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the most recent example pertains to bailey's school. having been a parent aid (essentially going to her school to help teach/clean/witness activities for a full day), i've been exposed to/thrust into thinking about what it is i want for her education. all of this with a grain of salt obviously because i am aware of the fact that she is ONLY 3 years old. i will reserve comments about her teacher and politicking (because after all, this is the internet, and you never know). but suffice it to say, i have been very motivated to explore other schools. 

this motivation led me to my first manhattan school tour. holy crap. it was weird. i was so nervous. will i say something wrong? will i dress inappropriately? why am i even going... do i want to spend $30K on schooling with stuck up people for a 4 yr-old's education? can i schlep my kid to another neighborhood every morning and then make it to work in time? 

so many questions. and one amazing, beautiful answer. the school was PERFECT.

perfect in getting me to be open to sending her to a private school and realizing that not all private schools are stuck up. perfect to motivate me to tour more schools for comparison. perfect in teaching me about education today and understanding what a progressive education even is. 

where i've landed (and perhaps matt has been there all along) is that i'd like to give her a foundation of the best possible resources we can (whatever that ends up being). in other words, more school tours (both public and private) are on the horizon. let's just hope i don't get sucked into the irrational, neurotic, xanax-mandatory thinking of too many manhattan parents.

AH YES... and a note about our neighborhood. it is still often unsavory and a far-cry from our quaint west-village neighborhood. BUT check out this article.  i think we're staying put for a little while longer (at least until this school thing is more settled). so chicken and egg.