On Sunday, Julia found a kid's nail polish kit that I had taken from her closet and put on her shelf. We had been outsides and working during the morning and so when Julia asked to have her toe nail painted. This is not my strong suit but I agreed and even tried to put dots on each nail. Julia loved it and waited relatively patiently for the polish to dry.Then about an hour later, when I was doing something in the kitchen and the nail polish kit was closed up but sitting on the coffee table in the livingroom where Julia was playing with her littlest pets. She was quiet for a little while and I should have taken up the que then, but no, I waited until Julia came into the kitchen to tell me that something was "ucky." What was ucky was the red nail polish that was all over her feet and hands and the wood on the coffee table and the floor. I rushed to take care of the mess and I was SO angry.
I was more angry than I should have been. Afterall, don't all little girls do something like this at some time. Wasn't she doing something so very age appropriate? But I had told her not to touch the nail polish herself and I felt just so frustrated at that moment. Julia has been challenging our authority these days and I felt myself losing control of Julia's discipline. Today, I am ready to smile at what happen.
Oh, and to the extent that kids with autism have a hard time understanding that others have feelings different from their own, Julia had no trouble understanding my anger, had no trouble staying in her naughty chair until I cooled down, and knew enough to apologize profusely. I wasn't too awful, but it wasn't stellar parenting.
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