The preschool chronicles

So the first day went freakishly well. Both kids waltzed into their classes in the morning, excitedly ran to me when I arrived to pick them up, chatted up a storm on the way home, and fell asleep within minutes for their naps.

Day two was not as great. Kylie happily went into her class, and Caleb walked proudly in front of me down the hall the rest of the way to his class. But when we got there, another little boy was crying (or wailing actually) about being left at school. Caleb looked back and forth between the little boy and me several times and then must have decided that crying was "the thing to do," because he let loose with a wail and had to be peeled off me by his teacher. I felt dreadful, but I remembered from my preschool teaching days that a kiss and a quick goodbye was best, and so I left him. When I returned at the end of the day he was all smiles and his teacher said he had calmed down quickly and never missed a beat the rest of the day.

At that point I figured we were golden. Uh, yeah, about that...

And no, the problem isn't with my "new to school" kiddo. It's been Ky. Yes, as in Kylie, the girl who has been asking when she could go back to preschool since we moved here last October. The one that begged me for weeks to find her a new school. The one that jumped up and down when we finally found "the place." The one who could hardly sleep the night before her fist day because she was "so cit-ed!"

I went wrong by deciding on the fourth day of preschool that I was going to walk on the indoor track that overlooks the gym. It was a rainy day after all and I knew that it was now or never on the exercise thing. I took the kids to school dressed in workout clothes and with my hair pulled back in a "pony" and Ky wanted to know why I looked funny. So I told her. Well, with the rainy day, the classes didn't get to go out on the playground. They spent their play time in the gym. But play time is around 11, over an hour after I had left to grocery shop and then shower.

Any experienced mothers able to guess what happened?

Yep, she apparently walked into the gym and started trying to locate me. Her teacher said that she watched the track for a few minutes and then the bottom lip started to wobble. Then when Ms. Kerri asked what was wrong, she lost it. We're talking sobbing to the point of gagging.

They were about to call me when Caleb's class walked in. His class holds a rope while they move down the hall to help them get the concept of a line. Ms. Kerri said that Caleb started looking around when he heard the sound of crying and when he saw Kylie he dropped the rope and went running. Ms. Amanda (Caleb's teacher) called his name, but all he did was yell out, "My Ky-yee tyin!" and kept running to hug his sister. And she calmed down instantly.

Ah, the bonds of family. Just goes to prove that it is not only about genetics...

Taken about a week ago, they usually are this close together when they play.

**As a PS though, please leave suggestions on how to help Kylie get through this. She is still having a rough time each day despite the fact that I've told her that I'm not going to be on the track when her class comes in.