We were at Chickfila the other day. Layla had shots that morning, so I took the girls to Chickfila for lunch, and as a treat, I let them play on the playground longer than I normally would. We needed to kill some time anyway before picking up a prescription.
For whatever reason, Layla decided she was scared of the playground, so she wouldn't climb up and go down the slide. She stayed in the baby area, or on my lap. It didn't take Elizabeth long to decide she didn't like playing by herself.
"Mommy, no one is playing with me."
"Layla, go play with your sister. She doesn't want to play by herself."
"No."
"Elizabeth, why don't you ask someone your age to play with you?"
"Not my age. Just someone in here. You ask them."
"No, ma'am. You need to ask someone."
So she does. Several little girls, actually. They just look at her. Usually then wind up playing together, but it's like they don't know what to do when she asks. I'm sure that's just part of little girl language and socialization, but I always feel so bad for her. I can hardly stand it when she feels left out or complains about no one playing with her. I try my best not to coddle her or make a big deal of it, but it's hard.
I have a feeling this is just the beginning of things to come. I bet there will be many life lessons for her about friends and being part of a group. On the one hand, that's exciting, but really, I'mscared! Hopefully I won't screw it up.
I can't help but wonder. Is it normal for a 3 year old to be socially aware like she is? Or is it just a part of her personality?
As women, some of us care way more about having girlfriends than do others. Some of us want a girlfriend around all the time. Some are fine to just hang with our families. Or by ourselves. Most like a balance - family time, alone time, and girlfriend time. It's so interesting to me, and I do look forward to seeing how it all plays out as Elizabeth grows older. One thing I know for sure - I'm so glad she has a sister. A built in friend. And enemy, I'm sure, but I am so grateful they'll have each other.
First of all, I love reading your blog! You seem to have such a precious family and I love reading about what's going on and what God's doing in your life. Now this won't answer any of your questions, but reading this reminds me of a story my Daddy always tells me... He says I was about three and him and Momma had taken me to the park. I walked up to a little girl on the playground and asked her to play with me and she just walked away. Keep in mind that this was fifteen years ago...I of course don't remember it at all but this still makes Daddy more mad than just about anything that I've ever seen! He said it was my first time to consciously try to make a friend and he felt so so bad for me when she ignored me. It's so sweet to hear him talk about it but it fires him up! Haha I thought I'd share my little story relating to this one :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Katie. You're so sweet. I'm glad you enjoy the blog. And I'm glad to know I'm not the only parent who gets frustrated when other kids won't play with mine. Thanks for sharing.
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