Well, that title some get some interesting hits. ;) But it's quite innocent, actually.
Ander is learning body parts. He can tell you all about mommy's belly, with a baby inside. He shakes his elbows in the car. And he's known about his penis (and how just boys and daddies have them) for ages.
But his current favorite is boobies.
As in, I keep telling him that, no son, it's not appropriate to stroke mommy's. And yes, they are big. That's because of the baby.
Striking the right balance between letting him learn and teaching him the limits is very difficult, especially with a new, presumably nursing, baby on the way. After all, the baby will get to touch them. That is going to get Ander M-A-D mad. He will inevitably tell the baby "no, no" and try to remove the baby. I can't let him do that, of course. But he also can't be playing with mine.
I've explained that the baby will only drink milk at first. I explained that Ander has a sippy or a cup, because he is a big boy, but the baby will drink milk from mommy's boobies or a bottle, because the baby is a baby.
But nothing makes me think that Ander will refrain from knocking the baby over because, clearly, the baby isn't following the rules.
Oh, the time outs that await us.
Etcetera.
Oh, the conversations you have with young children that you never expected to have.
ReplyDeleteI never imagined the phrase "No, love, you don't play with other people's willies (penises)" would ever be in my vocabulary. Mind you, if I had it to do again I might not say it and I might just leave them to work out for themselves when it is and is not appropriate to play with someone else's willy...
A friend of mine had an interesting walk through the crowded town with her young daughter asking what a virgin is. And then, "am I a virgin, Mummy?" "Are you a virgin, Mummy?" and so on through the rest of the family.
I have no words of wisdom about the booby issue. Only to say that my son who was two was seen "breastfeeding" his toy lion, alongside a (male) friend of his who was breastfeeding his teddy. I hadn't the heart to destroy their illusions at that age.
I think the fact that you're ready for jealousy and consider it normal will go a long way towards getting a good outcome in the end.