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Expert Q&A
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| By Larry Jensen Larry Jensen, Ph.D. | ||
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I have a 9-year-old daughter whom I adopted at the age of 4 (along with her older brother, and sister, who were 8 and 9 at the time, respectively) when I married her birth father. Her birth mother passed away when my daughter was 18 months old. We then went on to have two more children, two boys, now ages 1 and 2.
The 9-year-old has started to use a sippy cup and a baby spoon almost all the time. At first it was a novelty, but now it has become routine. I always thought that you should ignore this kind of behavior, and it would go away. Am I correct, or should I be worried? It is quite obvious why she is doing this, but it is embarrassing when we have company, and the otherkids tease her.
I think you are correct in what you refer to as obvious.
Now to the question of concern; I think it is not serious and will go away. It may go away about the time your younger children mature in this area. I do realize the social embarrassment issue is real, so maybe a little on-the-side instruction will suffice to reduce this action in public or with company.
In years to come, your family may laugh together about her former immaturity. I had a girl her age who would not give up a similar habit -- later she was an All State basketball player, traveled around the world on her own, became a missionary for two years and now has four elementary school children who are super.
To be honest, we don't laugh about her past problem yet, but it is clear that she outgrew her problem and is a super, responsible adult.
Best wishes, and time is on your side.
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