Wanting to be a baby

The more time I spend with Lucy, I intuit the lack the lack of opportunity she had to be a baby. All the books, suggest that children will revert for a time when they are home and slowly go through all the developmental stages. Lucy didn't seem to do this in the beginning, but she does now. She doesn't seem to be following chronological order and I often catch myself thinking, "this is a cooky request, she's almost four." But I indulge and assume that she's being her own occupational therapist.

It started with her need to touch everything and be held constantly. With her amazing verbal abilities, sometimes she can tell me exactly what she wants. She wants to "be a baby", so I swaddle her, rock her like a baby, stroke her face and stare into her eyes just like we do with all babes. She LOVES it! I recently put together a bag of varied textured papers, which she loves to touch. She also does the early toddler thing of taking things out and putting things back. She sometimes asks for a bottle! I've saved a few bottles and fill one with water and let her curl up into my arms.

Tonight, I put her on my chest and laid in the dark room and just let her rise and fall with my breathing, remembering that that can help newborns learn to take deeper breaths and to calm their nerves. It all sounds obvious, but not when most of the time she acts like a perfectly typical 3.75 year old. Her body just melted and her normal fidgeting stopped. I even felt her breathing turn longer and deeper. I've got to remind myself to do this more often. And it's lovely for me too!

Lately, I've been re-reading those baby and toddler books to remind myself of all those good early activities. Sometimes, when she starts acting over-stimulated I ask her to feel the carpet. And lo and behold she calms down! Anyone have any other suggestions of how to help her revert?

Other times, she'll see baby photos of Kai or Lorna and tell me that the baby is actually Lucy. I don't correct her - for now she needs to write her own history in her own way.