First Week of School & Teacher Strike?!

 The girls started school this week.  Hummingbird has always liked getting away from Mommy since the first day of preschool.  This year she didn't even want me to drive her on the first day.  She was adamant that she wanted to ride the bus.  She's already reaching the point of being embarrassed by Mom...  Dad waited for the bus with her, and got her off to school successfully.  Her biggest disappointment was being late for what we call "second breakfast."

Bumble Bee's first day of preschool was a mixture of excitement, tears, and fun.  She woke up excited about school, probably sensing some of Hummingbird's excitement.  When it was time to go, though, she got nervous.  I think the crowds of kids and parents started the nerves.  By the time we got into her classroom, she was clinging and begging to go home.  When I finally extricated myself, half of the kids in her class were in tears.  The teacher, her aide, and another staffer were trying to calm them.  And eventually they did.  She had fun reading, playing, and singing.

The second day, she was moved to the afternoon with a new teacher.  The PM schedule was much more manageable.  That first day we had to get Hummingbird to the bus at the same time that Bumble Bee was supposed to be dropped off at school.  Well, the second day was rough at first, too.  And so was the third.  Today was the worst of all.  She started crying to stay home before we even go out the door.  Again, as all week, she had fun at school once she calmed down.  And she has made friends with the other little girl in class who cries, Solilie.  This class has fewer children (about 6 boys and 4 girls from what I can tell), and they're not as nervous about school.

All that effort to get her accustomed to going to school may be wasted... The Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) is considering a strike.  That is just what Bumble Bee doesn't need.  More on that later if it materializes; for now, I'm just hoping it doesn't.