Learning about emotions

Mogs is starting to learn about emotions.  Right now there are only two: happy and sad.  I bet she knows more, but those are the two she can actually say.  It is so great to have her be very clear about what she is feeling, whether she is standing at the top of the stairway sobbing,  “Sad, mommy, sad” or dancing around the living room singing, “Happy, happy!”  I figure we’ll start with the basics, then move on to more nuanced feeling like conflicted, apathetic, satisfied and enthusiastic.  I asked her to look sad for the camera:

She was feeling pretty sad this morning, although not while we were taking these photos.  We were going to go on a walk to the library, but I’ve learned a few things in these past two years.  The first being that after a morning of sobbing, a momma just shouldn’t go to the library, or anywhere else, with her toddler if it isn’t absolutely necessary.  The library is a known stresser for Mogs and I, so I’ll take care of stuff there on my own this weekend.  

The second thing I learned is that you are doing good parenting when you avoid these sorts of stress points.  I am in this amazing parenting class and recently had a discussion with the teacher about installing Velcro straps on our refrigerator.  While Mogs is now old enough to go in there and pick out a snack (there isn’t anything in there that is unhealthy or unsafe for her, aside from hot sauce that she is sure welcome to try…), she doesn’t need a full access pass into it whenever she wants.  The problem is that she likes to go in the kitchen, fling the refrigerator door open and root around.  She will pull out bread, even if she has a plate full of toast, or simple rearrange all the condiments from the door shelving.  Honestly, not a big deal, but her dad and I got a bit weary pulling her out of there ever few minutes, not to mention the wasted electricity.  I thought the teacher would tell me to talk to her about proper fridge usage, urging me to make it a teachable moment, but was surprised when she said to just put a strap on the whole thing.  Her reasoning is that we’ll have plenty of time to teach her about selecting healthy snacks from the refrigerator and about energy conservation–but for now she is only 2 and has little, if any, impulse control.  The strap would prevent a lot of conflict between us, allowing us to have a more peaceful experience in the kitchen and around food.  I guess it is one of those “pick your battles” type of lessons.  I thought we were done child-proofing the house, but alas another trip to Target is in order.