Routines

After a couple weeks, we've finally begun settling into a routine.

At first, when I found out that Todd would be dismissed after lunch, and the school didn't provide after-school care long enough, I was a bit dismayed. It would mean having to drive to school to pick him up and drop him off at an after-school care center somewhere else.

But soon I realized that this minor inconvenience was more than made up for by the fact that Todd would get to eat lunch with us!

When he was in preschool, my chief concern (aside from hygiene and staying dry) was that he wasn't eating/drinking (well) enough. There were many days when I'd pick him up at 5pm only to discover more than half of his lunch still in his bag. No amount of cajoling, threats or bribery worked. Harder still was providing a variety of healthful things to eat-- just about the only thing I could really pack, that would ensure he ate it all, was sandwiches.

But now? I can send him off to school with just a little bit to eat (some fruit for morning snacktime and a small sandwich and juice for lunchtime), and then whisk him home for a proper, nutritious, hot lunch. Top it off with plenty to drink and making sure he gets scrubbed down clean before sending him off for a few hours of after-school care.

Another good thing is that it breaks up the monotony of the day for Todd. Rather than spending 8 hours nonstop at a child care facility, he gets to see his parents in the middle of the day, a nice little change. It's fun for us, too, to eat together as a family. Makes a nice break for Mommy and Daddy, as well!

We can also change him out of his uniform and into regular clothes for Boys and Girls Club. You know how boys like to roughhouse. This is good way to preserve his uniforms :-)

Todd has taken to going poopies at lunchtime, which is great because it ensures that one of us can wipe his little po-po properly, rather than have him attempt to do it himself at school. It's yucky enough to have him walk around with skid-marked undies, but its even worse if he gets some on his hands and doesn't wash it off properly.

So, all in all, this difference in venue for both school and after-school is working out to be a blessing! We're certainly settling into our routine nicely :-)