Erin’s first day of nursery is coming round very fast and every time I think about it, I get super emotional. I’m trying to get my head around the fact that my little girl who was only 4lb 8oz when she was born is old enough to be going off to nursery. Preparing for the first day of nursery is a massive thing for me so I have no idea what it is going to be like for Erin.
I remember going to have a look around the nursery nearly a year ago now and falling in love with it. Erin had only just turned 1 and was only just walking so she’s very different now than she was then. She was so curious from the minute we walked in and she wanted to get into everything. That hasn’t really changed. We often taken Erin in when the nursery has open days just so she can see what it’s like again and get used to being there. Every time we have been in Erin has loved it and not wanted to leave so I hope that’s a sign of what we have to come.
We’re starting off with 2 settling in days in the first week of January with Erin only going from 930 to 1130. I’m so nervous. I don’t know how Erin will react to me leaving, if I decide to. I know I can stay for the first day but I have to leave her on the second settling in session. She’s only ever been left with family before and not for very long. We don’t have babysitters and we never leave her with anyone for more than about 30 minutes. I wonder if she’ll panic about me not being there when she calls for me.
When I leave I have to walk home with an empty pushchair. I know how much I’m going to hate this. It is going to be bad enough to leave her but if she cries I’m not sure how I will cope. I’m going to have to walk home without my girl while I’m a blubbering mess. I know I won’t be wearing much make-up for these first few nursery runs. I think it’s going to take quite a lot of getting used to for me.
Not only do I have to prepare myself for leaving Erin at nursery but I also have to prepare myself to coming home to an empty house. As I said earlier, Erin has never had a babysitter and she’s is with me 99% of the time. There have only been a handful of times where I have had a day or a couple of hours away from Erin. While I am really looking forward to having a couple of days a week to get on with being able to work from home, I am going to miss the noise and the mess!
I know Erin going to nursery is the best thing for everyone. She needs to spend more time with children her own age and I need some me time. It doesn’t make it any easier though and I’m dreading that first day!
I’d love to know your tips for preparing for the first day of nursery! Do let me know in the comments!
Good luck! It’s something I really struggled with. We tried with Jenson around 15 months but we moved house at the same time and he wouldn’t settle. We tried for a few weeks but it wasn’t worth the upset as myself and my partner work part-time and one of us is always with him. We tried a different nursery at 27 months. He cried when we had to leave the open day which we took as a good sign but he screamed bloody murder whenever his dad left during the settling in sessions. That was his fun job as he was doing two mornings a week – one while I was at work so we figured it was best for him to do both for consistency. Luke would only be sat in reception for an hour during the session just in case but it was a rough transition. We thought we’d struggle to get him settled by Christmas but within about six weeks he stopped crying at drop off and has even made a friend. I think it’s a lot harder on the parent and some kids play up to it. You might find she takes to it straight away. My nephew did and never wants to leave. Hope it goes well 🙂