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Rhythm pulses through her veins. Melodies fill her brain. Her days are filled with music and dancing. A day without dancing isn’t a day worth living as far as she is concerned. She is a musical soul.
Dancing to her favorite Dragon song 
There isn’t any one type of music that she gravitates towards, although a good beat does seems to help. The only requirement for making the list is that the song speaks to her and makes her want to dance. If she can’t not dance to a song it will become an instant favorite and very quickly makes its way onto her iPod. Her favorites range from Gwen Stefani’s The Sweet Escape, to Adele’s Rolling in the Deep, to Forbidden Friendship from the How to Train Your Dragon Soundtrack, to OneRepublic’s All the Right Moves, to Led Zeppelin’s Bron-Y-Aur Stomp, to Eminem’s Like Toy Soldiers.
Her musical tastes are beautifully eclectic. And, there is just no swaying her opinion, no matter how hard her daddy tries You can’t convince her she doesn’t like a song once she has developed a taste for it and you can’t convince her that she likes a song that hasn’t spoken to her. She usually knows the very first time she hears a song whether it is a keeper or not. There is no telling what her next favorite is going to be either, she will hear a song on the radio or in a movie or something, it makes her want to dance and is an instant new favorite.
I love her love for music. I love how she sings to her self a random times throughout the day and will just start dancing to some tune playing in her head. I’m pretty sure there is always a song playing in her head.
Our pets are a part of our family. Often times they are our babies before we have actual babies. They are often our children’s first friend, and the bond they form together is a strong and beautiful one. Sadly, a child’s first experience with loss often comes when the family pet dies. Talking to your children about the loss of their beloved friend can be difficult, especially when your child is experiencing death and grief for the first time. The age of the child is going to play a big role in how they perceive the loss, handle the grief and how best to talk to them about the death of a pet.
With two aging kitties in our household, age 14 and 13, and a little girl who grows increasingly attached to her kitty buddies every day, this is a topic I have worried about, researched and considered quite a bit. Last week one of our kitties became very ill and at one point it was looking like the end may be very near. Luckily, her condition has improved and it looks like she’ll be around for a little bit longer. As I was back and forth to the vet and busy administering the medication necessary to hopefully improve Miss Laura’s condition I couldn’t stop thinking about how I was going to talk to Maya about all of it. I tried to play over the conversations in my head many times. We talked to her about the fact that Laura was very sick but I didn’t mention the “D” word because I didn’t want to unnecessarily worry her until we knew for sure what was going on. I did, however, do a lot of research so I would be a little more prepared if/when the time comes.
How a child handles the loss of their pet friend is going to vary, just as how we adults handle loss varies. Some children may not appear to be affected and carry on much as usual, this is particularly true for children too young to really understand death. It is normal for children to cry, have changes in mood, appetite, and behavior after the loss of a pet. It is normal for children to ask a lot of questions and even sometimes wonder if something they did caused their pet to die. Children don’t generally understand the permanence of death until around age 7 or so and children younger than that may continue to ask when the pet is going to come back. The most important thing you can do for your child as they grieve for their pet friend is to be there for them, to cuddle with them, talk to them and listen to them. Talking about how they feel and letting them ask as many questions as they need to is very important.
One of the big worries for many parents is how best to explain death and what happens after a pet dies. How to talk to your child about this is going to depend on their age and your beliefs. The best thing you can do is tailor your conversations to your child’s age and understanding of death and to your beliefs as a family. Your child’s questions will be a big help in determining what they understand will help lead the conversation in a good direction for them.
I found several websites in my research last week that provide great information about how children display and deal with grief and how best to help them through their grief.
- The Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement
- The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
- Family Corner.com
In a couple of weeks Maya will be going on her very first field trip. Her little preschool class is taking a trip to the pumpkin patch. They get to ride on a bus and everything!
At her school the teacher to child ratio is great. There are 9 kids in her class and 3 teachers. Two of the classes are pairing up for the trip so there will be 18 kids and 6 teachers plus one of the assistant principals is tagging along and the OT that works with one of the kids in Maya’s class. So, given that so many adults will be there they didn’t ask for parent volunteers to be extra eyes. Parents are, however, invited to tag along if they want.
I want to, I would love to be part of this little experience. But. Ya, there’s a but. But, I’m worried that my being there will mean that Maya’s experience isn’t as a great as it could be. You see, Maya is very shy. When we had our parent/teacher conference a few weeks ago it was one of the topics we discussed. I wasn’t surprised that her teacher had noticed it, since we witness it every time we are out with friends, or Maya encounters strangers and even acquaintances while we are out and about. She is super shy around other people and it takes time for her to warm up and talk to people. Her teacher has mentioned that she is starting to see her come out of her shell, she is starting to communicate with her friends and the teachers more and more. So, I’m worried that my being there with her on the field trip will limit her, that she will use me as a shield and won’t be as open, as talkative, as adventurous.
As much as I want to go, to be part of this little adventure with her, I’m leaning towards sitting this one out. I haven’t made a firm decision yet, but I want her to have the best first field trip experience possible and if that means I have to sit this one out than that is what I will do.
Any of you other mommas of shy kiddos had a similar experience? Any advice for me?
This month, around our house, is going to be all about routine change. In less than three weeks Maya starts preschool (still can’t quite believe it). With the start of preschool comes the need for a few bad habits to be changed around here and the need for a new quick, manageable morning routine that will allow us to get out the door in time for school drop off.
When I signed Maya up for preschool last fall she was definitely a morning person. She was consistently waking up between 6:30am and 7:00am every morning. The morning was her most cheerful time and she was still napping most days in the afternoon. So, given what our routine at the time was I figured morning preschool would be the best for her. When we found out, in May, about our Tuesday/Thursday morning spot opening up for the new school year I started to regret my decision to go with mornings, but it was too late. A lot has changed in our lives and in Maya routine since last fall when I first added her to the wait list. She no longer gets up as early. Some mornings she sleeps until 8am or so and it takes her forever to get going in the morning. Plus, she is no longer napping in the afternoons. Not to mention, of course, I now have a newborn to get ready to go in the morning too. But, since no afternoon spots were available, we’re just going to have to make it work. I foresee some crazy frantic mornings in our future while we adjust.
In order to control the chaos that will be the first few weeks of school as we adjust to the new schedule I am implementing a few routine changes around here over the next few weeks.
The first big change is how and where we eat breakfast. Maya has never been a fan of eating as soon as she gets up, she would rather play for a bit. And, we have developed this nasty habit of eating in the family room so she can play/watch television while she eats. I admit this is totally my fault, I should never have started this bad habit in the first place. It was just easy because it allowed her to eat breakfast at her own pace and play at the same time. However, now we won’t have time for that on school days. So, we are starting a new routine of eating breakfast as soon as we get up at the dining room table. This morning was our first go and it went pretty well. She only ate about half her breakfast before claiming she was full and getting down to go play. It didn’t take long before she was hungry and asking for snacks though. It’ll get better I’m sure. Hopefully, by the time August 18th rolls around she’ll be eating all her breakfast, quickly, at the table every morning.
Next week our big routine adjustment is going to be wake up time. Lorne gets up every morning around 6:00am (ish) to get ready for work. My plan is to get up at the same time and shower and then wake Maya up around 6:30am to get our day started. I want to make sure we have plenty of time in the mornings so that we aren’t too rushed. At first I’ll make her do this every day so she gets used to it. Over time, as she adjusts to the school days schedule, I’ll let her return to waking on her own on non-school days.
The wrench in all of this, the unknown, is Anna and when she is going to want to eat. But, we’ll just have to take that as it comes and hopefully I’ll be able to get her into a good routine that works around Maya’s school schedule.
It’ll all work out, I just have to keep telling myself that.
![5-16-11 Having fun on the ferry [640x480]](http://www.letstalkbabies.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/5-16-11-Having-fun-on-the-ferry-640x480.JPG "5-16-11 Having fun on the ferry [640x480]")
When I think about the words I would use to describe my sweet little girl right now, at the age of 3 and a half (+), this picture captures them all. She is full of life, loves to joke and make people laugh, and has a smile that could light up any room and any heart.
It is hard to sum up all that is Maya right now, all the tiny parts that make up who she is. She is definitely a stubborn (very stubborn), independent 3 year old. She is opinionated and strong willed and can battle with the best of them to get what she wants. She is also full of life and giggles and has more energy than anyone I’ve ever met. She loves to entertain us by dancing and singing and doing things she finds funny. If she is doing something that she thinks deserves applause she will tell you to clap. If she is doing something that she finds funny she will tell you to laugh (even if she has done it a million times and it has long since lost its humor).
In a couple of months, a little less actually, she’ll be starting preschool. She is ready in so many ways for this next big adventure. I can’t wait to see what she learns, and how she grows from this new adventure. One of her favorite games to play right now is school. She sets up all her guys in her bedroom, which she calls her very special library, and declares herself the teacher. She teaches her guys new things and reads to them, it is adorable to watch.
But, before she starts school, an even bigger change is coming for Maya. She is about to become a big sister. Her little family, the family she has known her whole life is about to change. Her little world is about to be turned upside down. The transition will be made so much easier since she is so excited about becoming a big sister and really looking forward finally getting to meet her baby sister. I know there will be some struggles, but we’ll handle those as they come. She has so much to give as a big sister and will be an amazing big sister.
I love all the little parts that make up this sweet little girl, even the parts that make me want to pull my hair out sometimes. I’ve watched her change and grow and become who she is today over the last 3 plus years and I’m looking forward to continuing to watch her grow and change. She is one amazing little girl and I’m so glad I get to call her my daughter.
![060 [640x480]](http://www.letstalkbabies.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/060-640x480.JPG "060 [640x480]")
Love you bunches sweet baby girl.