|
Exploring Womanhood > Journals > Growing Together: A Journal From Mother to Daughter > Entries
Entry
#20 ~ July, 2003
~ Record It
Dear Charon,
When I was four years old, my mom made an audiotape of me. I
sang lots of songs, recited my full name and address, and answered
questions that Mom asked me. Oh, how I loved to listen to that
tape. Whenever I wanted Mom to rewind the tape and play it back,
I'd say, "Record it," because that's what my mom had
done. So, that's what I'm doing, recording some memories here
so we can go over them again and again together.
Auntie Lois
Auntie Lois is my aunt, so she's your great-aunt. She's also
my godmother, a former ESL teacher, a beautiful singer, a puppeteer,
a book lover and she hosts wonderful parties. She's been having
tea parties for us ever since Grandma Caryl died. (Gramma Caryl
used to have a group of us over to her house for a tea party once
a month or so.)
Auntie Lois loves to have a theme for her tea parties. She is
very creative, and always comes up with something that would be
interesting and fun for you. Our last party, held on Friday the
13th, had a Las Vegas/Luck theme. My sister, your Auntie Katy,
also came with baby Louis.
Auntie Lois
had set up a treasure hunt for you, and you adored it. You listened
carefully and seriously to the clues I read to you, and you got
so excited when you'd find the next one. At the end of the hunt,
you discovered a Dora the Explorer Treasure Hunt sticker book
hidden in a drawer. The note on the book said, "It's your
lucky day." "Wow, you are lucky, Charon!" I exclaimed.
"What a wonderful treasure you found." "Again!"
you shouted. "Let's do it again!" You were so impressed
with this game.
We slowly
coaxed you out to the gazebo for brunch. We ate silver dollar
pancakes, lucky (sausage) links and each of us had a little bowl
of Lucky Charms next to our plate. You loved the pancakes (one
of your favorite foods) and thrilled to the Lucky Charms. Katy
enjoyed them, too, helping herself to three bowlsful. A nursing
mother can get incredibly hungry!
Later, when
you were in the other room playing with Auntie Katy and Louis,
Auntie Lois pulled out a huge box of Lucky Charms so that we could
pack up a little Ziplock as a surprise treat for you. "Do
you want to take the whole box home?" she asked. "No!"
I immediately replied. "She won't eat anything but these
if she finds out they're in the house! I wonder if Katy would
like them?"
Then you came
into the room. Before we could hide it, you spotted the gigantic
box of cereal. You studied it for a few seconds, then looked at
us very seriously. "I am lucky?" you asked, thinking,
I'm sure, of the earlier treasure hunt.
We decided
together that Katy would take the huge box home, and we would
pack up a little bag for you. Thank goodness you found this to
be a satisfactory arrangement!
About a month
later, something came in the mail for you. "Look at this,
Charon," I called. "It's for you. Do you see your name
on this envelope?" You looked at it, but with little interest.
Then I taught you what a return address is. "And look here,
Charon, this is the name and address of the person who sent this
to you. Do you see what this says?" Still not too interested.
"What it say?" you played along. "It says it's
from Auntie Lois." Suddenly, you were very excited. "Let's
open it!" you shouted with glee. She'd sent you a birthday
card, full of stickers, and a poem she'd written about turning
four years old. You loved it.
We'll go to
another of Auntie Lois' tea parties tomorrow. I can't wait to
see your face in the morning when I tell you where we're going.
:)
Preschool
Screening
I took you
to preschool screening last month. They checked your sight and
hearing, as well as developmental skills. I wasn't sure what to
expect, and knew you could be a little shy with someone you didn't
know. I was really impressed with how child-friendly they made
the activities.
Sight:
You sat at a little school desk. "We're going to play a matching
game, Charon. Do you see the four letters on the desk in front
of you? I'm going to point to a letter up here on this chart.
You match it with the letter on your desk, okay?" You loved
this, pouncing on each letter with both hands when you spotted
the match. You wore little sunglasses, one side covered, and one
with no lens inside, to test each eye. You turned to look at me
through them, and smiled.
Hearing:
The screener asked you to move to a new table, and gave you a
cup and some little wooden blocks. "Let's put these headphones
on you, Charon. Now, when you hear a sound, put one of the blocks
in the cup." Kerplunk. Kerplunk. Kerplunk. One by one the
blocks went in. No hesitation, no confusion. Simple and fun.
Developmental
skills: You sat across from the screener at a table. "Can
you build this?" You stacked the little wooden blocks, copying
the pattern the screener had made. "I want you to finish
this sentence: The balloon goes up, the rain comes…"
"Down!" "Now come down here. Can you stand on one
foot, like this? Can you hop, like this?"
When you were
done, I talked to the screener about the results. "She's
doing just great." You waited while we talked, standing next
to me and holding my hand. After a couple of minutes, you started
jumping up and down. "More!" you shouted. "I want
more, more!" I was surprised, and thrilled, that you enjoyed
the screening so much!
Reading
a Scooby Book
One day, you
and I sat on the floor reading a Scooby book together. I had read
this story to you a few weeks ago, and you surprised me with what
you remembered. "They're going on a wild goose chase!"
you announced. And then you told me about a "secret passage"
the gang had discovered. Soon, you had turned the reading into
a game for me. "Mom, you point to the scary cat creature
on this page?" you invited. "Where is he hiding?"
I found the scary cat creature on every page, with a little help
from you.
Four Years
Old
On your birthday,
you asked me, "I growing up?" "Yes, honey,"
I told you. "You are growing up. You can do so many things
now!" "I go on the rides at the circus now?" (The
circus is what you call the little carnival we've visited a couple
of times this summer. You have been too cautious to try any of
the rides yet.) "Sure, you can try some of the rides, now
that you're four years old." We'll have to take you there
soon, and see if you feel ready now.
Usually, when
we lay down at bedtime, we talk about what we want to dream about.
On the night of your birthday, I told you your birth story instead.
I got to the part where I pushed you out: "And then I got
to see you for the first time! You were so beautiful, so tiny.
You cried, but then stopped when you heard my voice. I took you
in my arms…" "And you put me in the sling?"
you asked. You've often seen baby Louis in his sling, and it sure
looks cozy! "Yes, I put you in the sling a lot when you were
a baby. You loved it!" You smiled, and snuggled down to sleep
under your quilt.
Let's keep
recording these memories.
I love you,
Mom
Copyright © 2001 - 2003 Caryl Mousseaux. All rights reserved.
|
