Up till a month ago, I was counting down the days to drop B off for half-day childcare, thus freeing my mornings for personal/business projects, pilates, etc. The list for things to do during "ME" time is endless.... However after visiting said school again to refresh my memory and meet the (new) staff, it became unfortunately clear that this wasn't the best or right solution. Thinking that having doubts and feeling uneasy was just a normal phase for any mom about to leave their kid for the 1st time, I borrowed a couple of books including Elizabeth Pantley's No-Cry Solution for Separation Anxiety. After reading the first few chapters, speaking to moms in similar situations, soul searching and even reaching out to various schools to discuss options, I soon realised that my 18th month "freedom" plan was shortlived.
But why? Simply put, too much has changed in the one year since we registered B there. To stick with the original plan "B", as I've been calling my extended maternity leave, would be unfair to all fronts. To B (given his personality and progress at this age), my personal situation (no longer working full time or pregnant with #2 for now), and the school itself which was going through a fair bit of change too.
So, what now? Plan C is essentially same same but different. Who'd have thought we'd enjoy daily home school, parent-accompanied playdates and selected enrichment (Chinese, music and gym/right brain) for so long? But we clearly see the benefit all this interaction and exposure has had on B -- and parents too. One thing I'd tweak is to perhaps do more with less. That is, to better integrate what he learns in class with our home plan, outings and occasional playdates. We'll still do some trial classes if anything interesting comes up but I can tell, all this will keep us quite busy through year end!
