Our almost eight months old baby girl has started daycare this week. This big milestone for the entire family was planned a few months in advance. It took a while to find the right place. Actually, after we have found one that we thought was OK, we stumbled upon the truly perfect fit. So we switched daycares, before we even started one. Yes, apparently it is THAT hard to choose the right place for your child. Or maybe it is just us.

When the date was close, we started preparing ourselves by telling others (friends and family) about the big day. Responses were varied. Some claimed it was long time coming and maybe we should have even done it sooner. Others suggested it was too early, and maybe we should consider keeping her home longer, or possibly get a nanny instead of sending her off to daycare. There were comments such as ‘get ready for her to get sick a lot and catch who knows what over there’, which even if true, sounded very inappropriate in tone, like they were accusing all daycares for being a breading environment for diseases.

We were worried that our little one will not like daycare. She has only been with someone other than Mommy or Daddy twice in her life, and we did not know how she would react to this reparation. Is she ready? Will it take her long to adjust?

Monday morning we (Mommy and Daddy) took her to daycare together. Armed with 3 bags full of required items off the list we were provided by the daycare (diapers, wipes, paper towel rolls, Kleenex, etc.) and one bag with her personal items (extra clothes, sock, bottles, etc.), we marched into the building. We passed by admissions to say hi and sign some last minute forms; said hello to a few people on the way and made it to the infant room.

By then we were quit nervous, but neglected to realize one important fact. With all that people had told us, and the fears that our bundle of joy will feel abandoned, we forgot to consider our own feelings about this huge event. A minute after we set her on the floor, our baby found a pile of toys and forgot about our existence. The teacher told us to let her play (code for ‘you can leave now’), and we were left feeling abandoned.

We watched her through the vision window in the door for a few minutes and then left (only for a few hours, but still…). We were so consumed with how she will react to this change, it never occurred to us that we will have a hard time to let go. And she is only eight months old! We thought we would have at least until her teens before we are tossed aside…