A Draft from the Past

I just stumbled across this Draft post from March 2007.  This would have been when I. was about 16 months old.   The first paragraph reminds me of what challenges I faced with I. when she was young.  The second paragraph really supports how I've felt with supporting I. this year during her challenges with unkind "friends".  I'm going to print that out and tape it to my mirror to keep this in mind. 

I tell you, lately my baby girl has been trying my patience! She's at that age when she knows exactly what she wants to do but she's not able to always make that happen. That's where I come in. I usually have a second or two to decipher what she wants and if I'm not successful in this short time, a tantrum ensues. Though I am proud of her that she has matured to the point where she knows what she wants, the stress of trying to figure out what she wants in the short time period is exhausting at times. Multiply this by 10-15 times a day and you have one wiped out person by the end of the day. Of course, these expectations are only for me; Daddy gets a much longer time period and her grandparents have unlimited time to figure these things out. I guess I should take this as a big compliment but it's hard to do at the time.

One thing I've felt strongly about is being positive about your child even if you don't necessarily feel like it. One mom I know seems to never be happy with her child. She only wanted to nurse and wouldn't eat solids - now she eats solids but not neatly enough. Then her child wouldn't walk "enough", now she is irritated that her child is walking everywhere, getting into everything. I felt bad for her child because I thought to myself, "If you're not in her corner, who will be?" We as moms need to be the first and primary cheerleaders for our kids. If we don't think they're great, how will they think they are great and have the mental and emotional strength to make it through all the battles of school and life.

So that's the thought of the post. No matter how frustrated I am with my baby, I am still going to make sure she understands she is loved, liked, enjoyed, and valued.