Playtime Whodunit Solved!

We have a mystery on our hands. One minute Bright Eyes was lying on her playmat, minding her own business:

 

 

And the next minute she wasn't!

 

 

 

Who can guess what happened?

 

Laura is right, big sister was the perpetrator! Big surprise, i know. The thing i find funny about it was that she did it right under my nose! I was sitting at the kitchen table drinking tea and reading something while the girls were playing nicely on the floor. I remember overhearing the BabyGirl saying, "Excuse me! Excuse me, Bright Eyes!"

 

I am clearly not a multitasker, because the information did not penetrate deep enough into my consciousness to cause me to look up from what i was doing. By the time i did look up, the BabyGirl had moved on to play somewhere else, and poor Bright Eyes was left all alone on the hard kitchen floor with no sister in sight.

 

However, the BabyGirl's motives were true. At church they cover the nursery floor with interlocking foam mats like these, only bigger and multi-colored. When church is over, everyone pitches in to take the squares apart and stack them up. The little kids love to help. That is why the BabyGirl has been pre-programmed to take the squares apart. Hopefully next time she will learn to wait until Bright Eyes is finished using them!

 



Tenderhearted

My debilitating, unbearable Sacroiliac Joint pain is back. With a vengeance. I've been in horrible pain for a week. Sometimes i can barely walk. It also hurts when i sit down. Lying in bed is painful too.

The Professor and the BabyGirl have been so wonderful to me in my suffering. After i'd already endured several days and it wasn't getting better, my coping skills disappeared. On one particular day when the pain was really bad, i started crying. The BabyGirl and i were sitting at the kitchen table eating lunch, and i just burst into tears without warning. At first she looked at me with a "what in the world is happening here" expression. But within seconds it changed into concern. She said to me softly and with compassion, "Mama crying. Why tears, Mama?"

I told her that i was going to rest on the couch and finish my crying; she nodded understandingly. I remembered to grab a box of tissues en route and the BabyGirl trotted after me. As soon as i got settled down on the couch (which is no small feat), i wanted a glass of water so badly. Well, as luck would have it, one of her favorite things in this world is carrying my water cup. Most of the time she is prohibited from doing so because it results in lots of spilled water.

When i nicely asked her to please fetch my water cup from the kitchen table, she thought it was her lucky day. It was as if she was born for this. She was SO HAPPY to run back into the kitchen and get my water cup from the table. The task should only have taken a second. Instead, i heard chairs being pushed around and some grunting. Then she mumbled to herself something about, "Reach!" Finally she returned triumphantly with a cup in hand. Unfortunately, it was not my current water cup that was left on the edge of the table within easy reach. It was Daddy's water cup from dinner last night, which had not been cleared away. It had been moved to the very center of the table where you could not easily get to it if you happened to be 36 inches tall. But she had gone after that day-old water cup with everything she had. She climbed and grunted and reached until she claimed her prize. Mama had requested water, and the BabyGirl was not going to return empty-handed.

She was so pleased with herself as she presented me with the day-old cup she had procured. I thanked her profusely and made a big deal about what a great helper she was and such a big girl to get the cup all by herself. Nonetheless, i couldn't bring myself to drink the small amount of water that was in that cup. Day-old Daddy backwash was swimming on the surface and taunting me. It really grossed me out.

But i was so touched by her desire to help that it took my mind off the pain a little. Then she sat down next to me and snuggled up close. She gently rubbed my leg and said, "All better, Mama. All better."

I'm so greatful for that moment. She doesn't have the first idea about sacroiliac joints, but she dropped everything to be present with me when i was in need. She has repeatedly demonstrated her compassion during her short life, and i am so impressed by her caring nature.

A few weeks ago it was my turn to serve in the nursery. The kids were sitting in chairs quietly eating their crackers at snack time. A mom came in carrying her three-year-old girl who was in the middle of a tantrum. It wasn't a kicking, thrashing tantrum; it was a fairly well composed crying tantrum. The girl just wanted to cry and nothing else. She didn't want to be comforted by her mom, she didn't want to talk about it, she didn't want to be distracted with toys, she just wanted to cry. So her mom put her in a chair in the corner and left.

Most of the kids in the nursery took little notice of this. They continued enjoying their snack. The BabyGirl, however, was full of concern. She had such a worried look on her face when she said to me, "Girl is crying!" I asked the BabyGirl if she wanted to go give her a hug, which is exactly what she wanted to do. Unfortunately, the crying girl wasn't so much in the mood for a hug. She had her head buried in her lap, and none of her body parts were very accessible. The BabyGirl did the best she could and hugged as much of the girl as she could get to.

(We later found out that the crying girl had lice at the time (her mom didn't discover the critters until that afternoon), so i was VERY RELIEVED that the hug wasn't a close embrace!)

Once again, the situation proved that the BabyGirl is a very tenderhearted soul who is attentive to others.

I didn't fully grasp the significance of all these things until a friend asked me if the BabyGirl was treating me okay while i'm so physically limited. I told her that the BabyGirl's favorite pasttime is snuggling, and that she is perfectly happy to curl up with me and read books. My friend was shocked. She has three little boys, so she didn't even know that such a thing as snuggling existed in the world. Her boys want to spend all day playing Hide & Seek, Superheroes Jump Off the Couch, and Pillow Attack.

It was the words "pillow attack" that really got to me. I'm pretty sure that pillow attack would be the end of me. The only foreseeable outcomes are either several weeks in traction, or a Clinitron bed with a Sip 'n Puff.

I was extremely greatful for my BabyGirl prior to that conversation, and now i'm exponentially more greatful! Praise the Lord for snuggles instead of pillow attack.

I am excited to see the plans that God has for the BabyGirl, and the ways in which she will be able to apply her gift of compassion. I pray that He gives me the wisdom and insight to point her towards the woman He created her to be.

 

Tales from the Church Nursery: Birth Order Stereotypes

I used to be terrified of my church's nursery, but now i love it!  It's such a fascinating place.  I think it's due to the fact that I'm now in there regularly, so i'm able to get a feel for the kids' personalities.  There are some great things that happen there on Sunday mornings.  It would be hilarious to make a reality show about the church nursery.  You could even have voice-overs like the E-trade commercials.

There is one little girl in the nursery that took me several months to figure out.  We'll call her Kaylee.  I'm not entirely sure now old she is?  Somewhere around 3.  She's very physical, which used to make me mad because it wasn't safe for the BabyGirl to be in the room when Kaylee was there.  Kaylee is very unpredictable and all over the place.  She runs around, then throws herself down on the floor, then jumps up, then grabs the large rubbermade storage bins for the toys, then throws them across the room.  There is a lot of falling and thrashing and throwing and screaming.  One week she made a "train" by lining up the chairs.  Many of the other kids were unaware\unimpressed by her efforts, and would inadvertently move a chair out of line.  Oh my gosh did she have a hissy fit about this.  "WAAAHHHHH!!!  I'M MAKING A TRAIN AND HE RUINED IT!!!!"  My reaction was, "Sorry, sister, but this is a small room with lots of kids, and we can't all submit to your whims."  And then it hit me, The Big Epiphany:

Oh right, you are the middle child.

My sister Kay is also the middle child, and is very vocal about how horrible it is.  She talks about it so frequently that we all kind of blow her off.  But mostly we just don't have a framework for understanding what she's talking about.  Honestly I never understood the plight of the middle child until that moment with Kaylee and the train.  Suddenly it all made sense: the acting out, the drama queen, the falling all over the place.  All for the cause of "Look at me, look at me!  Pay me some attention!"  Also the need to be in control and the need to exert her will.

Now that i get where she's coming from, i can show her more grace.  For example: there is one small table in the nursery, and it has to serve many purposes.  At first it is the coloring table.  Then they clear it off to make it the snack table.  I had to feed the BabyGirl her spoonies in the nursery, which necessitated me using a small section of table.  It was strewn with crayons and constructions paper and other items.  Of course the BabyGirl was grabbing at whatever she could reach while i was setting up my supplies.  The BabyGirl grabbed at some item in particular, and Kaylee said in a voice that meant business, "That's mine."  I took the hint.  We musn't offend the middle child.  We will not grab that item.

Kaylee has a younger brother in the nursery as well.  The younger brother is currently the youngest child, but only for a few more weeks.  His mother is due any minute with #4, at which point Younger Brother has the misfortune of becoming another middle child.  Younger Brother is very clingy.  He cries from the moment he is dropped off in the nursery until the moment his parents return.  Recently he has made great progress.  He only cries for the first 10 minutes, and then he is willing to be distracted from his sorrow.  With one exception: any opening of the nursery door.  It sets him howling.  We discovered that if someone must go in or out, we have to face him away from the door and occupy his attention so he doesn't notice.

There is another little boy in the nursery who is the youngest of a great many kids.  He is significantly jealous of his mother's affections.  His mother loves children more than anything, and loves to volunteer in the nursery.  It breaks the little boy's heart to see her with other kids.  He tries every trick in the book.  Regression to infant behavior, sweet hugs\kisses, and acting out.  You can see it in his face, "I already have to compete with all those siblings when we are at home, and now i have to compete with these kids too?!?! It's just too much."

It was so interesting to me that some of these classic birth order behaviors are clear from a young age.  I'm the oldest, and The Professor is the youngest, so i'm glad that between the two of us we have multiple perspectives covered.  I remember thinking when i was little, if my sister Kay got her way, "Daddy just likes her more because he is the middle child too."

I want to hear from you guys - what birth order are you?  Do you have any typical characteristics of your type?  Let's hear your stories!  (This means you, Eugenia!) (and you too, Tim!)  Just click on "x comments" below.  If you don't have any of the profile options listed, you can chose Anonymous. 

This topic is very interesting to me, so i want to hear what you have to say.  Thanks for sharing!
 

Plays Well With Others

The BabyGirl had a great time in church nursery this Sunday.  It was so cute!  Our church nursery is not usually the type of place that a baby girl could have a good time in.  Those of you in suburban environments have a very different nursery experience than we get here in A Very Small Church In the Big City Where Hardly Anyone Is A Christian.  For numerous reasons that i don't have time to go into, our nursery is terrifying.

Additionally, the age range in our nursery is extensive.  It goes from birth through 5 years, all packed in one little room.  Fortunately there aren't rats or cockroaches in our current building, so that's a big step up from where we used to be.  Oh and the fire alarm didn't work there either.  The BabyGirl cannot be left unattended in the nursery, because she would be completely demolished and bulldozed by the bigger kids.  So either The Professor or I have to stay in there with her.

This Sunday, being January 2, there was a very light crowd at church.  A lot of people were still out of town, and i think some were sick.  There were only a couple of kids in the nursery, and the more rambunctious individuals weren't there.  It gave The BabyGirl the chance to play.  She got to crawl all around, which she usually can't do without being stepped on by the rambuctious kids.  One of the girls who was there is 4 years old and LOVES babies.  Loves loves loves them.  She has told me on many occasions how good she is at taking care of babies.  She knows how to feed them and hold them and rock them and play with them.  She would absolutely babysit for us if we asked her.  She loves The BabyGirl, and every week she asks us if she can feed her and hold her and rock her and play with her.

For security purposes we'll call this little girl Sarah.  As far as i know, there aren't any predators following my blog, but better safe than sorry.  It just so happened to be time to feed The BabyGirl, and Sarah was all over it.  "I'll feed her!  Can i feed her?  I'm really really good at feeding babies."  I fed The BabyGirl her bottle, and then i let Sarah do the rice cereal.  She did a great job!  Sure enough, she is really good at feeding babies! 

After eating, i put The BabyGirl on the floor to play.  Sarah picked out toys for her.  Sarah's little brother, who is 2, played with The BabyGirl also.  There was also a little girl about 18 months, so the 4 of them all played together.  I had so much fun watching them.  The BabyGirl was the only one who couldn't walk, so Sarah decided that all of them would crawl like the BabyGirl.  Sarah's brother had big clunky shoes on, so she made him take them off.  He must have thought, "Well if i can't wear shoes then nobody can wear shoes" cause he took The BabyGirl's shoes off. 

The BabyGirl appeared to have a great time.  She was smiling her great big smile, and looked really happy.  She doesn't have any siblings yet, so she doesn't get to play with other kids much.  She sees her friend David a lot, but he's younger than her.  The BabyGirl's two great joys in life are being with people and physical activity, so she had both those needs met.