This morning I took Bella with me to the dentist’s office. I set out with a diaper bag packed full of books as well as Bella’s sippy cup, a bag of Cheerios, and Bella with her dolly tucked under one arm. And much trepidation, fearing another meltdown as happened when she accompanied me last week to the OB’s office. But it all went rather smoothly.
I barely had time to get our coats off and hung when the hygienist came out looking for me. I hadn’t even had time to greet the receptionist who was on the phone and Bella had hardly managed to look at the fish in the tank.
Bella did not scream when we went into the cubicle. She grew very quiet and let me lay out her books and snacks on the chair in the corner and then stood and watched while I got my teeth clean. The one mishap was when she spilled her bag of Cheerios all over the floor. But even then she didn’t freak out as much as she sometimes does at home. She declared a few time that “it fall” and then she moved on to other pursuits. This bodes well for the day when Bella will eventually sit in the seat herself for a tooth cleaning.
The appointment only took about 20 minutes all told, including making the next appointment for September. And then we were on our way back home in time for lunch. How nice.
In my house that was a “Daddy” way of reading . . . my kids are all teenagers or older now, but “leaving off the last word” was something I always did when they were small.
Another trick is to change the last word of a familiar line to its opposite (in Goodnight Moon you might say it was a picture of the cow jumping over the sun, for example). Don’t worry, you’ll be corrected!
By the way, the reason I read this way to my kids is because it’s what my Dad (now age 96!) did with me. Your daughter will always remember these times.
Just wait a few more months until she has every word, every intonation, every pause completely memorized—and then pitches a fit when you don’t get all of the above exactly right every time you read the story! I was so happy when my daughter finished that phase.
Such fun! It’s delightful to see language unfold.