Keyboard, Big Guy, Etc.

Since Spencer was asleep by 6:30 tonight (!), I decided to use this unexpected free time to do a quick update. So here we go...

1. Keyboard (Not the Kind for Typing)
When Daddy's cousin, Katie, found out how much Spencer loves music, she graciously offered to bring over her keyboard. It has been a big hit (for all of us)! We've only had it since Sunday, but each morning Spencer has started his day by plopping down and playing it. Thank you Katie!!

2. Snuggly Quote

I jotted this one down last week and have heard variations of it ever since: "Can we make a big snuggle setup? It's gonna be a big job. We're gonna need blankets and pillows and pillows and pillows and pillows..." Snuggle setups are popular around here.

3. BIG BOY

Oh my stars, is it just me, or is Spencer looking so big boy right now? While I was in Minneapolis last week, he got a nasty little scratch under his eye at school, and that really made him look older to me. And look at those hands!

 

4. Scenes from the Weekend
Nothing monumental to write about, but just a few scenes from a fun weekend reconnecting after I had been out of town. We spent some time at Rollingwood Park playing on the playground, running bases and listening to a band play for a kid's party. Even grocery shopping was fun.

Big News: Pre-School

We had always planned to wait until next year to enroll Spencer in some sort of school. But a couple of months ago, he started talking about school. A lot. "When can I go to school?" or "When I go to school, I'm going to ________." He seemed so excited about starting school that in September we started looking around to see what our options were. We've had our hearts set on Nature's Way in Zilker Park, but you have to be three by September 1 to enroll there - that's part of the  reason we just figured we'd wait until next year and hope he would be at the top of the waiting list. But it became clear that our boy was ready now (even if Mommy wasn't!).

A good friend of ours has always spoken highly of a Montessori school very close to our house. I contacted them, and they actually still had openings for the fall. The facility is not much to write home about, but we felt an immediate connection with the women who run the school - they are very kind and loving. And our friend's recommendation held a lot of weight with us.

 
So, we took a big step and Spencer started school this week. He will go three mornings until 1:00 PM. The first morning went pretty well. For some reason he didn't want Daddy to go with us - I think Spencer sensed this was something "big" and maybe he felt a little uncomfortable? Anyway, drop-off was just fine, but he did get upset a few times throughout the morning. I told him that we would pick him up after lunch, which was a mistake... I should've been saying we'd be back at 1:00. Because right when lunch was over, he expected us to be there. At dinner that night I asked him what he did at school and he said, "I cried and I played." I guess that sums it up!

I had a feeling Day 2 would be a more difficult drop-off and it was. He was very upset when I left. It took every ounce of strength I could muster to walk away. But I knew he was in good hands. When I asked him later what the teacher did when he cried, he said, "She hugged me." He only cried one other time that morning, and it was just for a few minutes. Anxious to see what Day 3 holds!