Breakthrough

Last night, I lay down in bed with Bella, who was still awake at 10:00 pm (she fell asleep on the couch at five so we knew we were doomed). It was a rare opportunity to talk to my middle child alone, and since she's been resisting any attempts at potty training, I thought I'd take the opportunity to plug that s well.

"I got a new bed," she said, clutching her life-sized Strawberry Shortcake. Of course, she's been sleeping in the bed for almost a year now, after she peed in her crib one night after her bath, and yes, before putting her diaper on. "And you took my crib away," she sobbed, fighting back tears.

We talked about how she is getting to be such a big girl.

"I don't want to be big," she said, "but Adelyn makes me bigger."

Oooooh. I get it.

So we talked about how proud I am of her that she can do big girl things now, like take Soccer and Ballet lessons in the Fall, and go to a big kid school. And when she goes peepee and poop in the potty all the time, she can take swimming lessons and go in the big kid pool, and to summer camp with Riley (Do you think she saw through that one?).

I pointed out that babies that sleep in cribs don't get to do these things, or eat candy, or ride bikes. I added that I can't stop her from growing up, and that she gets bigger every day. But she'd always be my baby.

"I don't want to be a baby!"

Oh well, so much for my breakthrough.