Daycare

This has been a lovely long weekend, full of family cuddles, a friend's wedding, and a visit from Uncle Gavin & Aunt Laura. But on Monday Keira starts at her daycare center. Many of you may be thinking, "But Col, don't you have the day off?" Yes, I do, but we thought it would be good to do a dry run where I could go pick her up midday. I'm sure she'll be fine, but Mommy may need to cut the day short. I'm not sure how I feel about this. On the one hand, I know she'll be okay and is near to JR if anything goes wrong. On the other hand, I've gotten really spoiled having family be able to take care of her for so long. The amount of preparation necessary each morning is a little daunting, and I'm not sure how much more stress I'll feel knowing that she is with strangers. The level of trust is much lower right now. But there are some things that make me feel slightly better. The place we are leaving her is run by a former nurse, who took time off to run a daycare for her daughter's children out of her home. It grew and grew and now they are in a separate building with about forty kids 0-3. The nursery area, which is in a separate room, is run by her daughter and they maintain a 1-3 ratio, even though the state only requires 1-4. The other cool thing is that they have an agreement with Elmhurst College and often have their Early Childhood students working with them for their contact hours. The other great thing is that my mom has been able to take two days off each week to stay home with Keira, so the daycare is only for three days. I'll let you all know how it goes...