Pre-K Graduation!

Emily is a part of the class of 2014. No, she's not a wonder child. She just graduated from preschool!

When I was small, I remember donning a white cap and gown to graduate from Kindergarten. I figured Emily would graduate then, but she got to graduate this year since she completed preschool.

The ceremony wasn't focused so much on graduating but since Emily went to the preschool at our church, it was a blessing.

The kids came out and sang some songs. Then they all got to come up to a podium to get their diploma. They also each got to say what they liked best about preschool. Emily said she liked playing outside. She came to sit with us as we sang a hymn and then all the kids went up to the altar with their parents laying their hands on them as we prayed.

It was a short ceremony but it was nice. And I admit that I got a little teary-eyed because my baby is growing up!

Though we will get to do it again next year since she is still going to go to the school at our church since they go until Kindergarten.

Sickness

A little over a week ago, my daughter went to a birthday party for one of her preschool friends. She had a great time but I think she brought something home with her. That something being the flu that is going around.

She woke up early on Sunday with a fever and she was really listless all day. I figured she might have the flu and I really confirmed it once I got it the next day. She and I spent several days in bed trying to get better. Thank goodness after a few days the fever subsided, though we both have a bit of a cold now.

We’ve been really lucky that Emily has only been really sick a few times in her short life. But I was super paranoid during this sickness, due to reading the wrong things on the internet. A few weeks before we got sick I read a post on Reddit about a parent who found their 10 year old passed away due to the nasty flu that’s going around.

So when Emily got the flu, I checked on her repeatedly during the night to make sure she was still breathing. She was and my paranoia got less as she got better. Though I do need to read less things about dead kids on the internet.

We kept Emily out of school all week because of the fever. At least two kids in her class had the flu too and because of the nasty strain of the flu going around, the school asked to err on the side of caution when sending kids back to school. At least one of the kids who got the flu were also had the birthday party. Who knows how it started but it’s been a very long week.

Perks of Working From Home

I work from home doing tech support. Even though I sit in my home office, usually in pjs, it’s very similar to the other call center jobs that I’ve worked. I have co-workers that I talk to over a chat program and I have a set schedule.

My boss is very flexible about moving my schedule around if need be. If I get sick during the week, I just work on my day off. If I want the weekend off, I work longer hours during the week. Yesterday was Emily’s preschool Sharing Feast and I got to work a shorter shift to attend.

It was so cute to see her with her friends during the short program beforehand. And we got to eat lunch with some of her friends and their parents, which was nice as well. If I was working another job, it would be harder to take off without using vacation time.

There are some downsides from working from home. But as I watch it snow outside my window, I’m glad that I don’t have a commute and that I can be there for Emily’s school programs. 

First Day of Pre-K!

Emily started school again today. Because the cut-off here is August 31st, she still in preschool. She's in the Pre-K class this year.

Emily was very excited to get back to school. Most of her friends from last year are in her class this year. Todd is also excited since he'll use the time she's in school to work on his school work.

I'm very happy that my little girl loves school so much. I hope that continues as she gets older!

Trying Out ABCmouse.com

Emily's home page

I've been seeing commercials for ABCmouse.com since Emily was small and we started watching cartoons. But I didn't think to try it out until now. We were watching TV before church and I saw another commercial and decided to go to the website.

Since they were offering a month for free, I decided to sign Emily up. We didn't get a chance to check it out until after church, but she was hooked right away. She wanted to keep playing the games, but we took a break to go to the movies and take a nap.

So far, Emily is having a lot of fun. I’m not sure how much she is learning yet but we’ll see how it goes. We have a month for free and I’ll give updates as the month goes on.

Has anyone else used ABCmouse.com? Did your kids learn a lot?