Independence Day

I've been writing some notes to keep track of some of the things Jasmine's been up to.  There have been moments lately where we've noticed her maturing in certain ways, but when I looked at the half dozen or so things on my list, it was ALL about her growing independence.


One of the things Jasmine usually like to do at my market stall is put items in bags for the customers.  She's also excellent at spruiking and sales ;)  Last weekend, she decided her job was not only to package the jewellery, but to take the cash & give the change.  She was very quick to assert herself if I tried to organise the change - LOL.  What a great way of learning about money & numeracy! :)


That being said, it is a long day & a MUCH earlier start than we normally have, so Jasmine did get bored hanging around the stall for too long.  She asked if she could have a look around the rest of the market & I said it was fine as long as she stayed within the confines of the market.   Off she went, followed a couple of minutes later by the more cautious parent ;)  She allowed him to accompany her around the market as she struck up conversations with numerous people, particularly anyone with a dog.  Later in the day, one of the stallholders she'd been speaking with visited our stall.  She commented that she could tell straight away that Jasmine was a DEFINITE Aries - head-strong, no nonsense and no qualms in taking charge and telling people how things were going to be.  She said most of her friends were Aries and Jasmine was very much like them.  She said that we had an amazing child & she was really happy to have met her :D


The next day, we had to return some books to the library & Jasmine was asking (again) to borrow books on fossils.  I showed her how to use their online catalogue & she insisted on typing in the search details, wanting to know how to spell the words.  Then a few days later, we were driving along & D said something about Jasmine being a monkey, which prompted her to give him a lecture on evolution - LOL.  I was quite impressed by her level of understanding!  I know it shouldn't surprise me, but it was one of those moments where a few minutes reading something in a book led to a complex understanding of a concept.


Jasmine's also been spending more time away from us & is quite happy to do so.  Last week, some local friends who go to the same dance class called through on their way up to see if Jasmine wanted to go with them.  She seemed slightly apprehensive at first, but decided she'd do it.  A couple of hours later, I got a phone call asking if I wanted her home at a particular time and that the kids were playing happily at their house.  I said whatever time suited them was fine & to let me know if I needed to pick her up at any stage.  For me, it was a unexpected but welcomed break.  D had travelled interstate that morning to deal with some ongoing family matters, so I found myself home alone!  Jasmine has also been spending more time with the girl across the road.  It really made my heart smile the other day when I saw the two of them walking up the road together, chatting away.  It was also a laugh when D came back from his walk & chased them up the road which resulted in much high pitched squealing - theirs, not his ;)  The neighbours have recently acquired 4 young goat kids, the excitement of which seems to over-ride Jasmine's fear of their dog.  She happily played there for a few hours on the afternoon of the market when they came & picked her up.


And last thing on my list for this week relates to our first visit to the local pool for the season.  Jasmine knew it was open & had been asking to go....and asking....and asking....so we did.  Turns out that swimming classes started that same afternoon, so there were quite a few kidlets there.  I asked Jasmine if she was interested in swimming lessons, but she gave me an outright 'no', stating she "wasn't ready for that".  We continued on, going back & forth between the shallow pool and the main pool.  She was happy to Doggy Paddle & swim like a frog (breaststroke) with the noodle under her armpits for buoyancy.  After a while, she started holding the noodle out in front of her and was surprised to find she didn't drown.  I said she'd be swimming without the noodle pretty soon at the rate she was going.  A few minutes later, she tried it - and swam for the first time without any floatation devices!  She was so excited & proud of herself!  Sure, it was no more than a couple of metres at a time, but she'd done it & the look on her face was priceless!  I'm sure that was a huge boost to her confidence and hopefully by the end of the swimming season, she'll be making her way around the pool totally unassisted :)