Missing out

I have a child who is technically less than 2 years old.

She does not accept such accusations though. She is one of those big kids. The big kids who get their own food out. That dress themselves, that get to decide where they sit. The kids that can read books, and climb things. Ride bikes and carry on conversations. Those cool kids that buckle themselves into their car seats and pour their own drinks. That's right, she is one of them.

Except, she's not. She's shy of 2. Precocious, but 2.

She has opinions. Lots of 'em. She has passion and drive. Toys? Those are for babies. She won't condescend to such immature past times And oh, she is full of ideas. She was a major player in that spaghetti mess I mentioned a while back.

She has started a new hobby recently. One that I will whole heartedly support.

She nests. You will find her in the middle of the living room. She pulls blankets out and piles them neatly around her. In fact the other day she found me cooking. She explained that I needed to see her blanket. It went something like this-P: "(incoherent mumbling and random syllables) blanket." So she led me by the hand out into the living room to admire her handiwork. 3 pillows, 1 large blanket, a broken mardi gras necklace and a book. Her little treasure trove.

She disappeared immediately after prayers 2 nights ago with a piece of fleece. "Time for bed Phebe!" We found her dragging that fleece off to add to her nest. She was livid when she was taken away from the fleece and placed in her crib.

She is very popular at the bus stop. The comment was made recently "You sure are cute, but I have a feeling you are more fun to watch from a distance than it would be to actually take care of you."

I smiled, paused and then said "She is exciting to care for, but you miss out on so many little things if you only see her from a distance."

It would be so sad to me to miss out on her moments. The moments where she understands. The moments when she is on a mission. When she tells you things. How sad I would be to miss out on her attempts at tickling me. Or how she loves it when my hair is in a pony tail she can pet. How desperately she wants to have an important task to accomplish. The way she beams when you catch on to what song she is singing, or how enthusiastically she dances when you turn on music. Her willingness to get down and wrestle with the big kids. The squeals when she is chased.

She does indeed require lots of supervision. (She doesn't even make it through the night with her pajamas still on unless she is safety pinned in.) Dancing on the piano was a glamorous thing to do for a good while. She hasn't accepted that some furniture isn't for climbing on yet and she is very wiggly through meetings.

What a hole would be left in my heart if she were not here though. She brings so much to those around her.I can not wait to see what her life will bring. Easier from a distance? Maybe. But so much less rewarding.