A friend called the other morning with a baby sitting emergency to which I immediately responded - she dropped her 2 kids, Miss 5 and Master 3 off for a couple of hours. Now in my experience 3 kids is definitely a crowd when you are talking about preschoolers playing together, particularly when 2 of them are siblings (Little Bro is too little to be counted in the true social sense). So, I knew I had to come up with an engaging activity, and fast!
Just as the kids arrived Big Sis discovered an enormous spider on her bedroom ceiling. I will own up at this point that I am terrified of spiders and this gross enormo spider, with only 6 legs (must have been in some terrible spider fights) was freaking me out! Anyway, the kids couldn’t get enough of it - so there we sat, I pretending not to be terrified, because I’m supposed to be in charge, watching the terrible beast while we all discussed it, getting right into some real preschooler humour!
Big Sis decided the spider was a bit sick and had vomits - which Miss 5 suggested he may do in Big Sis’ doll’s house toilet (about the right size) - much laughter. There was some discussion about how he lost his legs and whether when daddy got home he would take him to the spider hospital.
Anyway, when I eventually coaxed them out of the room we spent the rest of the morning singing incy wincy spider and drawing pictures of spider to which we glued hairy wool. We found glitter glue to make spider webs around our pictures and made up many more hilarious spider stories.
Like I said, I really really hate spiders so this was kind of like the beginnings of immersion therapy. I was very proud of myself though - I was determined not to pass my fear of the spider onto Big Sis - and I think I almost got away with it. I kept thinking, just act natural - spiders are good and Big Sis deserves a life where she is free to love all insects equally! It wasn’t until DSO came home, and the spider was taken away to that special hospital that I realise I had probably been sprung - Big Sis thoughtfully said, “I don’t like spiders mummy, they are yucky!”
preschoolers, Song, Spider, toddlers, Visiting Kids
