Registration Forms (OR) Annoyance Already

Several days ago I spoke to a woman at the preschool about coming in to fill out registration forms for Braydon. (Remember, the woman who couldn't quite answer my questions?) When I arrived at the school the day we discussed, the lights were off, the door was locked and no one was answering the phone. "Should I come at any certain time tomorrow?" I asked when I spoke to this woman just one day before. "Um. Yeah. You can come anytime, I'll be here," she replied in a very soft voice. I pulled into the parking lot shortly after 9am. They open at 7:30am. A short walk to the door and a few minutes of preparing Braydon for viewing the class while mommy fills out some forms, led us to a vacant preschool room.

I called and left a voicemail, letting them know I was here and that I was asked to come in anytime, so I would wait on campus a little while in case they called me back. I waited while Braydon played in the courtyard. I waited in the blistering Arizona heat. I waited for a half and hour. When I finally got Braydon into the car we were both disappointed. The nervousness we started to feel on the way to the school was replaced with sadness, for Braydon, and annoyance, for me. The woman called me back several hours latter, leaving me a message that explained they had a meeting and asked me to come back the following day to complete the registration. When I called the preschool, the same woman answered the phone and, fighting my annoyance with her, I asked her what the best time would be for me to fill out the paperwork. "Oh, anytime is fine. I am here from 7:30 to 4." Half jokingly I asked if they had any meetings the next day. No laugh, "uh. no." I let her know I'd be in around 9:30am and asked if I'd be paying the registration fee then. She informed me that I would, but nothing else. Please, take a moment to note here that she said, nothing else.

Able and willing to let the minor frustration of the previous day slide, as is my nature, I showed up the next day at 9:30am, shot records, SSN, and money in hand. Lights on. YES! Door unlocked. THANK GOD! A woman at the counter. THIS LOOKS PROMISING. Braydon waited rather impatiently at my side while I introduced myself and my son and reminded her why I was there. This was the woman I had spoken to; I knew immediately. She handed me an orange form with a few basic questions as she explained in broken sentences that I would have to come back when the director was there to pay the fee and fill out the rest of the paperwork. WHAT? I was furious, but kept my cool. "You told me I could come in this morning." She didn't respond. Not willing to let this woman see my anger, or cause any future ripple for my son, I brushed it off, as she explained that there was a parents orientation the next week. YOU MEAN I WILL HAVE TO COME BACK TWICE! In answer to me inquiring as to when the director might be in, she replied, "I don't know, she didn't tell me. I will be here until 4pm and she usually leaves around 5." YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME. (breathe) "So I can come in late in the afternoon before 5pm and maybe she'll be here?" I asked. "Yeah," was all she could spit out. YEAH? REALLY?

I usually stand up for myself and if something has inconvenienced me because of an idiotic mistake, I will let that person know in a respectful way. However, my previous experiences with day care have shown me that early ripples do make their way out to your child latter on. This is Braydon's first school, and I do not want to cause a fus this early on. What I will do, however, is wait until late this afternoon and call the director. I will gently let her know that I was inconvenienced without complaining. I will also let her know that I can not make it in today, as my car decided to break down yesterday. I will ask if I can fill out the forms at the parent orientation, because it is not convenient for me to come down there until that day. Hopefully, she will have a little more respect for what it takes to make time in your day with a child to come down only to be turned away and asked to come back, lending the same result.

On the plus side, Braydon got to check out his new classroom and loved it. The place was clean and had good defined areas of learning. His favorite part was the bathroom. They had small toilets and right outside the door were small sinks. "They are my size!" he excitedly informed me. He loved the playground and wanted to stay, but I convinced him to go by taking his hand and guiding him back inside and out the front door as I explained that when it is time to play there will be other kids and he can use that time to make new friends. All in all, while I am frustrated at this woman, I am excited that my sweet little baby is about to venture off into the big brave world. It calms me to see how bright his face is when we talk about school. I can only hope that I can let myself brush off any future disruptions from "the woman".