Don't give me no lines and keep your hands to yourself

I was chatting with one of Molly's teachers at daycare this afternoon and she told me that Molly is scared of the other kids. Specifically, she doesn't want them touching her. At all. If she sees one coming, she "sounds the alarm" and starts to cry until someone comes to her rescue.

I guess some of the older boys in the class can get kind of aggressive, stealing Molly's pacifier or hitting her on the head when she's in the bouncy seat. I've seen both Brendan and Logan snag Molly's paci, but didn't realize it was something that happened often. I hate to admit it, but I actually thought it was kind of cute at the time, even though Molly burst into tears.

Part of the problem is that Molly can't move yet. She's one of the youngest kids in the class, and one of the only ones who can't crawl. So she can't get away when she sees a bully approaching.

The teachers are great. They're trying to get Molly to feel more comfortable and to trust the other kids. They had a tea party the other day with just the girls and Molly was okay with Alexis and Malina touching her arm. And sometimes when Molly is being particularly sensitive, they will put a piece of string around her and instruct the other kids not to cross the line. Poor Molls! I feel my heart break a little bit just thinking about it.

The teachers told me not to worry about it. Molly still has fun at daycare. She grabs for toys, laughs, and gets excited when she hears a song she likes or sees someone clapping. But Jason is at a work dinner tonight, so I have had plenty of time by myself to obsess over this new information. I feel responsible because I know I was exactly like this as a small child and must have passed along the sensitive gene in addition to long eyelashes and pasty skin.

I guess I turned out okay. While I don't exactly have a thick skin, I'm not scared of my own shadow anymore either. Molly will be fine.... Hopefully things will get better when she learns how to crawl. Or when some of the older boys graduate to the next class up at daycare!!