Art Classes!

First, I think I have not talked about this before but here it is - we have finally decided to skip enrolling M in a playschool/preschool for the time being. So, most probably we are looking at her start a preschool at 3.5y+, which according to me seems "more right" :) - many reasons - she is eligible only for the toddler programs as of now, and I don't find them interesting or exciting in any way - she does a lot more at home with me - preschool programs looked like something she would enjoy but the criteria is 3y+ and potty trained - both of which are still milestones to be reached for us; and most importantly I think I am not ready, so anyways I am shielding her from one year of institutionalized learning :D.

However, her days are long (and tend to get boring), so we have got her enrolled into a weekly art class. (Mostly because she loves spending her time getting messy with colors, play dough and stuff like that at home too, and nothing seems enough!) We did the preview class today and were thrilled. Exactly what I was looking for - one hour of unlimited paints, colors, unrestricted mess, a story time, song and snack included. I have to accompany her ofcourse (I love it too :p). We will also be doing a kiddie gym class (unstructured), for about an hour everyday. 

I think this along with her park trips (that include lot of sidewalk doodling with chalk), library trips, long hours of storytime with mommy, toys, puzzles, crayons, and stuff at home, and the joy (!) of helping mommy in her household chores like cooking, laundry, her day should be covered - oh and I must also add watching Peppa Pig to that list - this is our latest addiction and more about it in another post!

I must add we get to take all the art work home, so now we'll have more interesting garage walls, if nothing else.

Play & Learn!

That's the name of M's classes. Yes, yes, first small step towards structured activity for M. 

Actually, Vish and I were wary of the fact that Manya gets to see only the both of us on a daily basis. Even when we do take her out, there's no real interaction with other people, barring the friendly few who stop to chat. (I have to join a mommy's club too - have been postponing that - some day for sure :)) 

A friend was quite happy with the Gymboree classes, and these also seemed to be quite popular in the few mommy forums that I am a part of. 

So, last weekend we went for a preview Level 2 (6 to 10 months) class. I was a little apprehensive taking M to the Level 3 (10 - 16 months) class for fear that my tiny little babe might get squashed or bullied by bigger/older children. 

Haa! Looks like we have a much tougher nut in the making. She was quite obviously advanced for the Level 2 class. The activities weren't challenging enough and she was all over the place. Not to mention the fact, that she was taking other kids' toys, blissfully ignorant of the fact that she was leaving howling babies behind. The funniest was that a crying 9 month old baby was being hushed by his mom, and her highness crawls right to that corner and claps at the baby. She obviously does not know when to clap (or so we hope :)).

We were asked to preview the Level 3 class as her teacher very politely put it, "Manya will have more fun with older children." Hmm. So, this weekend we did preview that class, and most of my fears around "my poor little baby being lost" were quite unfounded. The games and activities were a little tough for her - she couldn't do quite a few - which is good because she was trying her best to and we'll see some progress in the weeks to come. 

Also, the class is fairly balanced - there were two more children at M's level and then two more who were already walking with little or no support. There was one big guy who most definitely was also the oldest, who our darling daughter took an instant fancy for. She crawled all the way to the entrance to welcome him. The boy did return the appreciation with equal fervor, and it was more than just a couple of times that I had to swoop M from in front of his determined charging onward :)

Another observation: M might just be an extrovert like her mom - the ease with which she mingled with the babies and their parents, without really clinging onto me or Vish, was something that managed to surprised (an outgoing) me too! She also was at her babbling best and showed a lot of curiosity in exploring all the equipment available.

We have now enrolled M on Level 3 weekly classes and if nothing else, my regular quota of entertainment is assured!