All By Self
Posted By Kathleen David on September 26, 2006
Caroline has a relatively new phrase in her vocabulary which is All By Self. She wants to do things on her own including a few that she still needs help with but she wants to ask for help rather than just being helped. She has, for the most part, graduated to the big potty with a potty ring to make sure she doesn’t fall in. If the potty is not set up for her when she enters the bathroom then SHE has to put the step stool and ring in place and SHE has to pull down her panties. She tries to pull up the panties too but that is harder to do. If we do any of this while she can see us then we have the “all by self” chant and we have to put everything back for her to do it. So far no accidents in the panties while she gets things the way she likes it.
Getting dressed is another thing that is now done all by self with the exception of getting some help getting her arms through the sleeves. Recently she has added putting on her shoes or sandals to her all by self list. The socks I roll so she can pull them on which, so far, she has permitted me to do.
She understands that if she wants to pull more toys out then the things she has been playing with need to go back. This doesn’t mean that she wants to do it that way. We have managed to get her to do it our way for the most part. I used the all by self to my advantage in this situation. She is slowing learning (or letting on that she has learned) that when one book comes out the one she is done with goes back on the shelf.
I find it amazing that in 3 short years she has gone from dependant baby to independent little girl. Time does move faster when you have children. She plays by herself but she also plays well with others. Her attention span is fantastic if it is something she wants to do but has learned to pay attention and focus on something I or someone else needs her to do. That is a big step.
She loves being read to and we always go over what is on the page of the book. I ask her to find things or count things which she does very well. Some books she knows so well that she “reads” them to me or to herself. Other books she opens and creates her own story based on the pictures within. She will sit down with one of my doll making magazines and look through it very carefully. She will point out to me the dolls she likes and the dolls she thinks are silly. She loves the National Geographic when there are animal pictures in it. She has worn out two copies of the panda issue. She found an older kids book on pandas that still has lots of pictures that she loves to sit down with and make up stories.
In a few short months she will be 4 years old. Hard to believe it but I know it is true because I have been here to see it happen. She becomes more independent every day but she still needs her Mommy and Daddy. She needs her hugs and tickles. She needs us to take care of her so that she can become an independent young lady and I am happy to be a part of it.
I am grateful that she does want to do things “all by self”.
Kath, cherish every minute!!!
Today is Number 3 son’s last full day at School. Last Friday was the Yr 12 Formal. I’m getting quite teary thinking about it. I packed his last school lunch today. School (Kinder -Yr11, Yr 12 will already be gone) breaks up for the Spring Holidays on Friday. He has 6 examinations over 3 weeks in October and November. He’ll put his uniform on for the last time for Speech Night/Graduation in December.
I’m sure that it was only yesterday that he was 5years old and we took him for his Kindergarten interview with the Headmaster. Could it really have been 1993? Where have the last 13 years gone?