He often wants to be a big kid but doesn't quite like the effort required. Examples- potty training and opening the door to go outside. Today he suited up for an outdoor adventure and I had him bring over his stool from the bathroom for a door opening tutorial. Not the first one, probably not the last. That's parenting! And look at his happy face!
I love his imaginative playing!!! He's seriously easy because he's so content playing on his own in his own world!
We were stuck at vehicle registration yesterday for over 2 hours with no toys and no snacks. He was perfectly content almost the entire time as he'd play with Aliza and then practice sliding on the filthy, but smooth floor. One man couldn't contain himself and said a few times, not to anyone in particular, "The floor is dirty!" I just looked him in the eye and said, "But he's happy." Just matter of fact, no anger.
There weren't enough chairs for those waiting and I had plenty of wipes, sanitizer and a bathroom nearby which made for good hand washing breaks when we needed a distraction. I don't have it in me to force my 3 yr old to act older than he is and endure making us all miserable when I could give him freedom and joy to be himself which lent itself to some very sweet, entertaining antics. Further, we were only going to be outside for the rest of the day so him getting dirty was only a matter of time and location. All his clothes are play clothes except for church ones. There are definite times when I would have had to enforce proper behavior but this wasn't one of them.
And there was another thing on my mind. There was a young pregnant woman sitting near us. This would be her first child. She was enjoying watching Jake and especially how he played with Aliza. She has a stepson Jake's age and she's anxious how he'll get along with the baby. You bet she paid attention to how I responded to the disgruntled man. I hope she'll remember that she can have confidence in her parenting - to do what's best for her child even when others are vocally disagreeing. I hope I can remember to keep this confidence too!
