact remains, there's no stopping them from growing up. I guess there's really no way we can ever dodge this or skip this entire stage of worry. So the best way we can deal with this is probably just to embrace the fact that - we are now parents of a preschooler. Good luck to us!

At the end of the day, surprises like this just makes our heart swell