Mary had a little lamb

Whose fleece was white as snow
And everywhere that Mary went
The lamb was sure to go.

Me - Mary
Summy - Lamb

I used to try so hard to cajole and coax her upstairs for her bath before bedtime. Now I have it all figured out. All I have to do is go upstairs, log onto the computer, into my email, open a message, and read the first word. Ta da! Summy will peek around the door with a naughty grin and an "I see you!". This has worked for two weeks in a row.

This works anywhere, anytime. I walk away from any place, and she automatically follows. Hope that this continues for a little while!!!

Telling Left From Wrong

Our morning commute started off with mentally checking off the daily luggage list -
Handbag - check.
Lunchbag - check.
Black bag with six changes of clothes for Summy - check.
My coat and Summy's coat - check.
Gym bag (just in case I get time to work out) - check.
Cell phone - check.
Car keys - check.
Then we set off, and at the second corner we turned, I heard the little voice say "My shoes are at home, mama." Oh yes, her shoes. For a moment we thought we could get away with using the spare shoes in her cubby in school. But that didn't fly - we wanted the Dora shoes.

So we turned around and got them from home. Our conversation in the car as Summy put on her shoes:

(Puts left shoe on right foot)
"Mom, I put it on the wrong foot."

"Yes, put it on the right foot... I mean the left one."

(Puts right shoe on left foot)
"Mom, I put it on the left foot."

"That's the wrong foot, honeybunch."

(Pointing to right foot)
"No Mama, this is my wrong foot."

(Confusion all around)
"That's your right foot, Summy. But it's the wrong foot for your left shoe..."

(Finally puts her left shoe on her left foot)
"I put it on my right foot."

"Good job! You put it on the right, er, left.... Good job, Summy!"

Friends

For the first time, I caught Summy showing a preference for some of her class mates. And not too subtly either! She walked into the classroom to find all the tots seated for circle time. Several called out her name. She walked over to "S", put her face close to the other's, and said "Hi". Then she walked over to "G", and repeated this. Then she knelt down before "A", and those two had a regular lovefest. They looked into each others faces with their noses touching, getting a good close look. Then they kissed each other on the cheek, and then there was some patting of cheeks and hair. Only after concluding this ritual, Summy got up and sat in an empty spot. How cute!

Tomboy - Princess

For Halloween last week, Summy was a Tigger. I think she was a good Tigger - she bounced and went "hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo" just like the real one. She had a lot of fun "Trick-or-Treat"ing, visiting everybody's house and collecting candy. Once done, she's left the candy alone, and it's all sitting out there for a certain someone who loves chocolate :) In other words, me.

The surprising thing is that she says she wants to be a "Snow White" next time, just like Sienna (her friend). She was never that interested in princesses before, and I've never read her fairy tales either, yet. I am not even fond of Disney's drippy versions of the princesses, but if she still wants to be "Snow White" next year, then the little brownie's going to be one.

"Sum"sign

Summy is an Aries child. I couldn't help but read about Aries children on the internet recently. Now, I would like to strike off this theory that people born on a certain day in a certain month tend to have the same general characteristics. Not that I reject astrology, but this sunsigns science just seems over-simplified. But I still have to wonder at how accurately the characteristics of an Aries child describe her.

"Confidence, Pioneering Spirit, and Assertiveness". That's Summy all over. Not a bit hesitant to speak up, or do something different from what everyone else is doing.

"Though they do care about others and what others think about them, they need to be taught to be patient, and considerate." Patience is not her virtue, and she needs to be prodded a little to share her toys - but then, that might just be a general characteristic of toddlerhood too.

"They are extremely independent and one word of discouragement will put them off their task. They thrive on praise, a sense of accomplishment is very important to them." She has to do things her own way. Sometimes when I interrupted and said she was doing it wrong - "You're putting your shirt on backwards, Summy", she handed it over to me and said "You do it, mama." And then she wouldn't attempt it again for a long time. If I left her alone instead, she would figure it out all by herself, and then, when I said "Such a good job!" her face would light up.

She figures out everything by herself. "Aaawwwwll by mySELF!" is a favorite phrase with her. "Impossible" truly isn't a word in her dictionary. "Try, try, try again until you get it right" is her motto. Failure just doesn't discourage her, but negative words do. So I have to be really really careful with what I say.

I think there is some truth in what her zodiac sign predicts about her. But still, it's important not to generalize, and to remember she's a special little individual with her unique traits.

Some more about her:
Bribery seldom works. "I'll get your Dora book if you'll put your shoes on and climb in the car" will get a mischievous look and a patter of little feet running away. But good will works where bribery fails. If I get her Dora book for her first, and then ask her to put her shoes on, she'll almost always do it.

Scolding seldom works. "You're making me late for work!!!" said in a loud voice will guarantee that I'll be atleast another half an hour late. But again, good will does the job. If I sit down for a minute to see things from her point of view, and then explain that we have to get going, it usually works.

Threats work sometimes - but never in the way we'd like. "I'll turn off the light ( no stories) if you don't stop jumping around" does work, but usually gets her so upset and cranky that she takes a longer time to get to sleep.

She is only a little person, but she is a person all the same. She does not like being bossed around - who does? And as we treat her, so she responds.