Life in fast forward.

Do you ever get the feeling that life is going at warp speed? I have that feeling today. And the best therapy I can think of is to write about it.

First of all, I should report that Lauren got a great report at her 4 month doctor's appointment yesterday. She has grown since her 2 month appointment, but is still quite the runt. She weighed 11 lb 4.5 oz (10th percentile) and was 24 inches long (40th percentile). For the sake of comparison, which I know is useless, yet I do it anyway...Joshua was 13 lb 12 oz at his 4 month checkup. I was concerned about her weight, but the doctors aren't and assured me that our feeding routine appears to be just fine. The doctor said we're safe to start the rotation of cereals and then introduce fruits and veggies any time we want to. I'm not in a huge hurry on that, but have purchased a container of rice cereal to have on hand for the day that we decide to give it a shot. But I have to tell you that the idea of my BABY being ready to start thinking about solid foods just about knocks me over. Didn't I JUST bring her home from the hospital?

OK Life.....slow it down a little bit.

And just as I was starting to mentally deal with that, this morning hit.

Jason and I have been starting to think about preschool programs for Joshua for the fall. I recently set an appointment for us to visit one of the programs that we've had in mind for him at the local Christian school. The reputation of the preschool program there is super, and it's always been in the back of my mind as a great option to consider when the time came. We took it as a sign that one of the people from our church is the nursery school teacher there. Anyway, in our minds, he would start school there in September when he's just about 4.

This morning, we met with the school for a tour and to ask some questions. They have nursery school (meant for 3 year olds), K4 (meant mostly for 4 year olds) and K5 (regular kindergarten). The difference is that their birthday cutoff is October 31st which puts Joshua right on the fence next year of whether he would start in nursery school or in K4. Part of our visit there was to get a sense about which was appropriate for him. They do screenings to help you make that decision, but you know me....I had to have it straight in my own mind to have an idea where we're headed here.


Nursery school was exactly as I remembered nursery school. There were water colors on the table for the morning's craft. The kids filed in, put their coats and backpacks in their cubbies and got ready to play. They're learning letters and sounds, numbers recognition and counting. Mostly it's meant as a learning experience to get accustomed to being in a group of children, being away from home and learning some independence. As soon as I walked in the door, I just knew that it was exactly what Joshua needs. He knows most of what they're learning....letters, numbers, sounds, etc. But he needs the practice of being on his own and learning how to get along with other kids.

We then visited the K4 classroom. Oh the difference. The children (4 years old!) were sitting at desks working on a worksheet and recognizing sight words. They had pencils with the little grippy jiggers on the bottom to help them hold it right. They were sounding out words on the chalkboard with the help of their teacher. It was school. For small people. Just like what I remember kindergarten being like. Right away I knew that Joshua isn't ready to do that without some transition time in nursery school, and Jason had the same impression.

K5 blew us away even more. We were really impressed. And thus begins the dilemma, which really didn't turn into much of one at all. They offered us a place for Joshua in the afternoon class of nursery school starting right away. The class is small, only 5 children currently. So he would have some one on one attention to help him get adjusted. Immediately I started feeling anxiety coming on. Already? I thought I had until September to wrap my mind around this? Slow the train down a minute....you're telling me Joshua starts nursery school on Monday? He needs a big boy back pack and everything? Really? Didn't I just bring HIM home from the hospital?

But as that's starting to settle I realize that there are a lot of positives to starting him sooner rather than later. He's getting seriously bored at home and is definitely ready for a new challenge. Maybe he'll be ready to move to K4 next year. And maybe he won't be. Time will tell. But it appears that our baby will start nursery school on Monday afternoon. He'll go Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 12:15 to 2:15.

I'm really excited for Joshua to have some new experiences. I love that I'm feeling great about the program, the teacher, their ability to handle his allergy issues, etc. I love that we live in an area with so many great choices and options for preschool. Of course, I dread the moment that they have to pry him away from me, and am praying already for leaving him there to be far less dramatic than it is in my mind.

But really.....Life, just slow it down a little bit. This is almost too much for this Mommy to process all at once.