first week at nursery

This week was a big transition week for us. It was my last week on maternity leave before officially returning to work and it was also Nate's first week at nursery. He was there for 3 full days. 

Although I am technically still on maternity leave until next week, I have been working 2 days a week for a while, so Nate has slowly gotten used to being away from me for the day. Despite this, I was still nervous about him starting nursery because until this week, he had only been with his dad or his grandparents so the move to a group setting was a big change!

The whole morning of his first day, I was worried sick about him. I had trouble concentrating at work wondering if he was eating well, napping, and adjusting to his new environment. I was especially nervous about his naps. Nate gets so upset and cranky when he gets tired and he generally only naps in the car, in the stroller or on me after nursing. I just couldn't for the life of me see how he would nap in a bustling room filled with children. I held off as long as I possibly could and then called to check on him on my lunch break. 

I could not believe it when they told me he had slept for 45 minutes earlier that morning and was currently enjoying his lunch of cottage pie and swede!  I was so relieved. From that moment, I knew everything was going to be fine. I am so proud at how well my little man has adapted to his new environment. And after all my worry about Nate's naps, can you believe that this is how my husband found him when he went to pick him up at 4pm? 

Nate's first day went as smoothly as I could have hoped. And the next 2 days went fairly smoothly too despite a new tooth coming though and multiple doses of pain reliever being administered. 

There have been a few negative consequences of starting nursery  Nate has had a runny nose and cough ever since his first day, and it doesn't seem to be clearing. He is also very tired in the evenings so we have had to put him to bed earlier than normal. 

On the positive side, he has been sleeping well at night and I have noticed Nate's gross motor skills have improved. At the start of the week he was pulling himself up to standing slowly, Now he pulls himself up super quick and does squats, lunges, and all sorts of funny contortions. It's amazing to watch him pick up these skills so quickly!

And to top off this week of firsts, Nate made his very first school art project, which I was given to take home. It is now being displayed in prime position on our dining room table and will no doubt end up on the fridge for months and then stored away for posterity's sake.