orange school.

We've been driving by Ben's school every few days so that he can see it and get familiar with it. The front of it is orange, so it's easy to spot. I also got him a red backpack and a little insulated lunchbox that I've been talking to him about so he gets used to those. He still won't wear his backpack but that's ok.

Friday night there was an open house at the new school building, and the kids were invited. They were originally based at 9th & Catharine, but they've begun the process of moving a few blocks over to their new location. For the students who are scheduled to begin within the next few weeks, this was an opportunity to go inside the building and see the different rooms.

A bunch of Moonstone Preschool's parents are artists or otherwise creative types, and that really shows. There is a huge mural in the front reception room, a fun mosaic tile wall in the entryway, and cool little features throughout. In the cafeteria there are hands outstretching from the wall, reaching toward a giant mobile of butterflies. And in the main room, my favorite:


You can't tell from this picture, but this word, 'learn', is made entirely from books. It's 3-d and so cool in person. While we were in that room, Ben had fun playing with a 4 year-old named Schubert. They played inside a wooden playhouse and ran around chasing each other. It was fun to see Ben come out of his shell a bit; when we first arrived he literally crumpled to the floor behind me when the director came to introduce herself. Not at all uncomfortable or embarrassing :).

There were lots of parents there who assured Chris and me that it would be more difficult for us than for Ben. I believe that, but I also really worry about how he'll be there. He literally wants to disappear when new people approach him. He covers his eyes so 'they can't see him' and it kills me. And for the first month or two, his schedule will be Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. I feel so bad that if he gets through the first day and thinks that's it, and doesn't want to go back, that we're going to have to start all over again the next day.

Anywho. Worrying now won't do any good, especially since I know that when he's finally settled in, he'll love it. I leave you with the other picture I took yesterday. An entire bookshelf of puzzles, but I liked one box in particular: