Making Friends... and maybe a Foe

As Toes heads further into Toddlerhood, I have grown interested in seeing how she relates to other kids. I have been curious if her interactions are "normal" or if she is somehow different.

While meeting with her daycare provider yesterday, I asked the question.

I was pleased to hear that Erin is interacting with the other children as any other child would. She plays and reacts to games and songs. She sits and listens to stories and points at the pictures. She plays kitchen with her girlfriends and giggles while playing hide and seek around the furniture.

A little bit of bad news is that there is apparently a little boy in her class that is somewhat targetting Toes. She has been bitten twice and the teachers get the impression that he somehow knows she is "different". They are working with both the little boy and Erin to work out the issue.

It is so hard. I am sure that the little boy's parents are feeling worse about the whole thing than we are. I am struggling between the desire to protect her and the need to help make her strong and able to deal with this sort of thing.

Toes is going to need to be tough. I need to find a balance between teaching her to stand up for herself, without her losing the sweetness that makes her "Toes". It is a fine line to walk. But we are working through it with the teacher and hopefully she will find a way to tell the boy to back off, without having to stoop to the same type of behavior.

A piece of really great news is that Erin has made a special little friend in class. "M" is a little girl a few months older than Erin. They play together all day, walk around holding hands, etc. It is so wonderful to hear! I have not met M yet, but I am looking forward to meeting her.

M's mom called me this week to set up a playdate. In two weeks we'll meet and let the girls play together. I am really looking forward to the opportunity to see her playing and interacting with a friend. :)

What the Experts are saying

Yesterday we had a meeting with Erin's daycare teacher about how she is doing.

Erin scored right on target for all developmental areas - although she still ranks behind on language development. She is doing great on receptive language - she follows spoken direction almost 100% of the time. Which is great for a toddler! She is behind on her spoken language. But she continues to improve by leaps and bounds.

Interestingly, she has added another "name" to her list of words: "Jen". Jen was one of her first teachers and continues on as the Asst Director of the daycare Erin attends, so Erin still sees her quite frequently. Whenever she comes into the room or happens to walk by, Erin yells out "Jen!" She has Mama, Dadeee... and Jen.

(But, please... don't tell the grandparents!)