Henry's Fall Activities

Since Henry is not three until mid-October, his activities for the fall were somewhat limited. He was too old for certain programs and too young for others. The preschool options in NYC are really terrible. If you want to go part time, there are only 5 day per week, half day options. There really were no 2 or 3 day a week, 3 hour programs. It is surprising that part time doesn't really exist, but I guess the demand really isn't there since most people work.

I also had Molly's schedule to consider. For the shorter programs, I would have to walk him there, walk home and then turn around and do the same thing an hour or so later. This would have screwed with her naps more than necessary and would have been a total pain come wintertime.

So, after much drama, here is what I have drummed up to keep him busy:

On Mondays and Tuesdays, I am doing a co-op homeschool preschool with 4 of his little friends and their moms. We alternate planning each session and whose house we are at. Each class is two hours. It really has been a lot of fun so far. During my first week, I baked blueberry scones with the kids, forced them to do lots of cleaning (thanks Maria Montessori for making that acceptable!), had them set the table, pour drinks, we read and acted out a book and had a dance party to some fun music from around the world. My next class is going to be a pretend post office and grocery store. For our snack we are making yogurt parfaits. This is what happens when you take 5 type A type women and have them quit their paying jobs. They need to direct their boundless energy into something! The good part about this school is that there are two other babies Molly's age for her to play with as well.

On Wednesdays, Henry is going to gymnastics class. His first class was last week and he LOVED it. I was so proud of him, he was very brave. It was his first ever class that he has attended where I am not able to participate. After a rocky start, he stayed with the class, participated and listened to the coach. He even went up afterward to say goodbye alone and said it in a voice that was loud enough to hear. That part got me a little choked up a bit! They have a toddler play space off to the side so Molly has something to do during class. One of her little friends is there as well so she is not lacking playmates.

On Thursdays, we go to a local church for a playgroup.

Fridays are a free day.

On Saturday, Henry goes to soccer with Adam. It is so adorable seeing him with his jersey and two of his best friends are in the class. Seeing him follow/not follow directions is always hilarious. He seems to add a little tweak to everything he does which cracks us up. Molly and I have been tagging along as well, we like to hit the post-practice party at the local coffee shop and the farmer's market that is nearby.

As you can see, he is not really lacking things to do. We also have memberships to the Bronx Zoo, Central Park Zoo, NY Aquarium and Museum of Natural History. It should be enough to keep him out of trouble I think!