Oh, it seems like the time has come to explain to my daughter where she came from. She’s been curious about this for a while, but my previous answer—something along the lines of “Your dad and I loved each other very much and really wanted you to be with us, so we asked God for a little girl like you”—was enough for her. But now? Not a chance! She’s digging deeper: “You loved each other… but how? I was in your belly… how did I get out? I’m part of you and Dad… how does that work?” Oh boy, brace yourselves and get ready to talk!
On top of that, her interest in the opposite sex is absolutely wild. She was so upset when Alexey (her older brother, 6 years old) didn’t want to swim with her—she cried real crocodile tears, saying, “I wouldn’t even look at him! I’d turn away!” But when he finally agreed, she proudly sat next to him, making sure they weren’t too close, and declared, “Of course, I’m curious to see someone else’s butt, but I wasn’t peeking!”
I try to never lie or make things up when it comes to these questions. I’d rather say less, in a way she can understand, but still tell the truth. For now, I’m kind of dodging the specifics, but I know I have to say something. I’m thinking about how to approach it—something that won’t spark too much curiosity (like, “Oh, let me try that too!”) and won’t scare her, but will be kind and gentle. For now, I talk a lot about how important Mom and Dad are, how much we love each other, and how nice it is that she looks like her dad—how proud he is of that. She often asks funny questions about animals, like, “There was one animal and one… but to have another one—how does that happen?” It’s quite amusing.
But I’d much rather she ask us than her friends outside. I promise to write down what I tell her! 🙂