School Days, Snow Days, and Sick Days

Today was Jack's first day of preschool! It was only a visit day, so I spent the whole time with him in class, and we were only there for about half the normal time, but I think Jack's really going to enjoy school. He was very excited to don his penguin backpack and was thrilled to learn that they have a train table at school. Due in large part to the massive number of train-related Christmas gifts Jack received, trains have once again taken center stage in his daily routine; he spent the entire school visit time playing at the train table.

Actually the first day of school was supposed to be last Thursday, but St. Louis got a few inches of snow Wednesday night, which resulted in every school in the county closing for two days. So Jack's first school day was a snow day.

Fortunately, this week worked out better for us anyway, because if it hadn't been a snow day, last Thursday probably would have been a sick day. The three of us have spent at least two of the past four weeks suffering from several rounds of colds. Jack was only a little sniffly, having mostly recovered from a sinus infection, but I was coughing every 2 minutes, barely able to talk from a sinus infection that moved into my ears and throat. I don't think I would have been a very welcome fixture at visiting day.

Jack will be going to school two days a week for 2 1/2 hours, which should be just the right amount of time for him to have some independence and meet some new friends. Jack separates so easily from me (being so nonchalant about it that it occasionally hurts my feelings, though intellectually I know that it's a very good developmental milestone) that I think preschool should be a ton of fun for him without the trauma that can sometimes accompany spending time away from home alone for the first time. At least I don't expect him to be the clingy kid crying and saying, "No, Momma, don't go!" at drop off time, though I am wondering if he'll have some tension that will show up in other ways in the next few weeks.

On the baby front, we think we've settled on Graham as a first name, though we're still looking for a middle name that fits well with it. I'm 25 weeks and up about that many pounds, and Graham's about the size of an eggplant. He's wiggling away (we've started saying "wiggling" instead of the more traditional "kicking" because Jack seemed very upset at the idea that his little brother would kick me), sometimes waking me up a few times a night, usually strong enough for Ben to feel, and occasionally contorting himself enough to making my stomach look lopsided. Oh, and thanks to his classmates, if Jack doesn't quite get the little brother thing yet, he should understand a little better by the time Graham is born; of the 13 kids in his class, at least 5 have mothers who are pregnant! Four of us are due in April, with Graham coming in at the last expected arrival date.