Frances Friday: All grown up

"Babies never touch tools," says Frances.

"That's right."

"Because when the baby duck touches my tools, it hurts her wing, and then I kiss it better, like this," smack, "and then she feels much better, and then I put her over here to dry. And that's why babies should never touch tools. Because tools are not for babies. They are for Mummies and Daddies, and big girls like me."

"That is exactly right."

"Does Grandpa have a tool like this?"

"Yes, I think he has lots of pliers."

"Does he have a lot of hammers?"

"I know he has one, I don't know if he has lots. You'll have to ask him."

"I'm going to build the old house."

~~~~~

"I'm going to do some Christmas shopping," she says. I hand her a small piece of lined paper and she scribbles on it to make her shopping list, puts it in her toy grocery cart, puts the baby duck in the child seat, and off she goes. "Oh, I need this," she says, and puts in the glitter glue, or the pencil crayons, or a pack of markers. And then: "Oh no! The monster's going to get me!" And she's off.

Lap one of the first floor: "The monster's chasing me!"

Lap two: "Aaaaaah! Mummy, quick! The monster's going to get you too!"

"What? He is?"

"Yes! You have to run with me!"

"I do?"

"Yes!"

Up I get, and off we run.

Lap three: "Phew. We caught the train." A moment of stillness and silence. "Oh no! The monster's on the train! We have to get off!"

Lap four: "The monster's chasing us! Oh no! I need a ... book!" The book goes in the grocery cart, and off we run.

Lap five: "Mummy, the monster got you!"

"It did? Does this mean I can sit down?"

"No! It means you have to run faster to get away."

~~~~~

"I want to Show and Share my pet shop, Mummy. First I will show it to you, and if you are good with it, then we will share. You come sit here." She pats the floor beside her.

"OK." I do as instructed.

"First you have to press this button, very gently. If you press it fast then the froggy will jump out." The pet shop sproings open.

"I see."

"Here is the lizard, here is the snail, here is the frog. Here is the crown for the frog. When you put it on, he becomes a frog prince, and it makes everything shiny!"

"Oooooh, lovely."

"The frog's home is on this lilypad. The lizard likes this log. Here are sunglasses for the lizard."

"I see."

"You can open this to put the pets in the bubble beds when they get tired. That's where they sleep. And here is a carrying case for when someone wants to bring home a pet. See? That was good sharing, Mummy."

"Thank you."

(Edited to add the littlest pets' naps: when placed into the bubbles, and a stern and wide-eyed Frances would approach telling me to shhhhhhh. "The pets are sleeping, Mummy," she'd whisper. "We have to be very quiet."

"Like this?" I'd whisper.

"No," she'd whisper. "Like this. And we have to walk around like this." She'd start to tiptoe around the living room. "Come on, Mummy."

"What, right now?" I'd whisper.

"Yeah!"

So up I got, and tiptoed around the apartment behind Frances, whispering "shhhhhhhhhh.")

Posted by Andrea at December 28, 2007 9:18 AM under Frances Friday

EMAIL this entry

(comments fields are below this section)