Learning To Manage On Her Own

As my daughter is learning to spend some time away from mommy, I can see there is a change in the way she has begun handling things.

My little darling will be three next month.

Earlier, anything unpleasant would make her cry immediately, and she would not be pacified unless her mamma had picked her up and hugged her and told her that everything would be fine. Now, even if there is something that is bothering her while mamma is not around, she will not begin to cry. Instead, she tries to understand the reaction of the person in front of her and then tells them properly what it is that she thinks they are doing wrong. Thankfully, she has turned out to be good with words and can express herself clearly.

One more thing that I have noticed lately is that she has become increasingly responsible of her own belongings. She knows how to take care of her bag and bottle and her school diary and all the things that are inside her bag, like her colour pouch or her tiffin box. Earlier she would easily put down things that she may have been holding and then, forgetting about it completely, would walk away. Now, even if she does put down whatever it is that she is currently holding, she will look around after a while to see where she placed it and then pick it up. She knows what is hers and that when her mamma is not around, she is the one who will have to look after her own things.

Earlier there was also the tendency of clinging on to me too much. She would be a very confident child at home, but was always shy and insecure in the presence of others. And she constantly needed me to be with her, to hold her hand at intervals, she would need me to be with her even when she was playing with her friends. Now it has changed. I see her more confident and sure of herself in front of others, and she is beginning to be able to manage things on her own for longer periods without my constant help. She is more mature as a team-player too and there are lesser tears and fights over toys, the concept of sharing beginning to make sense to her slowly, albeit extremely slowly.

Many of the mothers I knew had begun to send their children to playschools quite early. Some kids began going to playgroups at around 1-and-half years of age, while some little ones I know went as early as 8 months!!! Well that one I am not a fan of as a personal opinion. But no judging here, its just a personal view, so no offence. I did not send her to playschool for the simple reason that I wanted her to enjoy her life a little longer than kids these days, before she went into a routine. I was anyways home teaching her already, so there was not the problem of her not doing well in an interview. But one thing I was worried about was how she would cope in a new environment, suddenly leaving mamma and going to school, while most of the other kids already had some experience in the same.

The first week was tough, extremely tough, for her and for me. But now she has started loving her school so much that she wakes up in the morning, sometimes gets up even before me and wakes me up, saying ‘Its morning, now I will go to school” and as I nod yes, her whole face lights up.

I am really happy the way this has turned out. Of course I was very concerned as most first-time mothers would be, unsure and scared to let my child go. But now that I see the changes in her and realize that she is enjoying her new experience so much, I know my daughter is now ready.