Olivia has started DAYCARE!!!

Monday was Olivia's FIRST official day of daycare. You know, the last few weeks Brad and I have just totally been amazed how all of a sudden Olivia seems to have gone from BABY to TODDLER. She seems like such a little person and her personality is more and more fun to watch as it develops. She's been walking for several months and now runs everywhere. She is climbing things like crazy...She talks all the time, says about 20-30 words clearly, sings songs (wheels on the bus, with actions)....understands what we are saying completely and now copies EVERYTHING we say and do (SO CUTE)!!!

The thought of putting Olivia in daycare is something that has terrified both Brad and I, well, basically since the day we brought her home. How would we ever be able to put our one year old (plus 2 weeks) in daycare? The though seemed CRAZY, and to have to do it seemed it would be impossible.

WE decided to take a very gradual approach to the process. After staying home with Olivia for 50 wonderful weeks I returned back to work (something i not so secretly dreaded for the whole 50 weeks)! In order to ease Olivia into the change, Brad then stayed home for 5 weeks to take care of Olivia (2 of which we were on vacation and 3 of which they were on their own). This way Olivia was able to be home in her own surrounding getting used to me away at work during the day but still with daddy! My first day back was difficult, but if I do say so myself, i held it together pretty well. Olivia and Brad had a wonderful time together and I really believe this time they had together was amazing!

The time came for Brad to return to work. In order to ease into this change, Olivia's Grandma Light came to stay with us for 3 weeks so that she could take care of Olivia while both her daddy and I were back to work full time. Again she was a total trooper. Giving hugs and kisses to us every morning and waving bye-bye. Her and Grandma really bonded and I think the experience really gave Brad and I the reassurance that Olivia was going to be okay once she started daycare (and well to be honesty, I think it gave us the reassurance that WE would be okay being away from Olivia as well).

Well, now Brad and I are back to work and the time came for Grandma to go back home to Missouri....which also means the big da has come....Olivia's FIRST DAY AT DAYCARE.

She was such a CHAMP! I brought her to the daycare (which is a 7 minute WALK from our house). I brought her in, met some of the parents, and only stayed an hour to settle her in. She was very excited by all the other children and marched right in to play with them. I was SO happy. She did come over every once and a while to hug my leg and blow me a kiss. I decided that she seemed to be doing well and I would leave her there to see how she did. Lynne (the caregiver) and I decided that we would play it by ear to see how long she would stay her first day and that she would call me if Olivia seemed upset or if the day was getting long for her. When I left Olivia did cry and was upset but Lynne did assure me when I called at 1pm to check in that she didn't cry for long and that she seemed to be fitting in very well! I was so relieved!

Olivia made the ENTIRE day at daycare (I am 100% sure it was way more difficult on me that it was her).

Here is my little CHAMP posing for her FIRST DAY OF DAYCARE photo, just as we were leaving the house:

In the car, on our way to Lynne's! I had to run some errands after so that's why we drove...
...Love at Olivia's WELCOME into the daycare!! So Cute!
...Olivia was having her afternoon snack when I came to pick her up!!!!
Although she had a very good day (good naps and ate well too), she was very happy to see me! This is her getting ready to leave...
I was pleased by her first day and she was great when we got home too!

Today was her second day and I figure her first definitely wasn't too traumatic because when I took her in today, she put her indoor shoes on...marched us down the steps, gave me a big hug and big kiss and said "Bye mama" , then proceeded to march through the gate and off to play with the other children! She didn't even look back?!?!?!?

I walked home and cried ALL THE WAY. My first official breakdown...lol Olivia is growing up so fast and it hurts a little bit that I have to let her.