Parenting

Lydia was born with her amazing personality.

She has a puss and boots from a Happy Meal that my mom has told her that she's afraid of, so Lydia finds it and runs over to my mom and shoves it in her face and laughs. She loves to takes people's seats. As soon as someone gets up, she jumps on in. She was born funny.

At a terrifically early age Lydia had the most stunning sense of balance. She would ride a toy zebra her friend has and stand up on the top of it, let go of her hands and never fall. She runs as fast as she can and kicks the ball. She throws her balls better than some adults I know. She was born athletic.

She will cuddle in bed or sit on the couch and watch cartoons with an incredible focus. She will watch intently and now she follows along with the story. If Mickey says clap, she claps. We have taken her to the movies where she sat for the full film and watched. She was born with the ability to focus.

She speaks Spanish and English. She dances differently to different types of music. She likes some fruit more than others. She eats what she likes when she likes. She sleeps 11 hours every night. Lydia gets mad at the stuffed animals in her crib and yells at them and throws them out. She then forgives then and makes my mom bring them back in. She was born with these unique fantastic expressive parts of her, her father and I didn't parent her that way.

Perhaps it's that old nature versus nurture argument but there is no chance that I could force her to make certain facial expressions or laugh at certain times, that is her nature. I can't not force her to love the cabbage patch doll as much as her stuffed dog Violet. She loves what she loves, it's her nature.  Our role as parents is to set boundaries, instill values, and teach her right from wrong. In the process of doing these things to love her fiercely and remain tenacious. As a parent, I pray for her safety, her wellness and hope.