Learning About the Wind

My girl has learned a new lesson this week, about the wind. Yesterday we made a visit to the dollar store. She got to pick a balloon. She traded balloons several times as we wandered through the store. At the checkstand she wavered, deciding between a big floating type balloon, or a small one on a stick. She decided, changed her mind and traded again, then went back choose just once more. Finally settling on a small stick version, she put it on the converyer belt with the other items and got it scanned. As she played with it while I payed, it came off the stick. I stuck it back on, and we left the store with a cart. The parking lot outside the store was busy since it was around noon. There was a bit of a breeze as well. I realized as we crossed the parking lot that Elise was pulling me back to the store. I kept going, keeping her with me so she wouldn't get hit by any of the many cars driving around. When we made it to a safe spot I looked down at her, and she was holding a stick, with no balloon. It had blown off in the breeze. She was sad, but there was really no safe way to get it back. It blew back over by the store, but was still in the line of moving vehicles. So we went to the car, put our purchased items in the trunk, and went back to return the cart. Elise said she was a little sad, but didn't cry. I told her the wind had blown it away and we couldn't get it. This was her first experience with this problem. So, the good ending to our story is, as we returned the cart to the store, we found her balloon still sitting there in the line of oncoming traffic. We were able to grab it and put it back on her stick, although she clutched the whole balloon to her chest until we were safely inside the car. She loves her ballooon.

The other funny story happened today. Elise asked for ponytails in her hair this morning. We then went in the car to get some thread for a project and run a few errands. As we got out of the car at the post office, the wind was blowing a bit, and Elise reached up and grabbed her ponytails. I wondered why at first, since she's never done that before. She was really gripped on them, and didn't want to let go for anything. I told her I needed to put her backpack on (it has the leash attached, which we use when we are out and about). She agreed to let go briefly with one hand to slip it through the strap, then quickly clutched her ponytail again. Then she repeated the process on the other side. I asked for her hand so we could walk through the parking lot. She said, "No Mama, you pick up." This was a bit odd, since she's firmly entrenched in the 2 1/2 year old stage of wanting to do everything all by herself. Nevertheless I picked her up and started walking into the building. She kept her hands over her ponytails the whole time. I asked if the wind was blowing her hair, and she told me it was, and that it was blowing my hair too. I agreed, and we made it inside. It took her a minute to let go of the ponytails, but the minute we stepped outside again, her hands were gripping her hair firmly. We had to repeat the one arm at a time procedure for getting out of the backpack straps, and into the carseat straps. Similar scenes greeted us each time we had to stop and get out of the car to run our errands today. I thought it was amusing, but didn't really figure out why today was different than any other day.

Then later today, we were sitting, chatting with Grandma Sue, relating some of the cute things that have happened this last couple days. I had shared the balloon story, and when I told her the ponytail gripping story, she told me she knew why Elise had been so concerned about her hair remaining attached today. She put the two together, just as Elise had, and helped me to see that Elise was now worried that she could lose things because of the wind, which she wasn't aware of before. I now understand where her concern came from, but have no idea how to help her feel safe and confident that her hair is attached, and her ponlytails will not blow away. Maybe I'll be able to get a picture of her in her hair gripping mode. She was adorable!!!....although it probably wouldn't be all that nice to take her out in the wind and make her pose when she's kind of worried about losing her hair, but it would be fun to remember how cute she was holding her ponytails!