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Friday 16 October 2009

Hmmm

To say my daughter is a mummy's girl is an understatement of such epic proportions it could shift tectonic plates and change the shape of our world.

To say my daughter can be a bit of a madam is not an understatement, she is a bit, but it feels me with epic proportions of dread.

It is something I am keen to nip in the bud. Well a little bit.

The last thing I want is to raise a brat. But a little mischief is OK, in fact it is desirable.

And confidence, well that I'd like to give her in spades.

So, while I am in this frame of mind, imagine how I felt to be pulled aside by Isobel's nursery teacher to be told she had bitten, yes I said bitten, twice that day.

She wasn't the initiator but she did retaliate, and then in shock she cried. It's a bit of a double edge sword isn't it: you don't want her to bite but you want her to stand up for herself.

Now I get to bit all parents get to, I have the excuses...

She is having problem with her final molars, the way she gnaws on her own fingers is somewhat of a clue; she's only 1 1/2 how do you discipline a 1 1/2 year old; it's just a phase, all toddlers go through it.....

But really, I wanted to cry (completely out of proportion), I looked at her differently and I didn't know what to do.

I just wanted to do better for both of us, hey ho we'll get there. She'll train me soon enough.

2 comments:

Kate said...

Well, I've been there with the other two and just today, I took the baby to playgroup where she showed alarmingly familiar symptoms of being just like her brother and sister!! Oh no!!! But they're not biting now - or hair-pulling which was my son's favourite. They're relatively civilised at least in public. Hang in there!!

Nicola said...

Yep been there, done that too. And also been the mum on the receiving end. This is just the beginning of the myriad of ways that your daughter will find to shock and humiliate you with her unsocial behaviour!! I know we all hate if when it is our little 'cherub' who is biting / hitting / spitting etc but it is normal. My 2nd boy went through a stage of biting to demonstrate his frustration. It was ok when he did it with me because I would immediately put him down, tell him NO BITING and walk away. Not so easy to control when they are doing it to their friends (or even worse, complete strangers in a play centre / playground...oh god, earth please swallow me up).