Another Big Word

Mae playing with her mermaid doll while I knitted
on the floor sitting next to her.

While I was still upstairs this morning I heard the sound of Maggie climbing the baby gate at the bottom of the stairs.  This is what followed:

Paul:  "Maggie, get down!"
Maggie:  "No!"
Paul: "Mae, we don't climb the baby gate!  Get down!"
Maggie:  "No!" 
Paul:  "Down off the baby gate!"
Maggie:  "No!"

All this happened in a matter of second and the next thing I heard was the opening of the gate and then her tiny footsteps, a pause, and then more little thuds as her tiny feet sprinted up the steps, with Paul following behind her to make sure that she got up to her room safely. 

Lately she's liked to come up to her room to decompress and calm herself down a bit after breakfast but before therapy starts each morning. 

"Did she just say 'no' to you in a perfect little voice three times?" I whispered when Paul got to the top of the stairs.  "Yes."  He said.  "That's kind of awesome!"  "I know." 

She had taken with her a little educational poster that used to be on the wall that shows different types of weather, and when I peeked in through her door she was laying on the bed looking at it intently. 

It probably doesn't seem like that big of a thing.  It's something that would be so easy to take for granted... after all, a four year old saying "no" isn't that big a deal.  But here, in our house, it is a big deal. 

Last week I told Mae's program planner that I've been trying to teach her how to say no.  Patch has become quite the rough and tumble little guy, and whatever toy Mae is holding is infinitely more appealing than any other toy in the room and while I tell him "no" when he's charging towards her, I wanted her to be able to communicate that ripping the toy out of her hands isn't okay on her own, since I'm not always there.  So I've been encouraging her to say "no." 

This morning was the first time I'd heard her use the word and while it may not be in the context I'd been hoping for it's still a huge step in the right direction!