About every third day Aidan will refuse to go to school. When this occurs we follow a series of well thought our strategies such as "sure, you can stay home" or "how about we buy you chocolate". You can tell we are strict disciplinarians. Actually, after some discussion and only implicit bribing Aidan tends to relent and go to school.

Aidan and Lydia at school. Aidan is slightly outnumbered.

On the days Aidan is fussy, Lydia is smiling and eager to go to school. On the days Aidan is no problem, Lydia sometimes can act up. One such day was Tuesday.

Aidan was happy as can be but Lydia was adamant (even if she doesn't know the meaning of adamant) that she did not want to go.  Yang told her "fine, you stay here by yourself then" and she left our condo with Aidan and Ayi in tow. Lydia was all alone inside the house. Yang listened at the door and what did she hear? Crying? A temper tantrum? No. She heard the clear sound Lydia's walking across the floor in her Barbie shoes. Lydia loves her Barbie shoes. Yang peeked inside and saw Lydia moving from place to place in the house, perfectly content at arranging her toys and time to suit her. She is three and half and more comfortable in her own skin than I am at 42. She does not lack for confidence, that is for sure, and I think this is a good thing.

More on the shoes. China is a shoes off inside of the house type country. Somedays it feels like all I do is shoes on, shoes off. Shoes on, shoes off. Want to go to the mailbox-- maybe later when I can combine it with another shoes on, shoes off exercise. The theory is the shoes off helps keep the floor clean and be quieter for your downstairs neighbor (This noise sensitivity doesn't seem to apply to our upstairs neighbor's piano playing). When I visit the US sometimes I sit in front of the TV, look at my shoed feet, and just smile.

Anyway, I don't remember when but it seems like forever ago Lydia got these Barbie shoes.

Lydia's Barbie shoes are about three sizes too big and when she first got them she would walk all around unbalanced and nearly falling. When she did fall, she might scream but the shoes went right back on. More then once I had to dash to the stairs to "save" her. No bother, she soon learned to navigated those stairs in those way to big shoes without incident. The shoes are a constant companion and when Lydia puts on her oversized princess dress and crown she looks slightly .... well.... a father better not say.

So while the shoes on, shoes off is annoying I guess it is worth it.