GUILT

Yes, he's only doing two half-days a week -- Monday and Friday mornings.

Not sure what you mean by kindergarden -- it's not a day nursery (they don't offer all-day care and they don't have babies), a pre-school takes kids from age 2 until they go to school and offers sessional care (you can send them for three hours in the morning or afternoon).

As it happens, it didn't go too badly at all. He didn't even notice when I snuck out of the room and happily played puzzles for about an hour and a half (I waited outside and peeped anxiously through the window every five minutes). He only started crying when one of the staff tried to take his coat off, and I had to go in and comfort him.

I thought he would be really tired out afterwards, but for the first time ever he actually didn't have an afternoon nap -- just lay and chatted in his cot for 90 minutes until I got him up again!

Kindergarden is a preperation for elementary school. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kindergarden
Most children attend this from the age of three, although by law you are allowed to enter from the age of 2,5 years old in Belgium. Not before this age though. They also prefer that a child is potty trained but in our school they were very relaxed about it: the child didn't have to be, could still wear diapers, but did have to try the toilet like all the rest. Here they do offer more care (as compared to what they offer you) but then it depends from school to school. Most tend to have "after school" care until six-ish.
Is it the classic system or Steiner? Here we also have Steiner (and other alternative types) but they usually only do half days if I remember correctly and request a lot of input from the parents. Personally I tend to favor the classic system so I enrolled Ophelia in "regular" kindergarden.

Nice to hear he's doing so well! Ophelia loved the first day but the next days were a disaster. haha

In the states, you attend "preschool" (optionally) from 3-5, and then Kindergarten, which is still not a full school day. At six, you enter first grade, and the school day lasts from ~8am to ~2 or 3pm.

It's a Montessori, which is not hugely different from a regular pre-school -- the main difference is it's a little more structured (there's a lot of emphasis on getting them used to focusing on one activity at a time) and there are various Montessori 'materials' which they use to develop fine motor skills, encourage them to learn letters etc. I would actually prefer him to be in a normal pre-school for now as I don't think two-year-olds really need that much structure or learning -- I'd be happy for him to be running round playing with cars and finger-painting. But pre-schools in our area are massively oversubscribed and this was the only one which had a place for him before September, and it does seem very nice.

In any case as long as he's happy I don't really mind what they do with him -- I don't think it makes that much difference to a two-year-old!

It sounds very similar to the Belgian kindergarden. Here most pre-schools take kids from age 2 or 2.5, and once they turn 3 you get 15 hours free a week. Some won't take them unless they're potty-trained but at this one they're happy to change nappies.

i had a fight with beeps over a scooby doo vitamin this morning that left her crying hysterically(ie i took it away from her because she wouldnt eat it and seemed to plan to just carry it around school with her which could get us kicked out - no pill type things allowed on school grounds because they can lose their license.) i feel like im going to be depressed all day for making my kid cry over something so stupid. i don't have the heart for this discipline business. fucking scooby doo.

Aw. She will have long forgotten about it. Sometimes Howie bawls the house down when I'm changing his nappy, but some things just have to be done!

Meanwhile, I sat and sobbed outside the classroom today while Howie wailed on the other side of the door after I left the room. He only cried for about 15 minutes but it felt like forever :(

:( :(

Am at work halfway thru a 12-hr shift, and wife just called that baby had rolled off the (quite low) sofa and bumped her head. Sounds like a goose egg is developing and wife is taking baby to walk-in clinic. Baby sounds okay: has calmed down, eyes normal, responses normal, colouring fine, etc; but wife is a wreck. Fall was not much more than 18 inches, if that. Babies are very resilient, and surely she has worse falls ahead as she learns to cruise and walk. I'm moment by moment rational and distraught. I think I spent a full fifth of my childhood in emergency clinics, and I'm more or less okay.

i fell off a very high table when i was of crawling age, i believe. i'm ok.

finally heard back from them after an agonizing two hours. everything's okay. no signs of concussion. I guess the days of the stationary baby are over forever, huh.