Monsoon Season is Here

When it rains, it pours, right?  It's been one of those weeks.

Today I received some very bad news that Moose's preschool is closing at the end of the month. This is heartbreaking for us, as we love it there.  They have been so supportive of us as a family and as we started this deployment.  If not for school, I'm not sure Moose's behavior would have turned around after the departure. She has really flourished in this environment. We're so sad to see it end.

And, there is a serious shortage of preschools in our city.  Especially because Moose and I are atheists. I thought for a long time about this, and I simply cannot put her in a preschool with a bible-based curriculum. I think that at her age, it is too confusing, and honestly she gets enough make-believe at home. She can learn how to be a good, kind, moral person without tales of God. (I admit, I have very unpopular opinions when it comes to religion...so I understand if you abandon ship now.)  Almost all of the preschools here in our area have "Baptist", "Zion", "Lutheran", etc. in the name.  I'm simply not comfortable with that, and I'm thinking my husband backs me up here. (He kind of lets me drive the boat when it comes to religion and my child. Technically, he's Catholic, but I don't think he's seen the inside of a church in years. Weddings don't count.)

Sorry, I went off on a tangent.  This is about education, not religion.  I've spent the last few hours searching for schools and reviews online. I hate that I have to do it this way, but we're in a time crunch and of course it's Presidents' Day weekend, meaning everything is closed tomorrow as well. Grrrr.  I'm running into a lot of issues with the tuition of the schools I would prefer.  How in the hell is it justified to charge tuition comparable to a private 4-year university (I know, I attended one) for PRESCHOOL.  Here it comes.....W. T. F. ?????? Nearly $1000 a month (or more in a few cases) for a 3-day a week program? Oh hell to the no!

Warning: another unpopular opinion lays ahead.... I confess that I am not particularly a fan of public schools.  I am very lucky that we have an AMAZING public school right across the street from our development. But I know that in true military fashion, we will be moving at some point after she enters Kindergarten, and who knows what kind of school we will get.  I won't get into my whole tirade about public schools. I'll save that for later. Anyway, our public school has an amazing Kindergarten prep program, BUT the catch is, she can't start until August. Not helpful now, for March....

So, what is a family to do? We clearly don't qualify for any kind of tuition assistance, but I don't understand why it should cost a small mortgage payment to ensure a SAFE, productive and loving learning environment for a 3.5 year old.  I wish there were more people in the world like Miss D, whom Moose loves, adores, and who has provided a wonderful learning environment for her over the last year, but who also understands that a quality education should be affordable.

I am just ranting now. I have set up a tour of a center/school for next week, but honestly not holding my breath.  Either I'll love it and it will be out of our price range, OR it'll be affordable, but I wouldn't send my schnauzer there. I've spent the morning brainstorming ideas, but in the end, we will still miss what we have now.

Sad day. And I cancelled our trip to the desert to handle this.  Boo.  Maybe if you're all lucky, I'll entertain your with my position on religion and education in their full, unspoiled splendor soon. I'm really worried about how Moose is going to take this. She was just getting back to her normal self. So many upheavals has to be upsetting. Poor babe.

Evening update: The school is going to remain open, but there are some factors that could affect that. We're keeping our fingers crossed that everything will right itself, but I'm going to try to have a backup plan, just in case.  I hope we don't need one!!!