Daiichi Yochien

Well, it's official, my babies are growing up. It's bitter sweet. Abby started preschool at the Japanese Daiichi Yochien this week. Japanese school year starts in the spring, so it was her first day to a brand new school year. To celebrate her last day of freedom before school started of course we decided to go get some ice cream. Our new favorite family tradition is to go to Baskin Robins in the BX and get a banana split to share 4 ways. 

In preparation for Abby's school we have been trying to slowly cut out her naps. She has been doing much better without her mid day nap, but every now and then I will find my little snuggle bunny curled up on the couch. It's moments like that that I want to freeze in time. She still is and forever will be my baby girl.

At Daiichi Abby is required to wear a uniform, as well as have required bags for everything (bag for spare clothes incase of an accident, bag for toothbrush-yes they brush their teeth there, bag for shoes, bag for lunch...). She also is required to have a bunch of classroom materials. Not only does she have markers, paint, and pastel set for art supplies, she also has clay, and play doh. Did I mention I had to label all of this (down to each marker and each cap) with her name in kanji?! 

The school has very high standards and expectations as well as very good curriculum. She will study kanji, and will learn a variety of physical skills as well as art and musical talents. Above all what I love the most about Daiichi is how they teach life skills! They are working with her on her daily activities such as potty training, how to clean up, putting shoes on correct feet, etc. 

Everyday I send her to school with rice and they feed the kids a variety of Japanese cuisine, which apparently she loves. On Wednesdays I send her to school with a bento box filled with a home made lunch. She is required to greet and say goodbye to her sensei (teacher) with a respectful gestured bow, and is already starting to pick up on the basic Japanese words such as 'good morning' and 'goodbye.'

 Her first day she was a little nervous and cried when I left her, but since then she has been great. I have been so proud of her. The rest of the week she waved goodbye with a smile on her face when I dropped her off, and greeted me with a big smile as well as "I have fun at school" when picked up. I hope it continues to be a positive experience for her and that she can pick up on Japanese to eventually become tri-lingual with English/Italian/Japanese. Her school's open house is this next week so I will get to go and visit her at school and see what she has been doing so far.

There are only 8 kids in her class, and out of those 8 she is 1 of only 3 American kids. It is such a wonderful cultural experience for her that not very many people can say they have experienced in their life. She loves her little Japanese friends, and she is so much taller than them all :)

Connor has been growing like a weed as well. I feel like with him I blinked and he went from a baby to a little boy. He loves to jump on the trampoline, wrestle with anyone that sits on the floor- mostly Sandy the dog, run (yes, he just runs and runs around the house), the little mice off the movie Cinderella which I swear he could watch on repeat all day, any kind of ball, basketball shorts, shoes, and being outside. It's been cold the past couple of days, but that didn't stop him from wearing shorts while jumping on the trampoline. As much as he misses Abby when she is at school, he loves the one on one time we get together.

Not only was it the first week of school for Abby, it was also Connor's first week in Nursery at church. Hooray, I am so happy that I don't have to chase him all over the halls during the second and third hours of our church meeting. Sacrament meeting still is tricky with him and his rambunctious personality, but once we make it through that we get to drop him off at nursery with no more worries! 

Unlike Abby who would cry and cry when we dropped her off at nursery when she was 18 months, this kid runs into the room heading straight for the toys without looking back to say bye. I'm not worried one bit about him, he can hold his own :).