The Lesson of the Wallet

As we walk out the door to run errands, E. squeals with delight at the sight of my wallet. I let her hold it and she proudly clutches it with both hands as we head towards the car. She loves to open and close it, and pull out all of my credit cards. This happens EVERY time she sees the thing.

I've always wondered why babies love things like remotes, keys, phones and wallets, and now I've decided why. These things are important to us; necessary in our daily lives. I would be frantic and lost if I couldn't find my wallet. Elsie sees how important this item is to me, and so it becomes important and interesting to her as well. She is just trying to emulate her mommy.

Just like that orange wallet, I can pass the necessity and importance of other things on to her. Today I'm committing to better show her my dedication to music, reading, being happy, and loving the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Fear Conquered

A couple months ago, I thought I had scarred our baby for life. While she was in the tub, I let Elsie slip under the water and take a nice big gulp. She came up screaming, and has had the same reaction to water ever since.

Well... last week we decided to try out our town's premier pool/ fun center. I crossed my fingers and hoped E. would enjoy (or at least tolerate) the water. Tons of kids were splashing in the shallow, toddler area. Elsie's eyes always light up around kids, so this was a good start.

I stuck her into the water, which was about 6" deep, and she instantly freaked. I picked her up, and let her watch all the kids laughing and playing. This example was just what she needed, and her reaction changed from night to day. She loved to run through the water and stick her face into the fountains. Her favorite thing was a small slide, with a waterfall to go through at the end. What an excellent day it turned out to be! And if you're wondering, this positive association has transferred over to the bathtub. She loves it there too.

Sheetrock

We all know that babies like to put everything in their mouths, from dried out apples to pieces of tape, to bits of lint. Most of the time, I just let Elsie be, because whatever she has can't really hurt her. Well... last week she found something quite disturbing to eat. My child has a fascination with the bathroom, especially loving the height of the tub for walking along. Right on the outside of the shower is a piece of wall that has repeatedly gotten wet, and the paint has peeled off.
What happened the other day follows-

Me: Cleaning up while Elsie plays, then looking for her when I notice she is missing. I peek inside the bathroom. "What are you doing princess?"

Elsie: Looks up at me, with a smear of white across her face. Shakes her head. (This means she doesn't want to be caught in the act of whatever she is doing.) Elsie is scratching her fingers on the exposed sheetrock, getting a little off, and eating it! Gross! Whatever even possessed her to do that?!

Whenever I don't pay attention, she heads for the bathroom, and sometimes even makes it to her special little spot. It seems she liked the taste of sheetrock. But don't worry, I'm making sure to repaint it tomorrow!