Qualities that Make Margot Margot

Glosette Girl was at a yoga-training session during this past weekend so I had Margot mostly to myself. All that daddy-daughter time gave me lots of time to observe what makes her...Margot! Here are some things I noticed:

1. She is fearless...but still a little girl. I am always in awe about all the things Margot is willing to try! The latest adventure was a Brownie sleepover camp at Landsdowne in Ottawa. All week long leading up to the camp she was up and down - super excited one moment yet nervous and almost in tears later on because she was shy about some of her old sleeping habits (sucking fingers). In the end her bravery won out.* It was wonderful to see how proud she was when her Brownie guide complimented her on sticking it out.

Super girl at the drop off!

2. She has a fiery temper. If Margot doesn't like something I'm doing she likes to kick (or pretend to kick). It doesn't hurt me but I always worry that she'll kick someone else (although I get the impression she saves her "special behaviour" for her parents). Oh well. Everyone needs something to work on I guess. When I asked her about it recently, she gets an embarrassed smile and mentions it's really hard for her not to do it.

3. She lets other kids go first. I took Margot swimming at a nearby indoor pool over the weekend and any time another kid was a bit more assertive and butted in line or grabbed a nearby pool toy Margot let them. She then watches them. I always like to keep an eye on her when we go out as some kids can be...well jerks really.... and I want to make sure Margot gets her fair share of the fun.

4. She may not always help out with chores...but when she thinks her parents are really in trouble it's a different story. At home, getting Margot to pass me her jacket to hang or pick up her dirty dishes can be torture. It's all whining and stalling. But this past weekend when I took her to the grocery store and bought too much stuff for me to carry she didn't hesitate to carry two bags to the car herself. I've seen this side of her before, when we were trapped at an airport overnight coming back from Costa Rica (she kept telling us not to worry and it'll be alright). Her "helping" instinct seems to really kick in when it matters.

5. She forgets nothing. If I mention that I'm going to read a book to her or maybe give her five cents because she did some chores she won't forget. No sir!

6. She is honest...but knows how to bend the rules. Margot knows she can watch two episodes of TV or Netflix in the morning and two in the afternoon. With me she sticks to that religiously. I don't even have to tell her to turn off the TV - she just does it. But with Glosette Girl...let's just say sometimes "two episodes" go a long way sometimes! She also has a great talent for coming up with rationales that justify whatever it is she'd like to do!**

7. She still likes to spend time with me. Here was our Saturday agenda. If it wasn't for TV poor ol' Dad would have no time to himself!

Item #4 on the list: Board games!

8. And on a similar note, she still likes to hold hands. She's almost eight but still, no matter where we go, if we're walking on the street she asks for my hand if I haven't given it to her already. I'm going to enjoy that as long as I can.

* Just barely! She did try to make a late night phone call to Mama and Dada!

** For example, recently she made a number of convincing arguments that watching the Olympics on TV wasn't really TV as it was every four-years and that mean's it's a free-for-all.