Daycare Bound

Yesterday was a huge milestone for us. It was Dominic's first day of daycare! I had mixed feelings about the whole situation. I was super excited for Dom because I knew he'd love interacting with other kids, playing with new toys and having fun all day. but part of me was a little uneasy. I would be leaving him with a stranger. Someone that I had only met once. Yes, she is licenced, insured and has been doing this for over 30 years, but still she was a stranger to me. I'm sure this is something all new Moms go through the first time, but that didn't make me feel any better. Although I was a little nervous about the whole things, I still was pumped for Dom. It would be great for him to play all day and it would be great for me because I'd have a couple hours after I dropped him off and picked him up to myself. I could get laundry done, run errands or, ahem, update my blog.

Connie runs the daycare out of her home and she's a grandma type of lady that loves all her kids. When we went to interview there, Dom had a great time. He went straight to her, let her hold him and crawled all around, playing with the toys. I had no doubts that we would drop him off on his first day he'd have no problem saying goodbye, probably wouldn't even notice us leaving because he'd be too busy playing. Some people told me to be strong and that I would cry, and I thought they were nuts. I was stoked for Cub and had no qualms about the whole thing.

Ok, so first morning scenario. We get up, get dressed, take our family photo (see above) and hit the road. Five minutes later, we arrive at Nonnie's Daycare (cute right?) So far, so good. We walk in and there are 3 kids there, one of them 7 months old...she's she's wailing. Crying, tears, the whole bit. Uh oh. This instantly makes Cub on edge and he just kind of stares at her. Connie comes over and welcomes us and Cub's grip on my arm gets stronger. It's time to leave so I put him on the floor with some toys, and he starts to panic. He looks at me like "Mom, where you going? Dad, what's happening?" My heart starts breaking and I pick him up to comfort him. "I love you baby, try to have some fun today." Ok, it's time to go. Connie reassures me that he'll be ok so I put him down again and he cries harder. Wow, ok, this is much tougher than I thought it would be. I look at Rob and make a beeline for the door. The faster I can get out of there, the faster I won't hear my baby crying for me. Sitting in the car, I tried to fight the tears, but they were stronger that me. Yes, I admit it. I let some tears fall. Rob comforted me but I still just felt like I left my baby somewhere where he knows no one.

About half an hour goes by and I'm feeling sad. I think the crying baby left me uneasy also. The scene was a little chaotic for our first time and I wasn't feeling totally at peace with the whole thing. I just kept imagining Dom looking around for his Mommy and Daddy, crying and feeling abandoned. I had to make sure he was ok. I called up Connie and she said he was doing fine. Phew! i felt so much better.

When I picked him up he was definitely happy to see me:) Connie said he did pretty good. He didn't eat a whole lot and cried a couple times through out the day. But he did take his two naps and played for a bit. Not bad for his first day.

Taking him this morning I was a little worried because at this point, he's onto me. He knows I'm going to leave him there and I had a feeling he might just cry even more then yesterday. When we walked in, something was different. It was quiet! only one other kid was there, and she was sitting quietly playing on the floor. I instantly felt better. When Dom saw Connie, or "Nonnie" as the kids call her, he broke out into a smile. Ok, ok, this is good. She extended her arms to him and he went to her. In mid lean, he suddenly looked over at me and then her as if to say "wait a second, this feels like a trap..." Connie told me he'd be fine and to get going, so I gave him a kiss and told him to have a good day and headed for the door. I could hear him kind of crying, but not screaming, so off I went.

I feel 100 times better this morning. I don't know if it's because the atmosphere was much calmer or maybe it's because Dom didn't scream and wail when I left. Maybe I'm just getting used to the idea of him being safe and ok in someone elses care for the whole day. Hopefully there will come a day, soon, that Dominic is excited to go to Nonnie's and will eat and play and have a blast. Until then, baby steps.