Forever Young

Is it a girl/boy thing or just a personality thing? This is a question I have been asking myself lately. Love Bug simply will not dress himself. It does not matter how he is chided, what preferred activity or object is taken from him, no amount of encouragement persuades him to undress and re-dress himself. Hard no. He wants someone else to help him with this basic function. His sister, when she was his age, was much more independent. She didn’t want help, she wanted to do it herself. Love Bug seems to have a lot more can’ts than his sister. Partially, this was because Chica Marie had to grow up quickly and defend for herself as a matter of survival, but I think it is also a testament to her strong personality. Love Bug relishes being babied, he strives to forge that dependency bond with any willing host. When he was still receiving early intervention services, his OT felt his neurological system that controls his emotions and reactions was immature, thus causing issues with outbursts and whatnot. I thought perhaps this would begin to shift as he got older, but apparently not. Fingers have been pointed at me by some family members insisting that I baby him and so I have created a mini monster. I don’t think I baby Love Bug and I have been trying really hard to push him to be more independent, but I don’t really want to do toe-to-toe in a battle of wills with a preschooler. To borrow a quote from The Princess Bride, “You fool! You fell victim to one of the classic blunders - the most famous of which is "never get involved in a land war in Asia" - but only slightly less well-known is this: "Never go in against a Sicilian when death is on the line!” This means most mornings I give Love Bug his outfit for the day and suggest he get changed, only to have a naked little boy come find me, telling me he can’t get dressed. Sigh.