G has mastered the concept of mess. she’s had making a mess down since birth, intuitively. but that which is mess, and its recognition, are new skills. of course what she determines is mess is also subject to her vagaries. food she willingly throws on the floor = NOT MESS. something dirty that needs to be picked up = MESS.

the other day i was wiping up some crud on the kitchen floor, and she picked up a dishcloth and started helping me wipe. she didn’t actually accomplish anything or get the floor any closer to clean, but in moving the dirt from one pile to another, she made herself feel involved and for my part i gave her positive reinforcement.

but she still doesn’t really get it. she tried wiping up an owee on her knee, and when it did not wipe up, she rubbed harder. this led to more mess, which led to more wiping, which led to more owee. the devil is in the details. god is in the details. i just now for the first time ever said these 2 phrases back to back, and they do provide an ironic metaphor for the cognitive growth of Genevieve.