The question is, whose separation anxiety.

K.Lo did well, overall, for her first day of preschool. She was excited to prepare for the Unknown, very compliant in getting dressed, helping The Manager load up her backpack (which she has been sleeping with for 3 nights now) with lunchbox and supplies. Talked about going to preschool, even sang a few bars of the Preschool Musical song. She was even fine for the car ride there, singing along to our usual selection. But K.Lo is wise, and knew Something Was Up, pretty much as soon as we entered the building. We hung around, figured out the right room, introduced K.Lo to the teachers, and then I withdrew my tiny pair of scissors from back pocket to begin snipping the apron strings. The fabric was tough.

K.Lo screamed, she wailed, she thrashed; one might have thought they shackle preschoolers to the wall at this institution and force-feed them gruel, but not so. Word is that they painted T-shirts today, and learned about dinosaurs, before going outside on the playground. K.Lo also reportedly helped the teacher pass out juice, and they talked about princesses.

When I picked her up, frankly, she looked worn out, like she’d been upset for the better part of the morning. Her lip trembled, her skin was pale. Apparently she calmed down about 20-25 minutes and was fine for the better part of the morning, but lost it again when a colleague’s Manager showed up early, and hers wasn’t yet there.

Sigh.

But in the meantime, I enjoyed a quiet morning at the office exercising, catching up on paperwork, and hearing my own thoughts. N.Lo took a THREE-HOUR NAP, and is now up for a promotion and a raise after such exemplary work.

K.Lo did brighten up as soon as we got to the company car, and chatted all the way home about her Big Day. Something about using the Employee Rest Room, and eating a peanut butter sandwich for lunch, and going outside to play… The company plan is to talk it up for the rest of the week, until next Tuesday, when we will hopefully see a slightly less dramatic departure.

Fly little butterfly, fly.

K.Lo, Post-Preschool (Post Trauma)