Yesterday, I was feeling bad about sticking The Girl in the extended day option at her school (which meant I would pick her up at 2:45 instead of 1:30, which is when lunch bunch--already extended from the regular end of the pre-school day, which is 11:30). Extended day is not a very popular option among her classmates so we don't do it often, but I had a work-related appointment that I couldn't reschedule so off to extended day she went.
When I came to pick her up, she was sitting at the table, cutting and pasting her little heart out, helping one of the teachers make decorations for an upcoming mothers' day party. I had a twinge. The Girl is an artsy/craftsy sort--much more so than I am--but I don't know. Was this fun...enough?
We spent the rest of the afternoon, with The Boy where there was tennis and some incredibly complicated game on the monkey bars that combined Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, and Strawberry Shortcake, and there may even have been some guilt-inspired ice cream (particularly tasty with rainbow sprinkles).
I asked about how extended day had gone, and The Girl said it had been boring. I told her that I was sorry she hadn't had more fun, but that I really appreciated her staying at school so that I could get my work done. And that was that.
Around bedtime, I heard The Girl describing her day to my husband, and she said, "I got to go to extended day because Mommy had to work." The "got to go" stuck with me. "Got to go" is good.
*****
This morning I lay in bed listening to the rain and thinking of something fun The Girl, and I could do since I have no pressing work today. I was thinking about the aquarium or maybe chasing down the new grilled cheese truck in Stamford. I'd let The Girl pick.
"Is there anything special you want to do to day, just you and Mommy?" I asked.
She smiled and said wihout hesitation, "Mommy, can I do extended day again today?"
I used to send Aaron to extended day on Fridays to preschool and I do it now so that Ryan and I have mega homework time undisturbed. I check in with Aaron every Friday in his classroom before I pick up Ryan. Every week Aaron says...I'm ok Mom I want to go to after school.
He is usually really tired after such a long day but he loves it and I am oh so glad it is a choice.
Posted by: Jo-Ann | 05/01/2012 at 11:54 AM
My oldest is in FT day care because I took a new job in October. I hate it. Most days he LOVES it. Today, he cried when I dropped him off, mostly because he doesn't care for his preschool teacher (preschool is two mornings a week, he changes classes.) So I cried on the way to work. Why does it have to be so hard?
Posted by: Abby | 05/01/2012 at 12:14 PM
We pay for a 7-hour day for BG but my husband more often than not picks her up early. She is ALWAYS begging to be picked up as late as possible.
Posted by: electriclady | 05/01/2012 at 01:29 PM
Love this. Thank you for the smile, and the reminder that kids are resilient, and can find joy wherever they go if their hearts are full.
Posted by: lisa adams | 05/04/2012 at 09:31 AM
Evie goes to extended day sometimes (which for us is later -- she's in school til 3, so this means Extended Day goes til 4 or 4:30, depending on what I'm doing), and she seems to really like it. In fact, sometimes when I pick her up at 3 I feel guilty, because at Extended Day she's on the playground for, like, an hour, and when she comes home with me we just laze around the house!
Posted by: sarah ludwig | 05/14/2012 at 02:37 PM
ok..are you thru blogging? just asking..
Posted by: kris (lower case) | 07/24/2012 at 10:57 PM
I liked your thoughtful comment on Ask Moxie yesterday, so I thought I'd drop by. Lovely blog!
Posted by: hush | 08/01/2012 at 05:04 PM
are you ever blogging here again?
Posted by: kris (lower case) | 08/14/2012 at 11:19 PM