Tired Poster shouldn't post.
I managed to give the impression that the two hour job is a pain and I regret it. This is NOT the case. Nonononoooooo!
I *love* this kid and her parents are ... ok. (kidding!) Seriously, it brings out a side of me that doesn't get nearly enough exercise and yesterday was a prime example, it went something like this:
Arrived a little bit late-- misjudged the route and took the bus instead of bike. Too long a walk in the hot.
My charge was sleepy and unimpressed that Mama was leaving. Thumb firmly in mouth, other thumb just as firmly in belly button and child firmly bonded to the couch. There weren't any tears though which is all to the good.
Less than ten minutes later I managed to lure Sleepy Girl off the couch and over to the table for a snack and put on her CD. We started chatting while she ate and she decided she wanted to play outside.
This is where I get clever: it was still pretty warm out so I asked if she wanted to play with some water and filled one of her buckets thinking she'd splash her hands in it and stuff but that didn't quite work. So I pour the water into the lid of her sandbox but it's not quite enough. Two buckets of water and a careful tilting of the lid later and she's happily pouring and splashing with some of her tea dishes. As that starts to get old I suggest she might want to give her doll a bath (it lives in the sandbox) and I get her a cloth to wash it with.
Eventually, the lid became less fun and I figured it was time for something new. I filled up the bucket, got one of the cups and suggested she might like to give the flowers a drink. Ever watered a garden with a tea cup? Heh heh heh... it took awhile to empty the bucket.
I'm not sure which of us started the Zen painting on the deck. I know that it was her idea to draw with the twig and water and I know that I was the one behind the Jackson Pollock-style stuff. (I showed her how to make spots by flicking water around) By the time Papa got home she'd graduated to putting her foot in the bucket and stamping out "pictures" with it.
I guess you have to know toddlers to really "get" how smoothly this job goes. She's the sweetest little girl but also veeeeeeeery shy and needs a little time to warm up. She's also of an age where she likes things a particular way and something like getting dirty has to be on her terms (she got a little concerned that her clothes got wet and that sort of thing). Even more than usual I tend to propose things and then back right off and let her decide when she's ready for them. There's a lot more "Would you like to..." as opposed to "Now we're going to..."
There's also a lot of repetition, my least favorite kid behaviour (but soooooooo important so I grin and bear it). At this age she wants to know I'm listening to what she says so if she tells me fifteen times that Papa is at work what she's really looking for is the reassurance that "Yes, Papa's at work but he's going to be home soon." "Yes Mama's at work too but she will come and kiss you while you're sleeping." "Yes, Oma and Opa bought you the sandbox, you must really like playing in it!" (this last one is really her way of saying snack time is over and she wants to go play).
So yeah, two hours isn't a long time but man can I pack a lot into it!
M.