Fear and no fear

Kalina and Elise are both growing girls, navigating the tricky stages of young life. While one perfects the ability to scoop with a fork, the other is learning how to swallow slightly thicker food. While one is learning that Mommy is cuddly and strangers are not, the other is happily running off with other (very well known) adults. It's fun to watch.

Perhaps one of the most interesting juxtapositions of the girls' developmental states right now is the way they interact with the knowns and unknowns of the world.

For Kalina, who has been just a little sunshine lately in all other matters, this means that very real fears are starting to creep into her life.

Recently, Kalina has been scared of:

White-tailed deer
Bugs

Spiders

Ants

Lint that looks like bugs, spiders or ants

Dogs

Vaccuum cleaners

A song on her children's CD called "Mr. Bassman"

Anyone not related by blood

Her camel puppet eating grocery lists

The truck things in stores like Target used to deliver goods to the shelves, especially when they beep

Heights

Random noises

And much, much more

Many of these I can certainly relate to.

Fortunately, Kalina has plenty of coping mechanisms for dealing with these fears. Most often, at the sight (or sound) of one of them, she'll either scale Matt or I until she's holding on by our necks or, if she's not on the ground, leap into our unsuspecting arms. We have yet to convince her that jumping from her perch on a large boulder in the general direction of Mommy or Daddy who may or may not be expecting to receive a toddler rocketing through the air, should give her more to worry about than a tiny spider.

If the threat is only minor (for instance, a worm), Kalina may simply head for high ground until a nearby adult can confirm that the area is safe again (by tossing the poor worm into the bushes, for instance).

All noises must be explained before Kalina can let down her guard. To try to take the emphasis off individual sounds, I've come up with blanket explanations such as "it was just something outside" or "it was probably just the cat" or "it was just a house noise." I downplay them as much as possible, because, frankly, I have no idea what that tiny creaking noise was, either.

And finally, Kalina takes great courage in the belief that everyone from the cat to her bugs made out of pipe cleaners to God will protect her from anything she's afraid of. "And Beancat will scratch under Kalina's bed so that Camel does not eat the list," she sometimes reassures herself before nodding off to sleep (thus combining two fears, but she doesn't see it that way. Maybe the two negate each other?).

And then there's Elise, whose 6-month explorations have her casting all fear to the wind. Elise does not worry if the trash she's just put in her mouth has any unsavory particles on it. She does not care that the hanger she's found to munch on could make her gag. And the baby certainly wouldn't mind if a spider crawled her way (heaven forbid), but would instead make a nice snack of it.

Which is why the rest of us now have to fear for her. Elise is now so persistent in exploring her brand-new world that it's hard to keep up. Like a starfish, she at times unexplainably ends up a few inches away from where we set her, and rotated 180 degrees. What if Kalina's "Don't Spill the Beans" game had been sitting out in that exact spot? This is just one of our concerns.

And then it seems that to keep the baby happy, we must shift her to a new location every 5 minutes or so. "Done!" she seems to yell as she voices her frustration in how boring all the toys and scenery nearby now are. And then she gets moved to her Exersaucer, and her Jumperoo, and Mommy's arms, and back to the floor. A million times a morning. The girl has a startlingly voracious appetite for new things (pun intended).

The only thing Elise never tires of is watching her big sister, and Kalina seems to take pride in being Elise's favorite. Kalina can do no wrong in Elise's eyes--instead, everything is hilarious. The pair, which has been known to reverse-coordinate naptimes more consistently than they coordinate them (do they send a memo? If so, I'm never included on it!) could become trouble for their mommy as they both grow even more.

Should I be afraid now?

Photo 1: Kalina attended Farm Animal Days today with Grandpa!

Photo 2: Pig wanted to see some pigs.
Photo 3: In the purse: Kalina's farm animals and one toy bug who wanted to tag along.

Photo 4: Our seasoned cowhand.

Photo 5: Look, no hands! Most of Elise's toys are sopping wet at any given moment. I make Kalina share her own toys with Elise, but secretly can't blame the toddler for her reluctance. I no longer make her share stuffed animals, because soggy ones are not cuddly at naptime. Gross.