Meet the new daycare, same as the old daycare? No.

Day 1 at the new daycare went remarkably well, thanks for asking.

It didn't start that way, by any stretch. The routine used to be (used to be, mind you) that Wife would transport our son from his bed directly to his car seat, where he would be whisked in style to the sitter's house some 45 minutes away.

No longer.

Thanks to our new daycare's rules, he is to be dressed and ready for the day when he arrives in the morning. It now falls on me to get him ready in the mornings, and he was acutely aware this morning of the change in the routine. I pulled him out of bed and put him on the changing table, changing his diaper and putting his shirt, pants and shoes on him. He knew something was up, because he immediately started saying, "Daddy's house." (That is to say, "If it is all the same with you, dear Father, I would prefer to stay here and spend the day playing with you." If he only knew that I would prefer the same.)

I tried to put his jacket on him, and he fought me. I promised him something – I don't recall what it was at this point – and he acquiesced, allowing me to slide his jacket on.

The 10-minute trip to the daycare was uneventful, save for the sight of a couple of deer alongside the road. Once we arrived, however, he began to struggle some more. "Daddy's house! Daddy's house!" He began crying as I tried to gather up his belongings for leave-behind at the daycare. We made it inside, and as much as the new sitter tried to put him at ease, he continued screamed bloody murder, at an even louder volume when I went out the door. I think a little bit of me died there – this is the first time I've ever had to leave him behind somewhere (besides with family).

The end of the day, however, brought about a 180-degree change in attitude. Son had a great time today playing with some new friends, and he was looking as content as could be when I arrived to pick him up. He was quite thrilled to see me, and didn't fight leaving at all (as I had feared he would).

We laughed and talked all the way home. We got behind a school bus (a big thrill for him) and he would narrate the bus' activities as well as the sights along the road. "School bus down hill! Daddy down hill! Dozer! Tractor! Horsie! School bus up hill! School bus out!" (he would say when it would stop to let kids off).

Later on, I asked him if he wanted to go back to the daycare tomorrow. "No," he'd reply. "Daddy's house."