Morning's first photo at day care #8 - Toddler fending for self already

The toddler with her own sports bottle that she now has to keep at the day care. It is the end of the baby bottles! (I know, I know! She should have been off them long ago... But we still give them to her at home! Guilty!)
I can only send one milk bottle on a day with her bag, and yesterday they did not even use it.

She also now has to eat with the bigger children in the hall. They have to eat all by themselves!

My poor Baby Toddler! She has to fend for self! She looks so small when walking on her own in the play ground! They have to grow up so very quickly when we, working mothers, have to leave them! Maybe it is a good thing! Yes, it's a good thing! (Powerwoman says it definitely is a good thing!)

And then I read MamaPoekie's post at Authentic Parenting about The paradox of individualism, and I totally agree with her. We push our children away from us as soon as possible, giving them bottles, sleeping in their own rooms as soon as possible... Having to fend for self at day care instititutions! The Guilt!

Sometimes, I wish I could have kept her for longer in my arms...

The personality of the toddler

The note from the day care states that she is a well-behaved little girl, and that she enjoys the company of the other babies. How much of the behaviour that we see now in the toddler is part of the person that she is?
We are making assumptions about the little people, and I think we sometimes get it wrong. We superimpose our own personality traits on our children, thinking that in some way they are carbon copies of us. But we tend to forget that they are their own individuals from the very beginning. Am I making a correct assessment, or am I over-thinking it again?

Mieka has many quirks and traits. The blog is a way of capturing it.
She seems to be very cautious with regards to new experiences or things. She doesn’t like to rush into things. When we try to push her, we only get loud protests and kicking legs.
She tends to bite on her gums or folding her bottom lip inwards (see photo). Is it a sign of concentration/stress, or is it the teeth really bothering her? I am glad that the day care sees a good little girl. Because we find her constant demands on our attention very exhausting! Does it imply that she is a different person at the day care than she is at home with us?
She frowns easily, but laughs easily as well. But somebody in the family has described her already as a serious little girl. Especially when she concentrates on new experiences. She loves looking at small things and exploring it with her hands. We don’t hear a thing from her when we push her in her pram in the malls, looking at the people and everything around her.
Now she is at her happiest when she is walking, holding on to a finger. The pointy finger is still pointing like a berserk compass, not knowing where north is, and we are able to show her anything. She is easily distracted! (This is not going to last, I hear. Smile)
I hope we will remember how sweet this time is with her, and how she makes us smile countless times during the day. When she laughs, we laugh as well…
Thank you, Mieka, for the joy!