Bleurgh

We've been talking about our feelings at our house lately. Not in a weirdo, touchy-feely kind of way, but a more concrete, explanatory way. When Nan is unable to fasten her sandals properly, I say, "Wow, you must feel frustrated, huh?" And when she wants to stay up and watch a little more "Blue's Clue's" rather than go down for her nap, we talk about how sad or angry she feels when I tell her nuh-uh, kid, naptime is SACRED. Mommy needs to eat lunch and watch some crappy tv uninterrupted. I didn't realize that our words were having much of an effect upon her until today. After we made a run to the grocery store, Jay decided to stop at the carwash. Nan really has a love/hate relationship with the carwash... she hates it until we get into the tunnel-y thing, and then she remembers she loves it. Anyway, she was expressing her wish to go home and eat lunch, but Jay told her we had to visit the carwash first. She began to sob, pleading with us to go home. It culminated in her crying, "I'm getting SO SAD right now!" We found that to be simultaneously heartbreaking and hilarious. Mostly hilarious. I told her she used the word properly, and commended her for sharing her feelings... but sorry, kid, no dice. The car is filthy. She lived, and in fact had a fun time spotting the stuffed animals the car wash guys hang throughout the tunnel. As usual. Later this evening, on our usual evening walk, she tripped over her sandal and went flying through the air, landing square on her knees. She was scraped and bloody, and when we got home to clean her up, she was hysterical at the sight of her own blood. (I was a little shaken, too-- she's NEVER bled that much... poor baby.) While Jay bathed her knees, she screamed, "I so SCARED right now, Daddy!" Saddest. thing. ever. Again, we told her she was doing a great job expressing herself, but daddy had to clean her scrapes or she would get sick. It's so cool to realize that she's able to help us understand how she feels, and it's kind of an awesome responsibility for us to help her have the proper words to make us understand her.