Notes: Thanks to Mari and Sammy for the squeal-inducing feedback! You're the best, ladies.
Readers and REAL McRollers - Can you believe our baby girl is ready for preschool?! Thank you for your amazing support! It is always appreciated.
Hope you enjoy!
Here She Comes (A McRoll in the REAL World Story)
"But you're not really going to school today, Angie," Catherine tried to reason with the four-year-old. "This is preschool orientation. It's a chance to meet your teachers and see your classroom. We'll only be there an hour. You don't need to bring your backpack."
Angie put her foot down literally by stamping one combat boot on the ground. "But I' going to school. I take my backpack to school." She clutched the straps of her new backpack on her shoulders possessively.
Steve popped his head back in the front door. "We ready?" he asked.
Catherine sighed and nodded. "I guess so. She's bringing her backpack."
"It's just orienta–"
"Already tried that."
"I take my backpack to school, Daddy," Angie reiterated. "Like DJ."
Steve glanced at Catherine who shrugged. "Not a big deal, I suppose," she said.
He nodded. "This is like a practice day so she might as well practice with her backpack."
"It's currently filled with Disney souvenirs instead of school supplies."
He chuckled and held the door open. "Close enough. All right, big girl, let's go. Your brother's waiting outside."
Angie beamed, releasing her backpack straps just long enough to pet a dozing Pumpkin and hug Cammie goodbye. "Bye-bye, Pumpkin, bye-bye, Cammie, I go to preschool now!" Turning, she skipped out the front door, calling to DJ, "C'mon, DJ, it's time fo' school!"
Steve and Catherine smiled at each other, both almost as eager as their daughter.
"I can't believe we're already here," Catherine said. "Preschool orientation."
"Me either," he agreed, taking her hand as they stepped out onto the lanai. "You ready for this?"
She smiled at him. "I am," she said honestly. Her smile grew as her eyes went to the yard where Angie was excitedly talking to DJ, again clutching the straps of her backpack and practically vibrating with excitement. "But even if I wasn't, she's ready enough for all of us."
After a short meet and greet with the director of the learning center and a tour of the building, the four made their way to Angie's classroom with a few other families who were doing orientation at the same time.
"Welcome Cubby Bears!" a young woman greeted them warmly at the door of the classroom.
They'd learned from the director that all the classrooms had a bear theme: Teddy Bears, Care Bears, Pooh Bears, Panda Bears, and Cubby Bears. Angie and DJ had both been very excited to learn that Angie would be in the Cubby Bear room, but were surprised at the decorations on the door.
"Dat's not a Cubby Bear," Angie said, pointing to the cute baby bear cub cutouts.
To her credit, the woman's smile didn't falter. "What do you think Cubby Bears look like?" she asked curiously.
"Cubby Bears are blue," Angie said without hesitation.
"Our family are Chicago Cubs' fans," Catherine explained. "She's thinking of the logo, aren't you, Angie?"
Angie nodded and the young woman smiled at her. "I see! Well, we'll just have to get a Cubs bear up on our door, too, won't we?"
"Grandma Ang could give you one," DJ suggested. "She's got lots, from all the years of the Cubs."
"Maybe you could ask her for us," the woman said.
DJ beamed, standing up straighter, and nodded. "Okay!"
"I'm Ms. Julie," she continued, smiling at everyone now. "One of your new teachers. Welcome to preschool!"
"Yay!" Angie cheered, causing two of the other children to echo her.
"I love that enthusiasm," Julie said brightly. "Come on inside. Mr. Frederick has welcome packets with nametags for everyone, then we'll get started."
Inside the room, a man in his early thirties greeted them from behind a table. "Welcome Cubby Bears! I'm Mr. Frederick. Step right up here and tell me your name so I can get you your packet."
Angie didn't hesitate, stepping right up and standing tall. "My name is Angie 'Lizabef McGarrett." She pointed behind her. "And dat's Mommy, and dat's Daddy, and dat's DJ."
Mr. Frederick grinned. "Very nice to meet you, Angie Elizabeth McGarrett. Thank you for being a leader." He looked at Steve and Catherine. "Sometimes the kids are nervous to step forward like that."
"Angie's never nervous," DJ said.
"Almost never," Catherine said, running a hand over his hair.
"Well, here you go, Almost Never Nervous Angie," Mr. Frederick said, handing her a purple folder. He made a little face. "It's mostly boring stuff for the grown-ups, but there are nametags in there for your whole family. Go ahead and find a table to sit at." He gestured toward the interior of the classroom. "We've set up some big chairs too for any adults who don't want to try and balance on the preschool chairs."
"Thanks for that," Steve said, eyeing the child-size chairs.
Mr. Frederick nodded with a grin, almost the same height as Steve himself. "Believe me, I understand."
The four headed to one of the tables so Mr. Frederick could greet the other families who had been chatting with Ms. Julie as they waited their turn.
"What's in here, Mommy?" Angie asked as she opened the folder.
"Let's put our nametags on first," her mother said. "Can you figure out whose is whose?"
"Dis says Angie," the four-year-old said, immediately recognizing her name.
"Good job," Catherine said, helping her peel off the adhesive. Angie pressed it to the middle of her Lilo and Stitch t-shirt.
Angie pointed to another one. "Dis is DJ."
He smiled at her. "Thanks, Angie," he said when she held it out to him.
Angie frowned at the remaining two nametags. She looked up at her parents for help.
"Mm, this is tougher since they don't say 'Mommy' and 'Daddy,' " Catherine said, knowing Angie would have recognized those words. "What's Daddy's name?" she asked, flashing a wry grin at Steve.
Angie beamed. "Steve!"
"And 'Steve' starts with 'S.' Can you find the name that starts with 'S'?"
Angie looked between the two nametags and pointed to the correct one.
"Good job!" Catherine said, clapping for her.
Angie smiled proudly, handing the nametag to her father. "Here's you' nametag, Steve," she said.
He took it, kissing her head. "Daddy," he said, but couldn't help smiling proudly himself.
She giggled in response. Picking up the last nametag, she asked, "Dis one yours, Mommy?"
"It is. What letter does Mommy's name start with?"
Angie looked at it for a moment. " 'C'!" she said.
"That's right, smart girl," Catherine said, taking the offered nametag and putting it on her own shirt.
A couple minutes later all the families were seated and the two teachers stepped to the front of the room.
"Welcome again, everyone," Ms. Julie said. "Let's get started. Don't worry, we won't talk too long. We want to give you plenty of time to explore the classroom, but first we want to introduce ourselves officially and give you all a chance to introduce yourselves as well. As I said on the way in, I'm Ms. Julie. I've been a teacher here for the last five years and I love teaching preschoolers. I was born in Colorado but I moved to Oahu when I was fifteen, and I live with my husband and our two cats Cinnamon and Spice."
Angie gasped. "We have a kitty cat!"
"My kitty's name is Skippy!" a little boy said.
Ms. Julie smiled. "I can't wait to hear about all your pets."
Mr. Frederick nodded. "Me, too. My name is Mr. Frederick, and this is my second year teaching preschool. Before this I taught kindergarten and second grade, which I loved, but I wanted a chance to teach preschool, so here I am. I don't have any cats, but I do have a dog named Sergeant."
"We have a dog, too!" Angie exclaimed.
"And me!" a little girl echoed.
"That's so great," Mr. Frederick said with a broad smile. "Now we'd like each family to stand and introduce themselves so we can get to know each other better. This is half the class today." He smiled. "We split the group up into two orientations so we're not all crammed in here like sardines."
"Ew, sardines," DJ whispered and Steve flashed him a smile.
"How about we start over here?" Ms. Julie said, motioning to a family at the left-most table.
One by one, each family stood and introduced themselves, with the parents doing most of the talking but a couple of the preschoolers chimed in as well.
When it was their turn, Angie, DJ, Steve, and Catherine stood up. "Go ahead, Angie," Steve prompted.
She beamed. "I'm Angie and dis is my mommy Caf'rine and my daddy Steve and my brudder DJ. Cammie an' Pumpkin are at home sleeping."
"And who are Cammie and Pumpkin?" Ms. Julie asked with a knowing smile.
"Cammie is our doggie and Pumpkin is our kitty cat. Dey are very nice."
"I bet they are. And I also know you are all Chicago Cubs fans, so it's a good thing you're in the Cubby Bears room this year."
Angie nodded. "Not all da Cubbies are dere anymore, but we still like dem."
DJ looked down, a small sad frown on his face, and Catherine squeezed his shoulder, quickly explaining, "A lot of our favorite players were recently traded to other teams, so we're a little sad about that."
Mr. Frederick nodded knowingly, spotting DJ's reaction. "Ahh. That is hard when that happens to your favorite team. But I'm glad to hear you still like the Cubs, and I bet your favorite players would be glad to hear that, too."
DJ glanced up and gave him a little smile and a nod.
Ms. Julie gave him an encouraging smile before turning back to the rest of the room. "We are so happy to meet everyone today. Before we start exploring the room, let's go over what a typical day will be like in preschool."
After going over the schedule that was written on the write board, Mr. Frederick announced they'd have a scavenger hunt to explore the classroom.
Angie and DJ looked at each other excitedly. "A scavenger hunt!"
"Have you done one of those before?" Mr. Frederick asked.
"We did one at Disney World with Grandma and Grandpa!" DJ said.
"At Dizzy World!" Angie agreed, curls bouncing with her enthusiastic nod. "It's so fun!"
Ms. Julie laughed. "Well, I don't know if this'll be as fun as a scavenger hunt at Disney World, but let's give it a try."
They passed out a sheet to each family and invited them to begin. All of the sheets had the clues in different orders so the families could spread out across the room.
"Wha's it say, DJ?" Angie asked, bouncing in place.
"The first one says, 'Find where you will put your backpack,' " DJ read.
"Where dat?" Angie asked, looking around.
"Over there," DJ said, pointing to the wall closest to the door. "Those are cubbies, but not like Cubby Bears. It's a spot for you to put your backpack and stuff. We have those at my school, too."
Angie ran over to where he'd pointed. She looked at the rows of wooden storage units. Her eyes widened suddenly. "Dat's my name!" she exclaimed, pointing to the first slot which had a large nametag above it.
"Good job, baby girl," Catherine said.
"Yes, good job, Angie!" Ms. Julie agreed, joining them. "This is where you'll put your backpack, and anything else you need. I see you came prepared with your backpack today. Do you want to try it out?"
Angie nodded eagerly, pulling her backpack off her shoulders and setting it in the cubby. "Like dat?" she asked.
"Perfect," Julie said with a smile. She looked at Steve and Catherine. "In your folder there's a list of everything she should bring in her backpack."
"Excellent, thank you," Catherine said.
Steve grinned. "You might have to make some room in there with all the Disney souvenirs, baby girl."
"I' bringing my Mickey Mouse ears to school," she said resolutely.
"We'll see," Catherine replied, fighting a grin.
"Are you ready to find the next spot on the list, Angie?" DJ asked.
She nodded eagerly.
"It's great you have your big brother with you to show you the ropes at school, Angie," Ms. Julie said. "What grade are you going to be in, DJ?"
"3rd grade," he said proudly, standing up straighter.
"Wow, that's awesome!"
"DJ's really good at school," Angie told her seriously.
Ms. Julie smiled. "I'll just bet he is, and I bet you will be, too."
Both children beamed proudly in response, and the teacher moved over to talk to another family.
"The next one says, 'Find where we will read stories together,' " DJ read.
"Hmm," Catherine said. "Where do you think that could be, Angie?"
"I don't know, let's look," Angie said, causing her parents to chuckle as they followed her around the room. She spotted a small bookshelf filled with books and ran over. She touched a rocking chair next to the bookshelf and then looked at the rug under her feet. She gasped. "Dis i' like da storytime rug!" she exclaimed.
"That's right, this does look like the rug at library storytime," Catherine agreed. "Do you think you and your new friends might sit here to listen to a story?"
Angie nodded, promptly sitting down on one of the squares that contained a large purple triangle.
Another girl saw her and sat down, too.
"Hi!" Angie said, waving. "What's you' name?"
"Ashae," the girl said.
"Do you go to da library for storytime?"
Ashae nodded.
Angie beamed. "Do you get stickers dere? And see Miss Kristin?"
Ashae looked confused at that.
"Maybe Ashae goes to a different library than us," Catherine said, squatting down beside Angie.
"It has a play area with puppets," Ashae said. "I like da penguin puppet."
"Ohh," Angie said. "I like puppets."
As the two girls continued to talk, the parents re-introduced themselves.
"This is a clever way to get the kids exploring the room," Ashae's father, Justin, said.
"It is," Steve agreed.
"Hey, dere's a potty!" Angie said, jumping up. She and Ashae grabbed each other's hands and ran toward the small bathroom.
"Looks like they've made fast friends," Raina, Ashae's mother, observed with a smile.
Catherine smiled back. "Looks like it."
"That's on the list, too, Mommy," DJ said, holding up the paper.
"Oh good," Catherine said, smiling at him. "Let's go."
The two families stayed together for the rest of the scavenger hunt, discovering the activity centers including blocks and other building materials, an art corner, a play kitchen, and a sensory play area that Mr. Frederick explained would have rotating activities like sand, colored rice, water, and play dough, which is what the kids were experimenting with today.
"I like preschool," Angie said after DJ showed her how to roll her play dough into a long snake.
"Me too," Ashae agreed, making small, lumpy balls with her dough.
For the last activity, every preschooler was given a large piece of white construction paper with their name along with the center's name, Cubby Bears, and the date. Underneath their name there was a line for one of their parents to write what the child wanted to be when they grew up.
"What do you say, Angie?" Steve asked as Catherine uncapped a marker. "What job do you want to do when you grow up?"
"Princess knight!" Angie announced without hesitation.
Steve and Catherine exchanged a smile and Catherine started writing.
"I catch all da bad guys in my boots," Angie told Ashae, holding one foot up to show off her combat boots.
"I have boots, too!" the other girl declared. "Dey're at home!"
Asahe promptly asked her father to add princess knight to her sign right after cowboy and the two girls jumped up and down excitedly at their nearly matching choices.
The kids spent a little time decorating their signs, and then one by one, they posed for photos by a large growth chart on the wall.
"At the end of the year we'll do another sign so you can see how much they've grown," Mr. Frederick said. "Both in height and in their ideas about the future."
Steve and Catherine joined hands as they watched their daughter hold up her sign, standing proud and tall while grinning toothily, then realized she was standing on her tiptoes just as she had at Disney to try and meet the height requirements for the rides.
Looking at each other, they laughed aloud. "That's our girl," Steve said.
Catherine grinned. "I guess the question isn't, is Angie ready for preschool, but is preschool ready for Angie."
He nodded, his grin mirroring hers, and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Ready or not, here she comes."
Hope you enjoyed!
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