1st Day of School!

Taking a Saturday drive...thinking about Monday

This past Monday was a big day for the three of us as Mallory started a new chapter in her daycare. We decided to enroll her at North Country Academy for three days out of the week. Michol is now in the office full time and the other two days are at the Merrimans. We did have her in daycare on Fridays only but unfortunately we were unable to get her into more days of the week as we had hoped for and had to look at other options. Luckily NCA had openings and we were really impressed by the facility and program they offer. It's not a real structured school environment, after all she is not even 2 yet, but this will allow her to get more exposure to other kids and learn necessary skills that she needs at her age.

Once we determined the new schedule, we decided to use last week as a dry run in the mornings. Since the school does not offer breakfast (2 snacks and a lunch only), we had to get Mallory used to getting up a little earlier so we could feed her before taking her in. Overall she did well and it took a few days for her to adjust. Michol and I came up with a pretty good routine that would allow us to get ourselves ready in the morning before we wake her up.



Laila and Oscar soaking in some weekend sun!

The weekend before her first day at school could not have been any more perfect. The weather was great and it allowed us to be outside most of the time. We took Mallory to the Crossings on Saturday and she only wanted to be on the swing. We tried to steer her towards the slides but she kept walking back to the swing sets. We somehow avoided a meltdown when it was time to leave...

On Sunday morning we had another 5K at the Crossings so we were glad the weather was sunny and warm. Mallory stayed in the stroller most of the time but we let her loose and she had a good time checking everything out. Afterwards we went to breakfast with cousin Megan & Connor and added the calories back on that we took off at the race. When we got home, we put Mallory down for a nice 2 hour nap. During that time we were able to do some necessary yard work and get the deck furniture out of the shed. The pups had a great time as well...chasing each other all over the yard and catching some Zs on the warm deck.

Off to School!

Monday morning arrived and I'm sure Mallory sensed our anxieties as we were getting her dressed and ready to go. Michol took her in and Mallory did cry a little bit as she walked away but she composed herself shortly after. Michol checked in during the day and they said all was well. Mallory was adjusting well to her new environment and classmates. She didn't eat a whole lot for lunch and had to be fed her "back-up" food (ham/cheese sandwich) since the lunch of the day was Meatloaf and Peas :) I guess she tried a little bit of the peas according to the progress report they gave us at the end of the day. During the day they kept the kids occupied with games, story time, and outdoor play. She only napped for about 45 minutes but I'm sure once she gets settled this will get better. When I picked her up at the end of the day, she looked really tired but was in good spirits overall. She grabbed my hand as we walked out and was ready to go home and see Mommy. Her grade for the day was "Excellent" according to the progress report!

When it was time for bed, Mallory was completely exhausted and ready to hit the sack. Recently we started telling Mallory "it is time for bed" and letting her lead the way. She was more than willing to head upstairs this time as you can see by the video above. She didn't waste any time falling asleep either (see below)....One day down!