Toddler Fights

Sadly, Baby Sarah is gone; Toddler Sarah (16 months already) has replaced her. We love T. Sarah because she is so fun and entertaining. Alas, she is starting to get into anything that interests her...which is everything. And T. Sarah is FAST. She is faster than I am, which is really not a good thing.

Sarah has become aware of her world. She mimics a lot of what is happening around her. She does have a bit of a lag time, though. In Sacrament Meeting, she will raise both hands to sustain someone...well after the appropriate moment to oppose (which I'm sure she doesn't)! In Relief Society Sunday, she laughed a few seconds after everyone else did (she knows how to make the most of it).

If she is doing something she shouldn't, she gives you a big cheesy grin. And it does save her...for now. Once she realizes that she's done something to make you laugh, she tries it a few more times - just for the thrill.

Along with all of this maturity comes the awareness of fairness. If I give it to someone, she wants it, too. If someone takes it from her, she tries to take it back. She's pretty good about it a lot of the time...she keeps a straight face and doesn't say too much.

And then today she and Joseph were fighting over a step stool. While keeping a firm hold of their side of the stool, they both looked up at me with expressive faces which I interpreted this way:

Joseph - What the heck? Is she actually going to challenge me on this? I'm not sure I like T. Sarah!

Sarah - I get everything I want. I want this stool!

Sorry cookies

If you're expecting this to be a post glorifying another kitchen disaster, you're wrong. But your assumption would not be unfounded. I do have plenty of those stories that have made it into my blog.

This post is a story of Leah and her little friend who is over today. They've been playing together since they got home from school about 3 hours ago. Lunch went fine and they played for a long time before any feelings got hurt. Then it happened.

Leah: I'm six and you're five. (I imagine this was said with at least a hint of superiority.)
Friend: Well, my birthday is blah, blah, blah. (She didn't say blah, blah, blah; I just can't remember what her b-day is now.)

Then Leah comes upstairs and announces her friend is being rude and replays the conversation for me. Leah wouldn't admit that her original statement might have started the problem and insisted on being offended at the tone in which her friend replied.

Five to ten minutes later, I hear Leah yelling and a door slams. Hmm...maybe I should step in and be a parent here before we send this little girl home with emotional and/or physical scars. At this point, I'm thankful for Rebekah who continues to play happily and gives me an opportunity to talk with my deeply troubled six-year-old.

I tried to explain to Leah that her friend might not have felt very good when Leah made a point of telling her she was younger. Maybe her response was a way to try to stand up for herself. I have to pause mid-sentence several times to make sure Leah can actually hear me over her crying. I'm trying not to think of the cold tears that are dripping all over my arm. (How caring of a parent does that make me?)

Eventually we come up with a plan to make up over cookies. Leah took 3 packages of cookies upstairs with a plan to say, "I'm sorry. I still want to be your friend." I listened at the bottom of the stairs, but only heard that she was talking - not what she was actually saying. It must have worked out OK, because I recently heard laughing (the fun kind).

Oy...boys are a lot less emotional! This girl thing is going to be interesting.