Kiss My Knits!

Yesterday our family went to visit our friends’ family. They’ve just moved to town from Maryland. They’ve got a great house out in the boondocks, with woods and a creek a couple of doors down. We all went out to throw rocks in the stream and explore.

Emily has trouble with balance and knowing where she is in relation to things sometimes (a sense called proprioception if you’re curious). In the past, she has tended to be fearful about physical feats, but that’s been changing lately. So yesterday, I helped her across the stream on some rocks. She was asking how she could get back across, and she spotted a log across the stream. She said she wanted to try it. It was fairly high up. If she fell off this thing, she could get pretty beat up, but I thought she could do it. Sometimes you’ve got to take a chance. I told her if she wanted, she could go for it.

She seemed nervous, so I said if she wanted, she could just use the bridge a little further down. But no, she really wanted to try. So she did. She shuffled her feet on the log until she was halfway across, then got a little more confident and walked the rest of the way carefully but normally. She stepped down at the end, turned back, and said, “I did it.” Then, adorably, she started jumping up and down pumping her arms in the air. “I did it! I did it!”

Of course, then she had to go back. And then return. And then go back again. There was much jumping and exultation. “I’m so brave!” Hee! That’s my girl!

I took a movie of one of her trips, but I’m having trouble getting movies to upload. I also took this picture, but unfortunately, my camera was doing that thing that it does. Even after color correction, it’s still pink. And runny. It’s like she’s crossing a stream on Saturn or something.

I’m so, so proud of my girl. This is good practice for Girl Scout camp in the Spring, if we go. And if we don’t, I still love that she’s becoming more daring. Today, the stream, tomorrow, Mt. Everest!