The diary of Dad

Thursday is always a day of rest in our house as Robbie goes to visit his friends at Chestnut Grove nursery in Clacton-on-Sea.

It is always a strange feeling when Robbie is away. The constant noise, chasing and general chaos has gone. We can even eat or bring a glass into the front room, the whole day feels like a real luxury. Though the realism can often be that the whole day is spent catching up on chores that we struggle to complete with our little nutter around (Even if it is boring!) Whilst other days are spent in bed making up for all the sleepless nights!

It is great for us to spend some time together whilst knowing that Robbie is in good hands. The team at Chestnut Grove are simply amazing and he loves his time there.

We began taking Robbie here when he was just seven months old. Being an only child we wanted to give him the chance to spend time with other kids in a controlled environment to aid his social development.

It was tough at first as Robbie would cry as we left. As we watched through the window though, it was clear we were soon forgotten and and that he was in great hands.

Robbie spends his day playing in the Tiny Acorns room with the other boys and girls under 2 years old. Led by Hanna and Amber, there are always plenty of fully trained and super friendly staff on hand to ensure that all the kids get plenty of attention, hugs and playtime.

The room is packed full of toys, both fun and educational. Every week there is a different toy theme in the centre of the room which can be anything from building blocks to messy play, though he always comes home nice and clean. Last week’s train tracks were certainly a winner with Robbie as we struggled to get him to leave and he even tried to sneak one of the trains into Dad’s pocket before we left!

The layout of the rooms is such that all of his needs are taken care of. There are separate areas for nappy changing and great places to take a nap! Robbie has always struggled to sleep well, but the Acorn team will cradle and cuddle with him until he drifts off. I have often wondered whether we can hire them for bedtime at home!

The care that Robbie gets is nothing short of exceptional. This is not a nursery where the the staff just get through the day and go home. The activities they put on are fantastic, from neon lights to music and dancing with the kids, they are fully interactive and certainly seem to love what they do.

We have received some fabulous gifts from his day at the nursery that Robbie has made for us, perhaps with a little help! His footprint painting is always on proud display in our house and he has made us great cards for Mother’s and Father’s Day and even a personalised Xmas calendar that won a spot on our tree!

Such is the team’s fondness of the children that they care for, several members of staff even dropped by to celebrate Robbie’s first birthday with us last year!

We are now looking forward to Robbie’s next steps at the nursery. He will turn two in the Summer which means he will move up to the next class and be able to join in with some of the activities in the outside play area.

He loves watching the older children playing together when we enter the nursery each week and he will always wave and say hello to them, even if he is a little envious that he can’t get in and join the bigger kids yet!

It is not just the friendly staff that makes Chestnut Grove nursery so great. The highly professional report book that is filled in by the team on every visit tells us everything that Robbie has been up to that day. This details everything a parent needs to know including nappies, food, sleep and toys. It has become a great journal for us to look back and see how our beast has developed over the year! They also have an online tapestry journal for every child, which lets us check in on all the fun and see how he has grown throughout his time at Chestnut Grove.

We could not ask for a better nursery and feel fortunate to have such a great place on our doorstep. I would highly recommend Chestnut Grove to any parents looking for a nursery in the Clacton area and to check out their Facebook page to see all of the fun that the kids (And parents!) enjoy here.

Contact Chestnut Grove

If your child attends Chestnut Grove, please tell us why they love it by leaving a comment in the box below. The diary of Dad is a parenting blog by Steve Lucas detailing all the fun, misery and and emotional turmoil of raising Robbie. To check out the Diary of Dad series, Click here!