Wow! How is it that we are now in 2018? It seems like we just got started with the school year!

December kept us very busy with many things. We had a successful bake sale, so thank you all for supporting us by purchasing yummy treats! We took the Pre-K class and all the parents to Brookdale Assisted Living/Memory Care where the kiddos performed a few of their program songs, handed out little goody bags to the residents along with hugs and smiles. This is one of my most favorite outings with our children. Just seeing the wonderful smiles on the residents’ faces, listening to them join in with our songs and hearing them laugh is such a blessing to all of us and I cannot put words to how exciting this outing is for me. When you bring those two generations together, it’s beautiful.

We also had our Christmas Preschool Program, where the kiddos performed several songs, danced and acted out the Nativity. We had approximately 200 people in the Large Fellowship Hall and it was exactly what we all needed to get into the Christmas spirit. A new parent who plans to enroll their child next year came, even though she doesn’t have her child here yet, and she told me “The program was everything! The joy was so great in that room and we enjoyed it so much!” That meant so much to us. The kiddos did a great job, and no one got stage fright.

The last day of Preschool and Pre-K class were spent in our pajamas! For the older Pre-K kiddos, we read the Polar Express book, and sat in our train cars with our popcorn and hot cocoa while we watched Frosty the Snowman. Before our movie, we had to go find the runaway gingerbread man who left us eight clues all over the church. We finally found him hiding in the refrigerator. Some of you may have seen us with a trail of preschoolers on this journey since it was a Wednesday morning.

Our first day back was January 8 and the kids were very excited to see their friends, so there were many smiles and hugs going around. We are getting back into the groove of learning and getting the older kiddos ready for Kindergarten! We will be learning about Antarctica and the Arctic, winter animals, Community Helpers (when the Police will come visit our classrooms), snow and winter weather. We are planning to schedule a visit to the Fort Collins museum as well.

February will be filled with Valentines fun along with plenty of other things. Before we know it, we will be approaching spring break and a new spring season!

This little preschool is growing, and we are already upon registration time for the school year of 2018–2019! Many of our families have already turned in their registrations during this time of early enrollment for current students and church members, and we are already getting inquiries from new families. We are offering an afternoon (12:45–3:30 PM) Pre-K class to open more spots for families. Early registration will continue through January 26, when it will open to all new families with our booth at the Preschool Fair held at the Lincoln Center. The fair will run from 10:00 AM–1:00 PM.

This is an exciting time of growth for Open Arms, and we want to extend a tremendous thank you to Saint John’s for the support in this effort! Pass the word to anyone who may be looking for a program such as ours. We will have our Open House on February 8 from 5:30–7:30 PM, so this is the time for interested families to come see the classroom, meet the teachers and visit with a few current families.

All of us at Open Arms wish you a happy, healthy and blessed 2018!

Kandy Wise is the Director of Open Arms Preschool, a ministry of Saint John’s Lutheran Church. You may reach her at 482-1357 or OpenArms@StJohnsFC.org with any questions about the Preschool.