shortly after baby c turned one, i started to think about sending him to pre-school. my reasons then were that i needed time off as baby c turned very demanding, expecting and needing my attention 24/7. some days he would just cling to me like a limpet. i was tired beyond words, carrying him, entertaining him, following his every move so that he wouldn't fall (he only started to crawl after he turned one). on top of that, i was only on my road to recovery. so my search started. then only did i find out that pre-schools here only accept kids in at 18 months earliest. (day care accepts them at any age). so i had to improvise as baby c will only turn 18 months next year.
i gradually introduced baby c to tv (i am NOT proud of this. i did well for 13 months with no tv at all). at the beginning, he didn't have the interest. he'd turn away after 5 minutes. but then he started to like it and was entertained by it. so now, he gets 50 minutes in the mornings, when i am putting the house in order and getting ready, AND another 50 minutes in the evenings, when i am preparing dinner. it is not out of control tv watching the whole day. and boy oh boy, what bliss it is for me during those two 50 minutes sessions. i get to get things done without baby c crying and screeching the house down. and if i'm quick, i get to sit down and read the papers or a book.
so NOW that it is easier, i was a bit torn about sending him to pre-school. it was should i, should i not? after thinking it through, i am going ahead with it as both b and i have noticed that baby c is always curious and wanting to play with other kids now. so we want him to mingle and to socialise. besides, pre-school at 18 months is not really school. it's more of play, snack, try and learn some abcs, numbers and music. it's more geared towards fun, fun, fun. and fun is what i hope for him!