Often, the Little One (who is now 4) wears me out before the day even starts. Mornings on school days are tough. She really just wants to hang out, and most mornings finds herself annoyed that we intend to go through the whole rigamarole of school again. Didn't we just do this yesterday?
All that isn't so unusual, of course. In fact, I'm sure she learned it from me. But my question is really about why our interactions, especially negative ones, are so much more emotionally fraught than her dealings with Daddy? She seems extremely attuned to my emotional tenor. Even when I am saying all the right things and trying to be lighthearted and encouraging despite her having royally ticked me off, she reads the emotions in my face and responds to those rather than to the words. Sometimes that means that she makes an effort to apologize, smooth things over, cheer me up ("Are you happy, Mommy?"); other times it just riles her up and the battle royale ensues ("You're not my friend!" "You make me mad!" or, on one memorable occasion, "I haven't met my real mommy yet! I want hungry bugs to come and eat you!"). It's exhausting, for both of us.
The Big Girl and the Boy really don't seem to be like this. They are much more self-contained. The Little One's boundaries are blurred -- and this worries me.
