Ready for the first day of school with her pink "pack-pack"

Today, our little Chickpea became a "Tadpole." Scott brought her to her first morning at nursery school and reports that the drop off went well. Parents were invited to stay for the first half-hour, so he did, although Audrey mostly ignored him after she spied the baby doll and stroller!!! and began zinging around the room with them. No tears when he actually said his goodbye, although she looked a bit nervous.

When I came to get her a few hours later I joined a small group of hovering parents at the door of the Tadpole room, all trying to catch a glimpse of our kid without being spotted. When I went in, Audrey was at a little table filled with cornmeal, shoulder-to-shoulder with three of her Tadpole colleagues, scooping up cornmeal and dumping it on the floor. Actually, only Audrey was doing this, but the teacher who was sweeping it up seemed remarkably un-phased (I just have to interject that I am astonished by, and grateful for, people who teach preschool.) Audrey gave me a friendly, "Hi, Mama!" but ignored me when I asked her if she was ready to go. First she had to do some more stuff with the bead necklaces, oh, and hey did you see this cool toy over here and....

So it looks like she's going to take to school just fine. At least, we've had a very nice start. My one disappointment of the day was that she took no nap again today; I'd really been hoping that school would prepare her for a monster afternoon nap. But no.

Oh, and did I mention the axle grease on her shirt? I'm pretty sure that's what it is, but I'll never know. And she had green marker on her hands, face and clothes too, but that's just a sign that she was having a good time, right? Scott thinks we should try to get her some toddler-sized Tyvec coveralls that they wear for hazardous-waste clean-up. Anyone got a good lead on that product?