Molly had a puzzling reaction to some of her bath toys tonight, and it took me a while to figure it out.
Earlier this week, Molly finally discovered the plug in the tub. I let her pull it out and watch the water disappear, and she thought it was great fun. Her little tub toys sailed down the tub, got caught up in the swirl, and turned head-down into the drain. She would pull one out, and another one went in. When the water was all gone, she played in the empty, cold tub for a while, refusing to come out and be wrapped in a warm towel. When I finally insisted, she was almost dry.
So, tonight, she had all her toys in the water, and a little penguin drifted down towards the drain end of the tub. She almost jumped at it, grabbed it, and looked at me with a very worried expression on her face. A few minutes later, the dolphin had drifted down. She chased it, grabbed it, held it up for me, and started crying! She was very concerned. I comforted her, but didn't really know what to say. Then a third toy was down there, and she again rescued it and cried, giving it to me, but also looking at me like I should have helped!
As I was putting her to bed, it suddenly came clear. I think she thought the toys might disappear down the drain with the water, despite the fact that they never did before, and that the plug was still in the drain. She may have forgotten some details.
I'm both amused and surprised at her level of concern, though. I'm at a bit of a loss to know if this kind of fear is a phase that all kids go through, or if it is heightened by the losses she has already experienced. Any thoughts out there?
Probably a phase, but you probably don't want to focus too much on that. Perhaps it is time to change the routine just a bit and pick up the toys with a small net before emptying the bath tub for a couple of weeks.
ReplyDeleteSandra (Mom to M. from VT1)
Hi Catherine,
ReplyDeleteVan went through a major obsession with the plug. He didn't give fig about his toys though so can't help you there. In fact he would toss any toy in frustration that got in the way of his "study" of the water going down the drain. We ended up having to come up with distracting strategies to get him to stop focusing on the drain as bath times were becoming incredibly short (and frustrating lol). I agree with Sandra, it sounds like a phase. I know it is hard for us adoptive parents sometimes to distinguish between "normal" age appropriate behaviours and those that might be a result of the adoption process and all the loss our children have experienced. I guess it is an ongoing struggle. Good luck!
Meg
Hi Catherine,
ReplyDeleteMy first thought when ready your blog entry was that Molly was concerned you would pull her out of the tub because toys at the drain end means tub time is over.
On another note ..... I hope you are very well and by the sounds of it you are really enjoying your precious Molly.
Hugs to both of you,
Paula