Bossy

Over the past few months I've written about how sweet, loving, and charming Abby is. I've also talked a bit about her stubbornness and her will or iron. I believe I've touched on her imperious ways, but I haven't dedicated a whole post to them - tonight I will.

Abby is a bossy bit of goods. I've known this for quite some time, but it really became clear to me this week as I watched her start the day with my students. Each morning before school started she had them jumping to play chess with her, eager to follow her directions in Simon Says, and scrambling to "move over" so she could sit down next to them. I not only saw her bark out orders like the best of generals, I saw the kids follow what she told them to do without question. It was very sweet of my students, but as I thought more about it I realized that she really has a way of getting others to do what she wants, no matter what their age. Whenever I pick her up from the nursery at church, the volunteer will give me a rundown of all that they did in the hour that she was there. It's usually a pretty hefty list....and delivered with a smile. Even when she is ordering you around you can't be mad at her.

Case in point: today Abby'd requested popcorn for a snack, so I set her up with a nice big bowl and she settled in on the couch to watch a movie. I saw this as my opportunity to go take a rest of my own, and so Dad was now officially "on duty". He walked into the room after a few minutes and saw Abby sprawled out on the couch eating her popcorn. He gave her the direction to sit up, so she wouldn't inadvertently choke. She very calmly turned to him, raised her hand, pointed her finger at the door, and said one word, "Out." After her regal command was given she went back to eating her popcorn, expecting to be obeyed. This time she wasn't, and Jason eventually got her to listen to him, but I know he was having trouble holding back the laughter. 

The thing that really amazes me about all of Abby's high-handedness is that she rarely comes off looking like a brat. I don't know how she does it - it really is quite a sight to see.

When I asked Abby yesterday what she wanted to be for
Halloween she told me, "an opera singer", and then demonstrated
what an opera singer looks like when she sings. The finger in her mouth
is her microphone, the other hand is there for drama! Where does
she get this stuff? (Do you notice Bruiser howling in the
background? He SO loves it when we sing opera! I can only
imagine what the neighbors were thinking.)