You know that panic-inducing, heart-stopping, gut-wrenching moment when you realize that your baby is about to start kindergarten?
I haven't had that yet.
It's not that it hasn't occurred to me that I blinked and five years passed me by. I noticed that part. The problem is that the whole concept of kindergarten has turned out to be such a giant pain in the ass that it has been an all-consuming task just to get the whole mess figured out. Considering I've spent most of my free moments for the past two months trying to figure it all out, it's almost shocking how little I've mentioned the debacle online.
The first sign of trouble came way back in January when I first registered Alexis for kindergarten at the elementary school nearest our home. Sirens went off and and emergency lights flashed in my head because SON OF A HORNLESS UNICORN, somehow when we moved two years ago, we managed to land in one of the few Pittsburgh-area schools that still have half-day kindergarten.
I haven't quite figured out the logic in half-day kindergarten, especially when "half-day" is fancy wording for "two and a half hours." Do people in our school district just not work? I mean, seriously, how *do* they manage to transport a kid back and forth and still go to work? I never found an answer to that question, but I did think I had a viable solution to the problem.
That solution required that Alexis end up in morning kindergarten, but still. That shouldn't have been an issue, at least the way I saw it.
But it was an issue. Despite my fervent pleas for Alexis to be placed in morning kindergarten, in June we were notified that she had been assigned to the afternoon class. No amount of "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?" emails or calls seemed to make a difference (honestly, my emails and calls were flat-out ignored by the principal, which, WTF?). That left me to try to find someone to watch her from 7:30 am to 12:30, and then again from 3:00 to 5:00. Which, really? REALLY? Not to beat a dead horse, but do people in our school district just not work?
I explored school-endorsed programs and found out that there were none. I inquired about kindergarten plus programs and was met with quizzical stares. Apparently, they don't exist in the bubble we live in. I checked with area daycare centers and the YMCA and with neighbors and then I had a huge hissy fit, threw a bunch of papers in the air, cussed a bunch, and realized that it was all too much.
Way. Too. Much.
We believe in public schools. We believe in our public school. But, we don't believe in moving mountains to accommodate a schedule that isn't just a pain in the ass, it's flat-out a disservice to our child. Alexis is accustomed to all-day preschool. She thrives on learning opportunities. She's a nerd, to be honest, and nerds need more than a couple of hours of school each day.
So, private kindergarten it is. The decision is made. We're not entirely happy about the lack of choices that were available to us, but at least the little nerd will have a chance to learn as much as she wants and I won't have to quit my job just so I can take her to school each day.
It will probably take a few weeks for the smoke to clear, and when it does, I'll be over in the corner sobbing because OMG, my baby is about to start kindergarten.
