A glimpse into Lily's 3 year old mind

Lily: *out of the blue she looks up at me* "Mama, I'm going to be mad if you hold Max."

Me: *squatting down to look eye~to~eye with a smile* "I know sweetie. But, I want you to know that ALL of the love that I have for you is just for you, Lily. Max cannot have any of my love that I have for Lily. I do love Max, and my love for Max is just for Max."

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Lily: *as I'm holding her walking down the steps* "I like dinosaurs. Like the dinosaurs in the doctor's office."

Me: *turning to look at Lily with a surprised look at this new topic of discussion* "You do? You really DO like dinosaurs?"

Lily: "Yes. What are the ones that fly with big wings again?"

Me: "Pterodactyl"

Lily: "Yes, yes. And some have long necks and some have small necks."

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Me: *after several cues over a bit of time showing that we may have an ear infection brewing* "Lily, we're going to go see Dr. Ho so she can look in your ears and see if you need some medicine to make them feel better."

Lily: "Ok" *Looking a bit sad* "You're going to stay with me? I don't want you to leave me."

Me: "Oh no, sweetie. Mommy's going to be right there with you. The doctor will just look in your ear with a light like before....it won't hurt....just like it didn't hurt before."

Lily: "But what if you leave me at the doctor's like you left Chloe?"

*A couple of months ago we had to leave one of our cats, Chloe, at the Vet for tests because she wasn't feeling well. I explained to Lily that Chloe would only stay at the Vet for a little while then we would be able to bring her back home. Lily didn't say much more about it at the time.*

I then explained to Lily that I would NOT be leaving her with the pediatrician, that I would be with her the entire time, and that I would NOT be leaving without her.

I treasure all of my conversations with Lily.