Our Ivy Leaguer

This week, Jackson was accepted to Princeton. 

Princeton Children's Center that is.  And Drew & I are pretty sure that we're leading a charmed life at the moment; because what could have been an extremely stressful occurrence turned out to be quite simple, really.

We learned last Friday that Jack's in home daycare is closing effective July 31.  Miss Holly is moving back to her hometown and will be attending nursing school full-time.  It is a wonderful opportunity for her, so for that we are grateful.

However, considering we have been on the waiting list at two separate daycare centers since I was pregnant, the fact that we had 8 weeks to find new childcare was a bit terrifying.

Moving Jackson out of his in home daycare and into more of a learning center environment during his toddler years has been our intent since he was born.  Miss Holly has been absolutely fabulous and Jack adores her.  However, it was our hope that when Jack reached his twos and threes we could transfer him to a more structured, curriculum based environment.  In light of that, Holly's news didn't throw us completely off our rocker.  It just forced our hand in that we now HAD to find other arrangements rather than just waiting for a spot to become available somewhere else.

We immediately made a list of our top choices based on what we remembered from our research when Jack was on the way and the feedback and recommendations from friends.  #1 on the list was a program at KU, which I knew was not an option because we are still on that waiting list.  #2 on the list was Princeton.  I called them absolutely certain we would be adding our name to their waiting list and moving on to #3.  When the Center Director told me they happened to have 1 spot available right now for an 18-month old I nearly fell off my chair.  I scheduled a visit for 2 hours later.  In the meantime I called #3 on my list - just in case.  Turns out they had an opening as well.  See what I mean about leading a charmed life?  We had options!

Drew & I visited both centers that morning and then went out to lunch to weigh the options.  It was a pretty fortunate position to be in.  Sure, there were pros and cons to each, but we also knew that they were both wonderful programs and safe environments that Jackson would thrive in.  We really couldn't go wrong, but it's still an important decision that we wanted to give proper consideration to.  In typical Drew & Heidi form that proper consideration lasted under an hour.  By the time we were done with our sandwiches we had made up our minds.

We have spent the past 2 days filling out enrollment forms and crunching numbers to make room for tuition in our budget.  I'm not joking - at 18 months old we're talking about enrollment and tuition.  Insane.

But I am so excited for the structure of a learning center - the monthly menus, the weekly themes (this week is bugs!), the guided activities. And there are some logistical perks of a center environment that are appealing as well: intense security (you can't enter the building or drop off/pick-up a child without typing in a security code), automated electronic payment options, extended business hours and a reduced rate if your child is gone for a full week. Not to mention the location - just a few blocks from Drew's office - which means he can participate more in the drop-off and pick-up routine.

So we're tightening or financial belt a few notches, counting our blessings and on July 6 Jackson is going to Princeton!