Little Rabbits Have Big Ears

Have you ever heard that phrase?

We use it a lot, considering we have four little rabbits, three of them who tend to repeat nearly everything they say. If I ever want a barometer read of my parenting style, I just listen to how Amelia and Josie speak to their dolls. If they are being loving and sweet to their dollies, I feel like I have had a good day...however, some times their dolls spend time on the steps and are told, "Mom's done."

Nice, huh?

Anyway, today, as we were rushing to get ready for a run to drop off someone, somewhere, Anna was instructed to dress herself. This is not something unusual, as she is seven and dresses herself every day.

However, when my darling, almost second grader came down the stairs, she was dressed in jeans, a t-shirt, and a flannel shirt over it. We were in a hurry, so I didn't ask her to change, I just asked her why the flannel shirt? I mean, it has cooled off, but the high today is still going to be in the mid-80s.

She answered, "I'm a super hero."

When I paused, amidst the chaos and hurry of the morning, she went on to explain, "I'm a crop hero, Mom. You see, when I hear a farmer who is worried about his crops because of the rain or the bugs, then I just take off my first shirt (read: the flannel one), and hop into my magic truck. The magic truck then will either spray water or bug stuff to make the crops well again."

Little rabbits have big ears.

When we think our children are just tuning us out, paying attention to their iPods or playing in the sandbox, or looking out the window of the car, they're not.

This little rabbit has heard everything. She knows. She senses that we are worried. She hangs out with her dad enough to understand that he's scouting fields for Asian beetles that will decimate a bean crop with their little, gross bug chewing. She knows that Saturday night, as we ate dinner, Dad was watching the bank of clouds from the south, hoping that we would get some of the impending rain.

We didn't.

So, she noticed on Sunday that even though it was cooler, Dad was still worried. Mom is concerned. Grandpa and Grandma talked about it at dinner on Sunday night. Grammy and Pappy talked about it on the 4th of July. She's surrounded, and can't help but pay attention.

However, her reaction is something adults can learn from. She has a helper spirit, albeit a superhero perspective. Anna wants to do something, and all her little seven year old mind can hand out as a suggestion is a magic rain and insecticide truck.

If only it were that easy.

My hope is that our conversations will just keep fueling her creative problem solving skills, and not cause her to go into therapy as an adult because of an anxious childhood.

Here's hoping.