Lydia goes to school...

I know I'm going to be judged harshly for this decision by my family and friends back in the US, but we decided to send Lydia to school. As I've said before, the Mexicans send their kids to school when they are one. Ever since we moved here, people have been telling me that I need to send Lydia to school...she's so social, she would love it, she would learn Spanish, etc. They are very strict about the kids going everyday, so, after visiting one Montessori school and a week of deliberating, I decided that I was going to wait until next year. The more I thought about it and the more people kept telling me how great it would be, I started reconsidering. I decided that I needed to pray about it(duh!) and the next day Lydia was a bear (the day at Wal-Mart when she threw a huge fit...among many other things). I took that as a sign and went to look at two more Montessori schools. I know I have a maid and I don't have to worry about household things and I could leave Lydia home with her, etc, but the lifestyle here is so different. I have been running around to places constantly and it's not fair to take her with me or leave her with the maid all of the time. First of all, every week I go to three or four different places to get groceries...Superama for this, Wal-Mart for that, the Mercado, and Costco. Then, if I want pretty much anything else, I have to run to a specialty shop. The banking is ridiculous. You don't just sit at home and write checks. You have to physically go to the bank of the company you need to pay and deposit money into their account. I have to pay for school, all the utilities, rent, etc. and they all don't have the same bank. So, like I said, just to get the needed things done I feel like I'm running around constantly, dragging Lydia along. Also, Lydia is not napping anymore (if she does take a nap she doesn't go to bed at night and then gets up really early the next morning) and James doesn't get home until 7:30 or 8:00, so I don't get any kind of break. I am trying to learn Spanish and need some time to do things for myself. SO, all of that trumped my "mommy guilt" and Lydia is going to school everyday from 9-1. She's starting off slow (an hour and an hour and a half this past week), but she loves it. The second day I told her it was time to leave for school and she yelled "yay!" and ran for the door. I really am at peace with this decision and think it's the best and right thing to do at this moment. She'll be speaking Spanish better than any of us...she already says gracias (so cute!). SO, after that longwinded explanation, here are some pictures of Lydia going to her first day of school...

Ready to go...