Two weeks ago, Seth started pre-school. His pre-school is in the same building as our daycare; Suffield Academy's mascot is the tiger, so daycare is called Tiger Den, and pre-school is called Tiger School. Seth had seen the Tiger School classroom all last year, and was so excited when he would finally get to say he was a "Tiger School Boy". Tiger School meets Monday-Friday from 8:30am to noon. These first two weeks I was not working yet, so I could bring him and pick him up, which was a nice way to transition.

Seth was very excited to start; several weeks ago I let him pick out which color backpack he wanted, and we waited eagerly for his red backpack to show up in the mail. He looks so cute wearing the backpack as we walk together to school, with Evan in the stroller.

Tiger School has been a huge hit. There are 11 students in the class - over the summer, they knocked down a wall between two rooms in daycare to make one huge Tiger School classroom, and there are now two teachers instead of one. It is so much fun for all the parents to see our kids, who have been together for three years in daycare, taking the next step to become little learners in school. The teachers are wonderful, and the room is set up so well. There are all the things you'd want in a pre-school: different centers for exploration like the book nook, cars and trucks (Seth's favorite), the play kitchen, play house, play-doh, etc. Each morning, the students take their ticket (paper with their name on it) and put it in the slot for the center they want to play in. Whenever they want to change centers, they have to move their ticket.

Seth has been learning all the different routines, and he'll tell us about them if we ask. They also come out at different times when he'll sing a song he's learned or ask us to play Tiger School. He's told us about circle time, show and share (he's brought in a book he made, Lightning and Mader, etc.), and the Monster Ball (which they get to hold when it is their turn to talk). They all have jobs, and Seth has been the weather tracker. They sing songs each day, and read stories. They draw on the easel and practice cutting with scissors. They play outside and have snack. The first week their books were themed around buses, and this second week they have been learning about apples. All the art Seth brought home this past week has been apple themed.

The first day of Tiger School, we talked about our days while eating dinner like we usually do. We asked Seth about Tiger School, and he told us the fun he had, and then said "I was a little frustrated..." This was funny because Daddy sometimes says this about work. When we asked Seth why, he told us it was because he couldn't just play all the time, he had to be interrupted with special things like songs and stories.

It was fun for Seth to have Geema, Grandpa and Grandma, and Daddy all pick him up on different days from Tiger School. He was so excited to show them all the different areas in the room. He was so proud!

Several nights during the first week of Tiger School, Seth and I would go out and take nature walks while Daddy was cooking dinner and Evan was sleeping. We brought his ruler and magnifying glass, and we'd stop and look at leaves and sticks. Seth was so inquisitive and interested, and I can just see the years ahead as he learns to explore and interact with his world. Sitting on a tree stump at the top of the street looking at the sunset, Seth snuggled me and said "Life is good!" I couldn't agree with you, more sweetie!

(Sidenote: I laughed this week when I realized that Seth learned the expression "Life is good" from Buddy the Tyrannosaurus on Dinosaur Train.)