I just posted about sweet Chiara Marie's 7th birthday. Some days she has the attitude of a 13 year old and other days the maturity of a young lady. The hormone fluctuations of females starts young....way too young. Anyway.....
It is in Chiara's personality to be helpful-sometimes I even find that I need to limit her because her sisters need to contribute too. She does not do it to brag (most of the time) or get something from David or I. She is a lot like me....if you want something done right and quick, just do it yourself. Not always the best approach, but when you are working along side a 5 year old who is highly distracted and a 3 year old who still has tornado tendencies, it works.
We have started having conversations with Chiara regarding the fact that she is the oldest and therefore an example to all her sisters. They watch her and mirror her. Yes, it can be a heavy weight being the oldest, and we tell her that, but with that shadow side there are a lot of privileges too.
The other evening David went to a "Man Church" event and Emma was headed to bed early. I told the 3 oldest they could watch a television show (Dora) while I nursed Emma and put her to bed. I suggested to the two oldest that it would be nice if I came downstairs to a clean tv room- the only things out are some books and Emma's toys since the "toy" room is upstairs now. As I was nursing Emma I could hear sounds in the kitchen that sounded like dishes being put away. I knew the sink was full, but David empties that each night for me. When I came down the stairs after putting Emma and Leah to bed this is what was on the bottom step:
It is in Chiara's personality to be helpful-sometimes I even find that I need to limit her because her sisters need to contribute too. She does not do it to brag (most of the time) or get something from David or I. She is a lot like me....if you want something done right and quick, just do it yourself. Not always the best approach, but when you are working along side a 5 year old who is highly distracted and a 3 year old who still has tornado tendencies, it works.
We have started having conversations with Chiara regarding the fact that she is the oldest and therefore an example to all her sisters. They watch her and mirror her. Yes, it can be a heavy weight being the oldest, and we tell her that, but with that shadow side there are a lot of privileges too.
The other evening David went to a "Man Church" event and Emma was headed to bed early. I told the 3 oldest they could watch a television show (Dora) while I nursed Emma and put her to bed. I suggested to the two oldest that it would be nice if I came downstairs to a clean tv room- the only things out are some books and Emma's toys since the "toy" room is upstairs now. As I was nursing Emma I could hear sounds in the kitchen that sounded like dishes being put away. I knew the sink was full, but David empties that each night for me. When I came down the stairs after putting Emma and Leah to bed this is what was on the bottom step:
When I heard the noises upstairs I had a feeling Chiara was doing this great blessing for me so I was praying that she would leave the knives alone. I am sure she was very careful (even so careful it needed two L's), but I explained to her that it made me nervous. Of course she got a BIG squeeze and many thanks. She truly only did it to bless me, to "make my day." She is that kind of kid. She was also the only one who cleaned the tv room. I know her sisters saw this example and also saw the praise. I believe all my girls will have this helpful attitude as they grow and mature in this home. David and I teach them about team work, serving others, and most importantly we live out what we are teaching.
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