Eggs and Marbles, (So Basically, Round Things)

After a week that felt like it took a whole year to get through and included many games of organizational Tetris and feelings of inadequacy at work, I was happy that the weekend came.

And with the weekend came a Little visit! When presented with the choice of an “Ocean Safari” off Boston Harbor to look for seals and dolphins, and egg dyeing and lunch, she chose eggs and hanging at my house.

I had found directions for dyeing eggs to create a tye-dye effect.

It was messy and fun; It provided and opportunity for L to show off her math skills with some times tables for the dye measuring, and while she did accidentally crush an egg in her hand while trying to make holes in either end, she now knows, in theory, how to empty and egg so you’re working with only the shell.

When we were done rolling the eggs in shaving cream and dye (the smell of the shaving cream brought back memories of watching my dad shave when I was very little), we set-up a table on the porch and ate our lunch while Harlow sulked on the other side of a baby gate inside the house. I was nervous about Miss Harlow after she lunged at L for touching her Ellie (stuffed elephant). Right after doing so, Harlow kept approaching L. It could have been because Harlow was nervous and didn’t know what to do so she figured sniffing Little was something to do, but I like to think she was apologizing for being a jerkface.

Regardless, I kept their distance for a while.

After lunch I pulled out a marble track kit Meg loaned me and we had a blast building different configurations from pictures I’d found online. The last one we did was so large we had to move it inside. L was truly excellent at sending a marble down the shoot and assessing what was wrong if it traveled incorrectly or flew off the track. It was also fun to see if a glass marble would be faster than a metal one (the metal one was faster, and heavier).

On the drive home I asked her what her rose, bud and thorn was (your favorite thing, the thing you look forward to, and the thing you liked least). This question helps me learn more about her, plus I want her to be confident talking about things she objects to or doesn’t like.

“My rose was….building the marble thing! And dyeing the eggs. And having lunch on the porch and talking…My thorn was Harlow jumping at me.” she was pleased with herself, she told me, for staying calm when that happened.

I agreed with her, telling her that I’d noticed she’d been startled but did a great job staying calm and calming herself down. In the moment, I stayed super blase about it in an effort to keep the situation relaxed, and during the car ride home said “And now I’m reminded that people other than me shouldn’t touch her toys or go near her when she’s eating. That’s a good rule that we forgot and that was my fault. I should have remembered that. But now we will!”

And I will also remember to enroll her in even more training sessions.