Leo starts school one week from today. It's kind of hard to believe the first day of school is almost here. I wouldn't say we agonized over what to do about school this year, but it was a big decision that weighed on our minds. After getting confirmation from his preschool teacher that he would benefit from waiting a year before entering kindergarten, we looked for a program that would be a good fit for him and wouldn't break the bank. We found a school that meets at least one of the criteria. Bethel Lutheran School (BLS) offers a Junior Kindergarten class - not quite kindergarten, but more advanced than preschool. But wait, we're not Lutheran...we're not really religious at all. Well, Bethel Lutheran identifies itself as "a Christian school for the world" and makes it very clear that a family's religious beliefs do not impact their acceptance of a child into the school. Heck, when we were on the school tour, one woman mentioned that she has never discussed God with her child and asked if that would be a problem. The tour guide assured her it wasn't an issue and I saw that mom at the parent orientation, so clearly it really wasn't a problem. Anyway, the school has accepted us (and our money), but I'm not so sure how we are feeling about accepting them. Leo will participate in all the activities that occur at a Christian school - prayer, hymns, chapel. But I don't know how this will translate to our home life since we don't plan to attend services on Sundays or even the holidays. I guess we'll just have to go with the flow and see if the discord becomes an issue for Leo. It wouldn't kill me to put on some decent clothes and go to church. Of course, I usual spend Sunday mornings at my preferred spiritual place - the yoga studio - and it will be very hard to sacrifice that.
Our plan is for Leo to attend BLS for a year and then go to the public school kindergarten the following year. BLS class sizes are small (18 kids per class) and everyone seems very nice so far. I'm hoping he has a chance to mature and develop his social skills. I also want him just to enjoy his time there. He's expressed some resistance to starting back at school, but I'm confident he'll get into the swing of things. He said he wants me to make him a muffin to take for snack the first day. I think I can manage that.
He's seems to be finally outgrowing his nap. Most days he skips it, but sometimes if he gets up too early, I'll have him lay down. And sometimes, he just passes out while eating a carrot.
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