Tomorrow is my daughter’s last day of Preschool. She goes to the same preschool with the same teachers her older brother went to three years ago. It’s a district run preschool located in the same daycare center that he went to since he was 3 months old. She’s been there part-time since she was 3 years old.
On the eve of her “graduation” I have many thoughts and feelings running through my mind. None of which, I want you to know, are sadness about her beginning kindergarten in the fall. Many people, moms especially tell me that they cry when their “babies” start kindergarten. Not me. Am I heartless? No, I’m confident and secure in both her and the adults who have taught and cared for her along the way.
First off, I have to say that her three preschool teachers work together in such a way that if they could be morphed into one human being they would be the perfect teacher. They have prepared her, like her brother before, for kindergarten in all ways imaginable. So well, in fact I’m not sure the plant and note card I gave them fully embraces my gratitude.
Second, the school she will be attending in the fall, although there will be a yet to be hired new principal, is filled with competent, caring, smart and funny teachers. My son and I, unlike some friends at other schools has had no negative experiences with past teachers and I have honestly heard nothing negative about the teachers in the upper grades.
Lastly, having worked at a domestic violence shelter, I have taken precautions on who I leave my children with; especially when it came to daycare. I also take the time to get to know the teachers in the elementary school to the best of my ability to “feel them out” and so far I have not been disappointed.
But there is sadness, not for what lies ahead, but for what will lie behind us after tomorrow. This daycare family has been a part of my family’s lives for over eight years. There have been changes in staff and directors, but overall turnover has been low. I will remain on the board of directors for a few years, but it is the daily interaction with the staff that I will miss. Their smiles, warm open arms, and sense of humor will leave a void that I’m sorry to say elementary school teachers cannot completely fill. With no family nearby they have become a strong support system for me. Early this year a teacher told me that I had good people helping me; little did she know I included herself in her comment.
So, today I brought in a cake for the staff expressing my gratitude in the best way I know how; baking. What was baked as a vanilla bundt cake turned into a 9 x 13 dense vanilla cake topped with freshly picked strawberries and whipped cream cheese frosting. They are worth so much more than a flop cake, but thankfully I was told it was delicious, therefore redeeming myself.
Lastly on my mind this evening is that three years ago I was unable to attend my son’s informal preschool graduation because I was in Florida with my mother who was dying from cancer. I missed his last few days of preschool to be with her during the last few days of her life. I don’t often think about what I missed because it was not a choice, but a responsibility. But tonight I can’t help but wonder what he said that day and how he behaved. Was he sad? Happy? Excited? My daughter is experiencing them all. Sad to leave her teachers and school, happy to have a special day tomorrow and excited for kindergarten in the fall.
So, if you live in La Crosse, WI or nearby and are in need of a daycare center that is so much more than its building and toys look up Coulee Children’s Center, I don’t think you’ll be sorry. I wasn’t.
