Assimilation or Why My Baby’s Covered in Chapstick

Watch out Babycenter, it’s my turn.

Assimilation:  One of two underlying strategies for constructing knowledge in infants and toddlers.  Assimilation is the process of interpreting new information or learning into existing ideas of thought.

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My toddler enjoys her new found independence.  She goes up the stairs, climbs to the table, and tries to put on her shoes by herself.  She has been watching & learning her entire life — now she’s experimenting with the knowledge that she’s acquired. 

It’s summer in the South and Cakes knows that we wear this:

We smear it on her cheeks, forehead, ears — pretty much everything from the neck up.  She has grown to tolerate this, plus when she sees it she knows that we’re going outside to play.  Hooray for playing outside!  Hooray for sunscreen! 

That cute little cylindrical tube…  kinda sorta also looks like: 

The color of the container is different, yet the consistency is the same.  When I found my daughter with paper stuck to her face and an orange lid, I knew it could only mean one thing:  assimilation. 

Which brings me to this morning.  Chapstick is also in a small cylindrical tube with the same consistency, and because I needed to dry my hair *someone* took the opportunity to prepare herself for outside play.  She was thorough, too — she got it on her cheeks, on her nose, and in her hair.  And there was really only one thing I could do about that — kiss her all over! 

My lips should stay moisturized for a decade or so.