Parallel Play

Last night, we opted for dinner out and headed to the mall. We narrowly avoided a tantrum when Kenzie spotted the play-yard on the way INTO the restaurant. She had a mission to go play, and that mission was thwarted momentarily. Ah... the will of a toddler. We had dinner and then proceeded to the playground while Doug got his haircut.

Doug has noted that Kenzie historically shies away from other kids. She enjoys their presence but doesn’t trust them one bit. She’ll flinch when another child comes near, almost as she’s expecting them to inflict pain. We’re not aware of where that reaction started, and aren’t aware of any children hurting her in the past. But, still...she seems to think most kids are out of control and there is a need to protect herself.

Now that she’s mobile, she crawls up on the turtle and fish structures, sits there proudly claiming them as her territory. There were several characters competing for the same play space. When watching, one can truly appreciate that each child is a unique little piece of art. Most of the children were at the same stage as Kenzie – enjoying parallel play rather than truly engaging with one another. However, there were some humorous dynamics that even Kenzie seemed to acknowledge. Kenzie did very well with the kiddos tonight, and didn’t flinch once as they all came at her.

A spry little 20 month old with bobbing springy curls, was hot on her trail. I’ll name this child “Panic Attack,” as she seemingly had one... any time she was two inches away from Kenzie. She flapped her hands and trotted in place on her little bowed legs, trying to get closer...closer..closer to the Kenzie girl. This child was a whirlwind of activity. She made Kenzie, who’s also quite active, look like a slug. Then there was “Chunky Roller.” A cutie pie Hispanic boy, who preferred to roll on his side down the bridge structure. He knocked the kids over like bowling pins on a few occasions. His Mama packed his pudgy little body up and took him away as he was creating quite the havoc during his short visit. Phew! Although there were numerous other children there (including one little boy who’d wet his pants and his parents didn’t care that he was sharing THAT with the playground world), there was one other pre-toddler that was noteworthy. She was the “Hopper.” Sitting on her bum, thrusting her arms into the air and propelling herself forward from the sitting position. She had a turbo feature that got her from point A to B in quick fashion.

It was cute to note Kenzie’s reactions. She has an animated little face that is quite telling of what she’s thinking. (Perhaps she gets that from her mother, who tends to inadvertently do the same thing). She watched “Panic Attack” with a grin on her face...babbling at her in their own communication style...but I think she was saying “Calm down...breathe...breathe...yes, it’s very exciting, but breathe already.” She looked at “Chunky Roller” like: “What do they feed that kid? And, what exactly IS he trying to accomplish??” And finally, “Hopper” earned a look of respect even though she looked kind of silly hopping about the floor on her bottom. She must have been thinking “Why didn’t I ever try that?”

Each kid...so unique and dynamic in their own little way. Fascinating to us both...