Sad About Preschool

keep her excited and try to do something special on school days with her....like doing her hair cute with matching ribbons or such to match her outfit. i'm one of the few parents that hate september.....don't like having my son return to school. i love having him home ad doing things together....but don't show her that you are sad that she is growing up!! ps- my son is 10 and i told him no more birthdays, or presents and after this year(5th grade) he has to go back kindergarten because he is growing up too fast!!!

Talk to your DH about how you also need QT with DD and that this is a transition for you as well. It is nice that she gets QT with the grands, but it should not be at the expense of time with mom and dad. Remind him that she is your daughter - yours and his - and that you need him to support YOUR relationship with your child as well. As she grows, schedules will evolve.

It is a transition for you, but hopefully it will be better once everything gets rolling. Seeing that my DD loves school (she cries when they are closed or she is sick) reassures me that she is where she is happy and we can share experiences later. If you find that the schedule isn't working for you, change the days or change the length (FT to PT).

I know it can be hard but try to look at it from your daughter's point of view.
Preschool is FUN, she's going to love it, I'm sure.
The last time we drove by my kids' old preschool, my son (who is in college now) said "why couldn't preschool last until we were like, ten? It was so awesome."
My kids only went 9 hours a week, and yours is only going six, which is very, very little.
You will barely have enough time to get a coffee, a workout and a trip to the grocery store before it will be time to pick her up.
So ENJOY your time to take care of yourself, and take comfort knowing your daughter will be enjoying herself as well.

Six hours a week? At first I thought you wrote six hours a day. With six hours a week, you barely have time to get her there, go home and go back to pick her up. Honestly, be happy for a little time to do something that you can't do when she's with you. In other words, look at the glass half full instead of half empty.

Try to be upbeat in front of her so that she doesn't pick up on your feelings. If she thinks it makes you sad, she may decide she doesn't like it, and it will cause problems for both of you.

Dawn

Yes, I went through the same thing when my daughter went to preschool. She's in 5th grade now. I think we mourn the loss of that stage of their being, but what I've come to realize is that each new stage is so cool -- try to look forward to the person they're becoming and look back fondly at what you've gotten to see. They HAVE to grow. The alternative to not growing is not what you want. I know people who have lost children, and those children will never see the stages my kids are going through, and those parents will never enjoy those moments. You can't stop time, so embrace the fact that they're growing and changing every day.

i understand the sadness, but truly don't get why modern mothers are so convinced that preschool is so necessary for tinies to get 'socialization.'
any parent who has friends and a reasonably active life can get their children 'socialized.' it's not one bit necessary to have an institution to take care of it for us.
if you're taking a class to get some you time, that's cool. every mom needs that. but if you're loving the time you've got with your daughter, and you've been active and having fun, and you're not working, and it's going to cost you and your in-laws precious time with her, why on earth are you doing it?
khairete
S.

It is sad, huh? I hated it too!
Good news is that she will LOVE it!

Changing visiting time with The Grans to the times you have class sounds like a reasonable suggestion to me. Win-win-win all the way around! I am sure the grandparents will understand, especially if you are honest with them and just tell them your feelings...that you are going to miss her and will want as much time with her as possible and ask if they watch/visit with her while you are at your class and how that would really help you out.

My daughter is almost 5 (in 10 days!) and in her 2nd year of preschool. Her first year was 2x a week/2.5 hours/day (5 hours total) and now that she is in her second year it is 3x a week/2.5 hours/day (7.5 hours total)...I know that doesn't sound like very much time to most, especially those who have to have their kids in daycare while they work but it was/is a HUGE chunk of time to me and it hurts to see them go and grow even though I/we know that it is SO good for them and that we want them to learn and grow!

Just last week my daughter was saying how she is SO excited to start K so that she can go to school every day! It makes me want to cry just thinking about it. She is my baby, my 3rd and last child......and they just grow up WAY too quickly, darn it!

***Kellie B. is NOT alone...I too hate September! I hate sending the kids back to school...I absolutely LOVE having them home with me during the summer and on winter and spring vacation!

I agree! My DD is 2.5 so she won't go for another year and a half (just after she turns 4)...but I am already dreading it!

Hard to let your baby out into the world without you...even for 6 hours a week. I'm hoping it gets easier as they get older. Good Luck!

Does she HAVE to start preschool RIGHT now?
Sounds like you're already missing time w/her a few days a week to go to
your inlaws.
If you can't postpone her going to preschool, know that this is going to be
a great experience for her.
She will love it. She'll meet knew friends, have new experiences, learn
things & it sounds like you need the time for your schooling.
Also, if I'm correct, you will still have some time WITH her so enjoy that
as much as possible. Continue doing all of the fun things you've listed
plus add some new experiences.
All of it will be good. All of it will work out.

ES--It is really okay that you are sad about this. Preschool is one milestone of many where our kids become more independent. The neat thing is that you are hopefully going to have a couple other great people who will love to talk with you about your favorite person-- preschool teachers will be there to offer you some good support.

May I offer a couple of suggestions to help you get the most out of your time with your daughter? Be prepared to say goodbye--even if it's hard- in person, so your daughter *knows* you are going. And then, at pickup times, be prepared to give your daughter your full attention. She'll be very ready to connect with you, and may even be hungry, so have a small, car-friendly snack waiting for her and be sure to have other errands done so you can give her YOU for that next hour, if possible.

You'll both be fine--it's just those new things and changes that tug at our hearts. I was running a preschool program AND sent my son to a different one (good for both of us) and I really understand both sides of this feeling. Hopefully, once you see your daughter enjoying herself, you have some peace about this.