We go to the park for a walk almost everyday. It’s a time I let them be as free as possible. Generally, I don’t limit them to a certain part of the park and instead, my nanny and I each watch one so they can choose where they want to go. I want them to explore nature, so I like to let them loose where there are many opportunities to observe animals, smell flowers and people-watch. The girls are now 17 months.
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We arrive at the park. I unbuckle them and let them get off the stroller by themselves. I try not to do anything for them that they can do by themselves.
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Brooke immediately heads to one side of the park where the flowers are,
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climbs over the low fence…
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to smell the flower.
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Mackenzie is with my nanny where she is walking around with her toys
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She picks up a plastic cap. I’m pretty sure it’s disgustingly dirty, but I try not to run over, scream and whack it out of her hands, like I want to. Instead, I just watch.
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Here is the cap – is it going in her mouth?
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Not this time, thank god. As I breathe a sigh of relief, I tell her ‘good job’ for throwing trash in the trash can. If I give in to my fears everytime she touches something dirty and freak out, then she really cannot be free during our walks, and neither can I.
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Brooke tells my nanny she wants something to eat
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I tell the nanny to give her the whole bag and tell her to get it herself
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It takes her a while to rustle through the bag. My nanny and I look at each other. I’ve trained her (and myself) to not rush to help her, even though we can do it so much faster than she can.
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She finally wrestles it out of the bag. Mackenzie reaches for some too.
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She takes a piece and I ask her to give me the rest
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As we sit and eat, she makes the signs for “music” and
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Mackenzie makes the sign for ‘bird.’ Together, they mean, “The birds are singing.” So we sit to enjoy a bit of music before moving on.
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I follow Mackenzie around. Here she spots someone stretching…
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Brooke plays on a patch of grass. When she is done, rather than picking her up, I tell her to “Get up by yourself.”
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She does.
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Observing some squirrels. We live in NYC. The animals are limited. *sigh*
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A nice lady lets us pet her dog. Brooke loves it and Mackenzie doesn’t. I let Brooke do it and leave Mackenzie alone. She doesn’t have to if she doesn’t want to.
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It’s time to go home. They climb in the stroller by themselves and sit as we buckle them in. That’s it for us today. Till tomorrow!