To answer a few questions...Ellen S....I am not willing to keep her out of school. I am a SAHM, so her going to school has nothing to do with work, just that she was so craving being with kids more often, and with full time kindergarten next year, and knowing her like I do, I wanted this year as prep for next. She was getting bored, and for sure she was lonely...even with 3 activities a week, (library, gymnastics, music) it wasn't enough time for her to just spend time with other kids.
Funny, when I toured the Montessouri school, one of the kids was gluten-free, so the only snacks they have (for 25 kids) is fresh fruit and vegetables. I was surprised that one child would affect the whole room like that, but I also know (from the director) that she despises junk food, so she was probably secretly glad that the whole issue was solved in that way. Even there, where they have a junk-free and dye-free policy, she said they still have the occasional parent bringing in donuts or brownies or whatever. The way they deal with birthdays is that the birthday child chooses 3 friends, and they go and bake a (healthy) cake that the whole class shares after lunch....how cute is that? Why am I not going there? It is more than double the cost of the current place, it is a long drive, and because I made this decision and I think moving dd would be detrimental to her. She seems to be getting used to it. Do I feel majorly ripped off by it? Totally. I asked about snacks before I even registered dd and they said "We encorage all parents to contribute healthy snacks...". They said it cheerfully and made me think snacks would be healthy. While it's true that they sent the note that said "We are encouraging healthy sncaks...", the fact is that they DON'T discourage garbage snacks. They should have said that they serve whatever parents send, that there is no real policy. Because there isn't.
Bunty...you're right, she just can't have chocolate. And the fact is, they didn't give it to her. But the way it was handled was ridiculous and hurtful and I was 100% out of the loop...I live 2 minutes away and they know it....AND I have cupcakes in my freezer at the ready...THEY KNOW THIS. They didn't even tell me when I picked her up. I mean, school has been in session for THREE WEEKS...and they have already forgotten the conversations and emails we shared about how we planned on dealing with birthday celebrations?
UGH. SO mad.
