(no subject)
So the Old Songs festival was a bit of a bust this year.
Last year (and the year before), Katie Beth loved the bands, loved watching the musicians play, danced and generally had a good time.
This year, although she did occasionally listen politely for a minute or two, she was entirely uninterested.
She loved the HOUR-long play about river health, she liked Roger the Jester, she liked the mariachi band - all the things in the kids area. She loved the activities in the kids area (playdo, ink stampers, bead jewelry, and lots more). She enjoyed playing with other kids. She was by far the youngest kid other than babies in arms, and now I understand why.
She wanted to run and play outdoors and she had a great time doing that. She did not want to be quiet while people listened to music.
At one point during the big Saturday night concert, she and I went for a walk and we found a group of five children, roughly ages 4-8, playing hide and go seek. She happily joined them. I was the only parent standing around watching them. But then again, I had the only kid who might get lost. All the other kids were old enough (or had older siblings old enough) to find their way back to their parents. It's a perfectly safe place, fenced, no roads, with tons of adults sitting around - I wouldn't have worried about letting her play hide and go seek while I sat down and listened to the concert. But she just could not find her way back to us. I think she's inherited my terrible sense of direction.
At one point Sunday, I went to the bathroom and Sandy was watching her as she ran through the amphitheater waiting for the big Sunday afternoon concert. She was going up and down the aisles. But then a group of people were moving around and Sandy lost sight of her in the crowd. Sandy was totally panicked. KB also realized she had gotten turned around, so she made her way over to where we were sitting...during the Saturday night concert. She was confused that we weren't there and started walking up and down calling for us, while we were looking at the aisle on the other side, where she had been when Sandy lost sight of her. So a volunteer swooped her up, sat her on the steps to the stage and offered to auction her off.
"We have a lost little girl here named Katie Beth. Does anybody want her? She's a very nice little girl."
So I ran up and got her. I asked her if she was scared.
"Mommy, I almost made it on the stage!"
Yeah. No fear and no direction sense.
We had been sitting in our Sunday location for more than an hour before she forgot where we were, by the way.
She did this several times when we were in the big barns listened to shows throughout the weekend, too. She'd go dancing up an aisle, and then turn around and seemingly forget that, oh yeah, my mommy is standing right at the end of that aisle where I just left her.
So she'd start walking around looking for me, never looking behind herself. I had to "rescue" her at least twice.
Some people also clearly felt I should never let her out of arm's reach. No. We're in a nice, enclosed space in which I can see the exits. There's nothing dangerous here. I want her to learn how to be an independent person. It's worth occasionally losing sight of her for a minute to not spend the rest of the time telling her she can't be trusted to move around. I want her to trust her abilities. Also I want her to get a little better at it so she can find her way back! :)
Anyway, she was totally uninterested in the music, sadly, so I spent a lot of time outside the venues, sort of half able to hear enticing music. Sandy also went out with her so that I could listen at times, but we couldn't do it TOGETHER. So it pretty much sucked. But KB had a great time, in her own way, and cried when we left Sunday. I'm thinking next year will be more of the same, so maybe we should get a babysitter one day. Of course, it might be a factor of the musicians - this year they did not have any children's musicians, and the humor musicians were doing dark humor songs on guitars instead of rollicking good fun with many instruments. No big dance music either. Sometimes it's just a quiet year.
She was so exhausted that she fell asleep on the ride home. I carried her in and she slept another hour in her crib before waking up, eating dinner, and going back to bed.
Last year (and the year before), Katie Beth loved the bands, loved watching the musicians play, danced and generally had a good time.
This year, although she did occasionally listen politely for a minute or two, she was entirely uninterested.
She loved the HOUR-long play about river health, she liked Roger the Jester, she liked the mariachi band - all the things in the kids area. She loved the activities in the kids area (playdo, ink stampers, bead jewelry, and lots more). She enjoyed playing with other kids. She was by far the youngest kid other than babies in arms, and now I understand why.
She wanted to run and play outdoors and she had a great time doing that. She did not want to be quiet while people listened to music.
At one point during the big Saturday night concert, she and I went for a walk and we found a group of five children, roughly ages 4-8, playing hide and go seek. She happily joined them. I was the only parent standing around watching them. But then again, I had the only kid who might get lost. All the other kids were old enough (or had older siblings old enough) to find their way back to their parents. It's a perfectly safe place, fenced, no roads, with tons of adults sitting around - I wouldn't have worried about letting her play hide and go seek while I sat down and listened to the concert. But she just could not find her way back to us. I think she's inherited my terrible sense of direction.
At one point Sunday, I went to the bathroom and Sandy was watching her as she ran through the amphitheater waiting for the big Sunday afternoon concert. She was going up and down the aisles. But then a group of people were moving around and Sandy lost sight of her in the crowd. Sandy was totally panicked. KB also realized she had gotten turned around, so she made her way over to where we were sitting...during the Saturday night concert. She was confused that we weren't there and started walking up and down calling for us, while we were looking at the aisle on the other side, where she had been when Sandy lost sight of her. So a volunteer swooped her up, sat her on the steps to the stage and offered to auction her off.
"We have a lost little girl here named Katie Beth. Does anybody want her? She's a very nice little girl."
So I ran up and got her. I asked her if she was scared.
"Mommy, I almost made it on the stage!"
Yeah. No fear and no direction sense.
We had been sitting in our Sunday location for more than an hour before she forgot where we were, by the way.
She did this several times when we were in the big barns listened to shows throughout the weekend, too. She'd go dancing up an aisle, and then turn around and seemingly forget that, oh yeah, my mommy is standing right at the end of that aisle where I just left her.
So she'd start walking around looking for me, never looking behind herself. I had to "rescue" her at least twice.
Some people also clearly felt I should never let her out of arm's reach. No. We're in a nice, enclosed space in which I can see the exits. There's nothing dangerous here. I want her to learn how to be an independent person. It's worth occasionally losing sight of her for a minute to not spend the rest of the time telling her she can't be trusted to move around. I want her to trust her abilities. Also I want her to get a little better at it so she can find her way back! :)
Anyway, she was totally uninterested in the music, sadly, so I spent a lot of time outside the venues, sort of half able to hear enticing music. Sandy also went out with her so that I could listen at times, but we couldn't do it TOGETHER. So it pretty much sucked. But KB had a great time, in her own way, and cried when we left Sunday. I'm thinking next year will be more of the same, so maybe we should get a babysitter one day. Of course, it might be a factor of the musicians - this year they did not have any children's musicians, and the humor musicians were doing dark humor songs on guitars instead of rollicking good fun with many instruments. No big dance music either. Sometimes it's just a quiet year.
She was so exhausted that she fell asleep on the ride home. I carried her in and she slept another hour in her crib before waking up, eating dinner, and going back to bed.