Ava is STILL obsessed with smoking. Her fear of smoking might actually be getting worse. (We may need the help of Auntie Livy with some coping skills.)
Ava ceaslessly points out every single person she sees smoking or even smells smoke on. I continue to have to ask her not to point at people who are smoking. I have repeatedly asked her to whisper in my ear if she feels the need to inform me that someone is “SMOKKKKKKKKKKINNNNNNNNNNG!”
A while back I was trying to alleviate her fears about smoking. She got stuck on this idea that she HAD to smoke. I told her about being a teenager, and how her friends may choose to smoke because they think it’s cool. We talked about making good choices and making the right choice regardless of what her friends might do. Since that talk…the conversation somehow got twisted in her head to where she believes she will HAVE to smoke when she is a teenager. Countless times I have explained that it’s HER choice. She doesn’t have to do anything she doesn’t want to do.
One night when Matt was tucking her in, she became SO worried and worked up over having to smoke when she is a teenager. Matt finally decided to tell her that she could skip being a teenager. The next morning she proudly came up to me and told me that she was going to skip being a teenager so she would not have to smoke. Taylor who is standing beside me says, “can I skip being a teenager too?” with a very puzzled look on her face. Thanks Daddy!
Since then I have heard these statements from Ava….
“I want to skip being a teenager”
“I want to be a dog because dogs don’t smoke”
“Wait, I want to be a movie because movies can’t smoke”
“Mom, I just want to stay a kid my whole life”
Ava, if we could only keep this fear in you until you actually are a teenager! In the mean time, you keep cracking me up!
