Friday, September 18, 2009

Charlotte the Spider

This morning Grace was talking to my while I put away Moira's clothes. I was only catching bits of it, since I was concentrating on what clothes didn't fit her anymore and which did, etc. But I caught her suggesting that we return to our old house to go visit Charlotte the spider to see how she is doing.

Background: Charlotte was a spider (probably many different spiders) that lived in our kitchen window (because it was missing the part that would have kept leaves, insects, and the cold/hot air out). The girls liked watching it spin webs and eat the insects caught in its web. We also think there might have been an egg sac once (which Kaylon got rid of).

Anyways, I turn around and tell Grace that we are never going back to that house- that it's not ours anymore and that someone else lives there. Her face falls, her eyes fill with tears, and she just starts sobbing. I go over and try to comfort her. I think, maybe she's transferring her feelings for all her friends and teachers and experiences onto this spider. So I talk about those things to see if it helps.

Nope. She tells me that she kinda misses those things, but she really just wants to go see Charlotte, because she was her best friend. And she misses her.

So, I try reality. I tell her that Charlotte is probably dead. To soften the blow I say that she probably made an egg sac, just like in the book, and that her children will be born later. I should have thought before I said that, because then she begged me to take her back so that she could get the egg sac and take care of it (a la Wilbur). I told her no and resigned myself to just comforting her instead of talking her out of it.

Moira ended up being her pick-me-up. She was getting into things she wasn't supposed to, which always makes Grace laugh at her. And she's into a lot of things lately. Paper, plastic, little pieces of trash- any tiny little thing that we overlook, she will find it. And shoes- she has a thing for chewing on shoes. And she likes to pull herself up to her knees now- not hands and knees- pulling up on the couch so that she is vertically on her knees. I'm getting scared. And Liliana adds to it by saying things like, "You're not in charge," or "Leave me alone," or "Go away," or "I do it myself." I guess I can never say that life is boring ;)

1 comment:

Debbie's said...

AW! She can be so intense- I think it's sweet that she would have such tender feelings for an arachnid. You handled it well :) And I can't believe Moira is SO mobile! NUTS!st