Cute playmates

Emma is not very good at sharing. But what my sister-in-law, Shannan, said to me made sense, so I'm trying to be patient as I teach her how to share, or "take turns." Shannan said she read somewhere that children must learn possession, i.e. "mine", before they can learn how to share. And that we should be patient while they're learning - afterall, how often do grown-ups share their favorite toys or possessions freely with other people without worry or concern? Slowly, Emma is learning to take turns, although she frequently reverts back to "Mine!".

Emma will play with anyone - adults and children alike - because, well, I'm sure she's bored with playing with just me at home. Here are some recent photos of her playmates....with more to come when I remember to click the shutter!

This is Natalie, and Emma enjoys playing at Natalie's house more than ours, probably because Natalie is gracious enough to let Emma drive her little Cozy Coupe and push Emma in it. Natalie had a little accident on the way to our house, so she has a bump on her head.

Here is Micah, who willingly gives her whatever she demands most of the time. I think it may be because he has two older sisters. On a recent playdate, he only fought with Emma once. Here they are trying out Emma's new big girl bed, reading their respective books. Actually, Micah showed up with a bump near his eye, too, from a head-on collision with his mom at home. At least the bumps are appearing before they get to our house, and not after!

This is Hyrum. Hyrum and Emma fight the most, and they both shriek, so it can get quite loud. Emma likes hanging out with Hyrum, and they get to do that often because of nursery and because Hyrum's mom and I are visiting teaching companions. This is from an outing to the Children's Museum of Phoenix: