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School first day:how'd it go & help!
How did the first day of school go for those who started yesterday? Did your kiddos come home and say they enjoyed it?
I need help with how to deal with dd's nervousness/hesitation about starting school. She is very friendly/outgoing but can be shy at first. She doesn't like change. She has been in daycare since 12 weeks but it was the same place until last week. She is doing ok in the new place but anytime we talk about kindergarten she gets so upset and says she won't go.
I know kids can surprise you but I foresee tears and her refusing to get on the bus!
FYI K is half day so she will only be there for 2.5 hours (then the after school place she started last seek). I've tried telling her that but she doesn't care.
Any help? I've tried hyping up K and telling her about my first day. She says she will miss me so Im planning on giving her a locket with a picture of us so she can wear it. She's picked out new clothes and backpack that she likes. I got her a toy she has been wanting and am planning on telling her I have a surprise for her after her first week.
We have orientation tomorrow but I don't really have high hopes. We've already done a story hour at school and she was the only kid who was upset about separating from their parent. She ended up being ok but it's not like she was excited about it.
Ugh! I hear about kids being excited for school and my kid is dreading it. I thought daycare would have prepared us well but apparently not. Dd is stubborn and strong willed and has always struggled with getting ready in the morning. I am completely dreading her behavior.

Re: School first day:how'd it go & help!
Hmmm...I will have to think of something grown up and ask her. That might be a good idea. I'm totally willing to bribe. I already have the toy she wants that I can give to her but was hoping to give to her after the week of school. Something grown up for first day might be good too.
I agree with this - Caileigh was nervous the entire summer before starting kindergarten and all of her cousins went to the school so she knew people there. It didn't matter how much I tried to convince her how great it would be she was just a nervous kid. Shy in the beginning until she feels comfortable. I think you might just have to ride it out and know that it may suck the first few days but I bet she will love it in a week. I have no doubt there will be more than just your kid that is nervous the first couple of days. And the teacher will be able to deal with it just fine.
How time flies! Caileigh (9), Keira (6) & Eamon (3)
There is a boy a couple houses down that she has met a couple times who should be at her bus stop. But I think there may be another boy too he knows so if that's the case they may sit with each other. But I'm hoping its just her and him and they can sit together. I've talked with her about him being at the bus stop too (assuming they don't drive him!)
I tried to make time at bedtime to talk about school when she wanted to, but I didn’t bring it up a whole lot. Partially because it seemed like everyone around us kept talking about it, so I didn’t want to pile on more discussion. She seemed to shut down when she was forced to talk about it, so I didn’t push it.
One thing that seemed to help was that one night I talked to her about how new situations make me feel. I told her that even when I’m excited to do something new I’m usually also nervous about it. I talked about how it was totally normal to be nervous and excited at the same time, because doing new things and meeting new people isn’t always easy. And I specifically said that I was nervous to start at a new school.
I’m not going to tell you that everything was perfect, but my “admission” did seem to improve her moodiness a bit. I think it is important to acknowledge that she doesn’t have to be super excited about Kindergarten. She’s allowed to feel nervous and worried, and it is totally normal. She might be worried because she’s not feeling the way that other people are telling her that she should feel.
FWIW, Heather was fine with me leaving on the first day of K. It helped that she had a friend in her class and also that there was a lot going on. (We drop her off at school because she does before care there for 30-45 minutes – school doesn’t start until 9:10 and her bus doesn’t pick-up until 8:45.) Drop-off at before care was somewhat more tricky for the first couple of weeks because she hadn’t made friends there yet and she wasn’t totally comfortable at the school yet. But once she got into a groove she was fine.
Even if she has issues for the first couple of weeks, before you know it she will find her groove and be great!
It's funny bc I, too, thought Gavin would be fine with Kindergarten last year bc of his daycare experience. NOT. He cried like a newborn and it just shocked and upset me.
He ended up loving it (most days) after those first couple of weeks.
Now we're in the "I hate school" stage which I didn't expect from a first grader. I know there has been a lot of change lately with the move, but I think it's bc the school is more strict than his last one. I'm giving it another couple of weeks to get used to the curriculum and the overall flow.
I'm not talking about it unless he brings it up and wants to talk. I think that might be a great suggestion from the other ladies.
Good luck ,Momma!
My three sons!
Jake - 1.15.08
Liam - 5.17.11
Jake - 1.15.08
Liam - 5.17.11
Dd wanted to use my Chapstick last night and then we had a little K discussion (grandparents were in town and asking about it). So I brought up being a big girl and getting her some Chapstick for going to K. She was actually pretty excited it. Not that she was excited about K but sounded willing to deal with K for some Chapstick, haha! I'll try whatever I can at this point!
Jake - 1.15.08
Liam - 5.17.11
She actually does have some princess lipsmackers already but they are a little colored and very glittery so I don't really let her use them all the time.
I think I blew her mind when I told her she could get grape or cotton candy flavored so she was pretty excited about that!