Today I did something new with my girls!  We went to the YMCA!  They had playtime in the supervised kids area and I had uninterrupted workout time in the gym.  My husband and I were members of our local YMCA pre-kids, but recently we decided to join again.  It’s time for us to get back in shape and we are looking forward to signing Maggie up for swim lessons too!  Plus, our local YMCA provides two-hours of  child care services a day!  How’s that for an incentive to exercise?!

Being in a new environment, I was worried with how my girls would adjust to being “dropped” off for some time away from mom.  I knew they were in great hands with the ladies that run the childcare program, I guess a part of me just felt guilty.  I decided that I would start off with “baby steps” and leave them for small amounts of time.  So about 30 minutes into my workout, I decided to check on them.  I actually ran into one of the childcare workers in the hallway, she was coming to find me – they had been trying for 15 minutes to get Molly calmed down, she was crying like crazy and nothing they were trying to soothe her was helping.  On the other hand, Maggie was having a great time and didn’t want to leave!

Image courtesy of eagle102.net/Flickr

We ended up leaving and about 10 minutes later, Molly was fast asleep in the car.  I guess all that crying wore her out!   I’m hoping that after a few more short visits, my girls will be acclimated to their surroundings.  I want to continue exercising and I think it’s important for both girls to spend time away from me and around other kids!

So…tell me how do help your children adjust to a new environment?