Brave New World....

Oh....the exciting life of a 13 month old. She's really into discovering every inch of her newly expanding world. She's recently got super-excited about the discovery of her closet....and takes great pleasure into emptying it to the best of her abilities. The other day she took every one of her bows off the hanging bow-holder and left a trail from her room to the kitchen.

And then there's the whole climbing thing... And, yes, the fantastic great big bowl of water right on her level!

I'm all about letting Gianna explore her world even if it means a little extra work for me. One thing I have been a stickler about, however, is the doggy door. There are two doors: one that goes from the kitchen into the sunroom and one that goes from the sunroom to the outside. As persistent as she has been over the last four months, I have managed to keep my curious toddler at bay.
Until today.
I was doing something in the kitchen and she was playing nearby the fridge (by the doggy door). I heard it open and close, but then saw Max. (it's got little magnetic strips so you can hear all the movement.) No worries. Then I heard it open --- but it didn't close. I turned around to catch a glimpse of the cute little polka-dotted bottom of find my brave little monkey fearlessly forging through the doggy door to explore new territories. So, as any good and discipline-minded mother would do, I grabbed my camera and got these shots.

Then I sternly called her name and she flipped around to look at me. Boy, was she ever scared of me.

She was SO scared, in fact....

....that she darted toward the next door.

She almost had a taste of sweet freedom.

But Mommy got hold of her senses and put down the camera and had a little "chat" with her very brave daughter.

Sidenote: One little discipline trick I learned from a dear friend who studied child development, is if you have to raise your voice, or wag your finger, or give a bold, "no, no, no" ---- it's often better to direct it at the object (in this case the door) instead of the child. Basically, you're saying the child is not bad, but the action is bad (or in this case dangerous.)

Well, after I sternly scolded the doggy door and removed her from that area. She walked around a bit and then toddled straight back to the door. I thought for sure she was planning on another exploration attempt. But to my surprise, she bent down to the door. and shouted...."nyo, nyo, nyo!" And later, when my husband returned home, she greeted him, and then made a bee-line to the doggy door and gave the door a good fussin'.

At least she KNOWS it's wrong. Whether or not she tries it again...........that's a different story.