Enssle Family

Separation woes for Mom

June 13th, 2006

It’s been a rough week emotionally for Mom. Last week I returned to work part-time (2 days a week), which meant that it was Anna’s first days at daycare. We found a nice, homey daycare on the north side of Longmont called the Cottage School where Anna would spend her two full days without Mom. Although it was a bit rough on Anna, I imagine it was more difficult for me. I guess you just don’t realize how accustomed you become to having this little being with you 24-7. We took her in on Tuesday morning and I cried; thank goodness Neal was there or I might not have left her! It was easier to leave her on Wednesday, but still tough. I ended up calling the school on both days to see how things were going. I’m sure they see this everytime a child is brought in to daycare for the first time, but I appreciate their calming my anxieties regarding Anna’s well-being. On Wednesday I picked her up from daycare and was greeted with a smile and squeal that made my heart melt. She seemed like she was having fun!

Last night was another milestone for Anna and me; she slept the whole night through! For three months now I’ve been dreaming of uninterrupted sleep, but somehow the event has left me with mixed feelings (yes, I know I’m being a bit melodramatic here). Anna still sleeps in our room and I kept telling myself that as soon as she can sleep through the night I’ll move her to her own room and her own crib. I’m not so sure I want to do that anymore! Afterall, her bedroom across the hall is so far away!! Just another sign that Miss Anna is growing up and that Mom needs to get a grip.

On a somewhat related, but different note: we’re moving Anna to a different daycare. Whereas we felt comfortable with Anna at the Cottage School, it was proving to be difficult for us logistically. The school is located on the north side of Longmont and we live on the south side. Dropping her off in the morning added about 30+ minutes to my commute and we were having troubles getting to the school on time to pick her up in the evenings - and that was without an accident on the highways. The new daycare, Sunset Academy, is just up the road from our house - about 3 minutes away, 5 if you miss the light at Ken Pratt. Sunset has the added advantage of having a 1 to 3 caregiver to child ratio (the Cottage school had a 1 to 5 ratio). The idea of having fewer infants to each caregiver is appealing; it means that Anna’s needs may be met more quickly.

When I started investigating daycare options back in April, I was excited about Sunset because of its ratios and proximity to our home. Unfortunately, they didn’t anticipate there being an opening in the infant room until November. We added our names to the waiting list and looked for other options. Imagine our surprise when we received a call on Friday indicating that they had an immediate opening. Knowing that the place satisfied our needs objectively, we had to determine whether it would satisfy our needs subjectively (i.e. did it give off a good vibe?). Anna and I went to visit on Friday and again on Monday and found the caregivers to be quite friendly and certainly on a par with those at the Cottage. The atmosphere was inviting and relaxed. We happened to be there on Friday when parents were picking up their children, and were happy to receive an unsolicted testimonial from one parent. She said that she lived in Boulder and willingly drove the 30 minutes to Longmont to drop off and pick-up her child at Sunset. Despite the inconvenience, she said she had absolutely no intentions of moving her daughter to a different daycare! Boulder has several top-notch daycare centers - so this truly says something about Sunset Academy.

Anna will spend this week at the Cottage and will move to Sunset starting next week! Let’s hope Mom doesn’t cry again next Tuesday.

Entry Filed under: Family, Parenting, Babies