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Separation Anxiety? What’s that?

Noah had his first taste of being dropped off at a “class”, when I attended a ladies’ tea at the church, and decided to send him for the children’s programme there.


The day didn’t start off well, when I struggled to wake him up, and to get him ready to go out. Then there was a struggle to get him into the car seat, and naturally, one when I had to get him OUT of the car seat when we arrived. You have no idea how many times I wondered if we should have just stayed home instead. But God works in mysterious ways, and I think He was showing me that Noah is becoming more independent, through his various assertions of independence, and ultimately, through his complete lack of discomfort when I dropped him off at the crèche.

I must confess that I was extremely doubtful that he would be comfortable without me at the crèche, mainly because he was so cranky and clingy the whole morning. He’s generally good-natured, and doesn’t have any concept of ‘stranger danger’, which means we have to watch him very carefully when we are out with him. He is however, a little cautious when it comes to being around other children, because he’s been pushed around a bit before.

There were about five other children in the crèche when we got there, all playing with the various toys in the room. While I was talking to the lady in-charge, Noah let go of my hand, walked towards a toy, and started playing happily with it. When I went to tell him that I was going to get his water-bottle, he didn’t even glance at me, and continued playing as though I didn’t exist. Upon my return, I was told that he was very comfortable exploring in the room, and that he should be fine if I left him there. And so, I did! I went to hug and kiss him goodbye first, but Noah tried to squirm away from me, and was more than happy to wave and say, ‘BYE!’ very loudly to me. So much for only wanting mummy earlier in the morning!

Who needs mummy, when there are so many toys to play with?


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Happiness is… having a big car to push around!


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As the tea was a very informal session, I was able to pop into the crèche to check on him once, and was told that he had just had a snack of some strawberries and biscuits. I was surprised, as he usually refuses to eat anything when I offer them to him, but the lady told me that he was very good, and ate the food with the other children. I went over to talk to him, but the craft session was about to start, so he ran off after a few seconds with me, plonked himself next to the lady in-charge, and busied himself with the craft materials.

Time for craft!


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When I went to pick him up after the tea, he was holding the lady’s hand, and waiting near the entrance for me. He was reluctant to leave, and wanted to continue playing with the toys, but I brought him round to say goodbye and thank you to all the ‘teachers’, and he left happily after that.

More interested in the mandarin orange than his craft 


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Later in the day, when I asked him what he did, he told me, “Play. Car. Eat. Auntie’s. Cry.” I knew he didn’t cry at all, because the ‘teachers’ told me that he was a good boy and didn’t look for me at all, so I asked him if he cried. After some thought, he said, “Kor kor. Cry. No no.”

With this successful ‘drop-off’, I’m now wondering if we should send him for a parent-accompanied or drop-off playgroup, when we get back to Singapore next month. I think I’ll probably bring him for some trial sessions, to see which type we’re more comfortable with, before making the decision. He’ll be starting N1 next year, and I’m hoping that these playgroups will help him get used to the idea of school, as he is still unpredictable around other children. In fact, he burst into tears and refused to sit on his own for story-time at the library the next day, after a little girl followed him around and pulled him by his sweater.

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