Originally published on BabyCenter.com July 26, 2013
We went to the park so I could show the boy how to hit a baseball. It seemed like a simple and traditional father/son bonding moment. There was only one problem: I didn’t count on the dandelions.
Trying to teach a two year old to swing a wiffle bat was challenging but not impossible. He didn’t quite have the motor skills to track the ball and hit it in the air, but I could kneel behind him and help him time his swing. The actual tactile sensation of hitting a baseball with his plastic bat seemed to be endlessly amusing to him. But then one hit knocked the ball into a patch of dandelions and he stopped cold.
It’s strange what kids find intimidating. Last year, when my son was just learning to walk, he couldn’t stand touching the grass with his bare feet. He still has an intense dislike for getting his hands dirty. And, on this particular day, he was afraid of dandelions. He stopped at the very edge of the circle of weeds as though it were the border to some unholy land. He then turned to me and insisted, “Daddy get it.”
This was not going to stand. I was a pretty big wuss in my day, and I know from firsthand experience that being nervous around anything new can really drain the fun out of life. And while I’m not going to begrudge my son a fear of spiders, snakes, or the IRS, I was not about to let his fear of dandelions continue.
I admit that my approach was pretty rough at first. I simply picked a dandelion and touched it to his skin. He reacted like I was just jabbed him with a needle. A change in approach was obviously needed.
The secret, as it turned out, was bubbles. My wife and I had just started this nighttime routine where, in order to get the boy used to the idea of potty training, we’d sit him on the potty and blow bubbles for him if he used it. He quickly developed a love of bubbles, and, as I pointed out to him now, dandelions weren’t all that different. To demonstrate, I picked up an old white one and blew the seeds past him into the air.
He quickly got the idea, offering an inquisitive, “Bubbles?” before taking a dandelion himself and trying to blow the seeds away.
We kept on going like that until bedtime. At first he had me pick the dandelions, afraid to touch their fuzzy tops himself. Eventually he got over that fear as well. By the time I brought him home, he wouldn’t leave the park without first picking a dandelion to carry on his way.
It’s kind of strange, but I consider getting my son to overcome his fear of dandelions to be one of the bigger parenting feats that I’ve accomplished.
Of course, even when I’m trying to help I can overstep my bounds a little bit. Near the end of our time, I picked up a dandelion and blew all the seeds directly into his face. He wasn’t scared by the contact. Instead, he just gave me an annoyed scowl and said, “No, Charlie.”
Yeah…that bit comes from his mom.
Babbling Brooks 