My Child’s Growing World

This post is by regular contributor Catherine Oehlman aka SquiggleMum.

I believe that the world is a big, beautiful place; brimming with interesting people to meet, and exciting places to discover.  But it doesn’t start out that way… at least not when we are very little.  Here is how my daughter’s world has grown during her first five years of life.

Birth
When she was born, I was her world.  Mummy.  From her first breath, she knew the sound of my voice and the rhythm of my heart.  I was all that was familiar to her and she relied on me for everything.  Of course, Daddy was there too.  We were a little family of three, in our own (very!) little home.

1 year
By the time she turned one, she was a confident walker with lots of get-up-and-go!  We had moved to a new home with lots of stairs to climb and a wild backyard.  We stepped out into our community as we visited the library and did the grocery shopping together, as well going to church each week.

2 years
When she was two, her comfortable world changed drastically with arrival of her little brother!  Suddenly she was a BIG sister, and we were a family of four.  While I was in hospital she stayed with grandparents and spent lots of time with Daddy.  She loved swimming lessons, posting letters at the post office, and going to our MOPS (mothers of pre schoolers) group.

3 – 4 years
At three and a half she took her first real steps out into the world as she started kindergarten part time.  Though one of the youngest in her group, she adored kindy and made lots of new friends.  While as parents we were still the main adults in her life, her kindy teachers now also had significant influence.  We still attended MOPS and she was able to help others with the routines and activities.  She loved visiting our next door neighbour, playing independently in the backyard, seeing the tall buildings in the city, and going away on a family holiday to a different state.

4 – 5 years
Kindy prepared her very well for the jump to full time Prep.  Wearing her uniform proudly, she confidently introduced herself to her new teachers and made friends right from the start.  She also got to know specialist music, sport and library teachers, and enjoyed excursions with her class.   During school holidays we had play dates with friends, and trips to new and interesting places in our local area.  With her newfound writing skills, she was able to write letters to family interstate, as well as internationally to a special little friend on the other side of the world.  Through Operation Christmas Child and Compassion sponsorship she also began to understand how blessed we are to live in Australia.

5 – 6 years
Next year she will step beyond the safety of the fenced Prep area, and out into the big school.  When you are five and a half, those big kids at a big school seem very, well, BIG!  I have every confidence though that she will be fine. After all, look at how much her world has grown already.

How old are your kids, and how big is their “world” right now?