Monkey See, Monkey Do

We all know that children are master imitators.  I hear my own kids repeating phrases that I say with the inflection that I say it with.  I see my girls doing things around the house that I do, and taking up hobbies that I like.  They obviously are their own individuals and will never be exact replicas of anyone, but of course these kids of ours are going to imitate the adults they are around the most.  This makes us more aware of how we act, what we say, and how we treat others.  With our girls I am constantly hoping I set a good example of what a wife, mother and friend should look like.

This being our first go round with a little boy, however, it has been interesting for me to watch Lucas imitate Mike.  I read once that at age two, a child starts to really identify with the parent of the same sex.  Girls start watching their moms to learn "this is what girls do" and boys start watching their dads to gain clues to how guys act.  Lucas has always been a snuggly mommy's boy (which I love), and he has always loved his daddy.  But recently he has really been following Daddy around, wanting to do whatever Mike is doing.

Tonight, Mike replaced the old faucet in our kitchen sink with a cool new modern one.  This involved tools and water and general grunts and groans from Mike as he wrangled off the old faucet and installed the new one.  Lucas was enthralled.  He sat on the floor by Mike pretending to fix the sink too.  He kept saying, "I'm working, Mom!"  He would pick up a pair of pliers and say to himself, "Now what I gonna do?"  It was really cute.

Lucas "working" next to daddy

He was so sad when bedtime finally came and he had to stop his job to go to sleep.  There were some tears, but he fell asleep quickly after getting to stay up a little later than usual to help Dad.

What was I doing, you ask?  Well since the guys were being so manly, Hannah, Leah and I made a pallet on the floor and watched an American Girl Movie about Molly McIntire.  We oooohed and ahhhhed at all the cute dresses and discussed the dance routine and snuggled up together all cozy by the fire.  

I sure love my girls and my boys.