I have come to the realization today that my child's realm of understanding is expanding. With that understanding comes a whole new responsibility for me. You see up until now every milestone came and I was prepared for it. Teething, get some teething tablets; ready for food, make some baby purees; walking, time for some hard soled shoes; sleep regression, get a white noise maker. Every milestone seems to have a product to assist you with the new development. But now, now I find myself in a situation where I cannot reach out for the nearest devise or latest fad. I have to actually start teaching my child about life.
Don't get me wrong I have surrounded her with love and laughter. I have taken her to the pumpkin patch and to the pool and exposed her to new and exciting adventures but now that she is understanding more and exploring on her own, I need to teach her how to... well cope with life. What to touch and not touch, what is acceptable behavior and what will not be tolerated by society, teach her colors, teach her how to read, and really it only gets bigger and more complex from there.
Here I had just mastered baby mode. Changing diapers and washing bottles and snuggling and playing with the dogs. That was the easy part. What am I going to to when I am responsible for helping her lean how to read? What am I going to do when she asks me a difficult question?
One of my biggest fears is that she is starting to notice when mommy is tired or in a bad mood. I know it is impossible but I really wanted to be happy all the time for her. I do not want her to ever see me defeated by life's little annoyances. I wanted to rise above all of that especially since our time together is short. Alas, I am not perfect, no one is and I guess that's part of it all, part of learning about life.
My other dilemma is that she is at daycare all day. She is learning and thriving from being there and spending time with other kids and they have a great curriculum but I am not there to teach her. I have to wonder if she was with me would she be full on walking by now? Would she be saying different things besides uh-oh and hi? I know I can't change this and I suppose she has a path set out for her in life and daycare learning is part of it but the control freak and nurturer in me wants to be the one to guide her through. I guess all I can do is take it one day at a time, try not to overwhelm her and love her with all my heart. The rest will hopefully fall into place.
How did you handle your child's rapid development? Did you ever feel like you were not doing enough?
No comments:
Post a Comment
I'd love to hear from you!