avatarErnio Hernandez

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"9edd" type="7">“Ready, let’s race!”</p><h2 id="2e1c">Sunday, July 29</h2><p id="108d" type="7">“Do you mind if I hold your hand?”</p><p id="3d36">Often when someone is described as “determined” or having “a strong will,” it is used in a negative light — as a nicer way of saying they are stubborn or hard to deal with. And too often “difficult” children are labeled such as a way to dismiss them.</p><p id="bd50">I don’t see things that way. I grew up with the even-then dated notion that “children should be seen and not heard.” I try to give my daughter free reign when it comes to her emotions, her development and her curiosity. I want her to feel okay to speak up, to ask questions, to cry and, yes, even get angry. I’ve let her know it’s okay to say “I don’t know,” to feel shy sometimes, to be scared, to let people know when they hurt her feelings.</p><p id="9181">If she grows up being labeled difficult or too hard to handle, I think I will feel good. Knowing she will stick up for herself, for her friends, her neighbors, her fellow human beings. She will ask the questions, get emotional, be passionate brave and bold.</p><p id="6005">I’d be proud to have raised her to be “determined.” And maybe one day, she’ll be written about in books and kids will describe her as such.</p><h2 id="a71b">If you’re happy and you know it, and you really wanna show it… 👏🏽</h2><div id="2a3e" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/daddy-nandez-327b3bba4b5b"> <div> <div> <h2>Daddy ‘nandez’</h2> <div><h3>a selection of stories and more on fatherhood by Ernio Hernandez</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*sRrFcKkoHkfZKxWnFruZ9Q.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="012b"><pre>Editor’s post-script: <span class="hljs-keyword">Read</span> the <span class="hljs-keyword">next</span> in <span class="hljs-keyword">this</span> series below:</pre></div><div id="bf34"><pre><span class="hljs-selector-tag">A</span> Good Memory</pre></div><div id="bd66" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/a-good-memory-7113a66dae6d"> <div> <div> <h2>A Good Memory</h2> <div><h3>“Pull Quotes” of a 4 Year Old: Weeks 31-32</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*GVOr65uASmYMBAjz36uUSg.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><h2 id="019b">You may also enjoy:</h2><div id="2a0b" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/tim-curry-terrorized-my-childhood-402867a5294e"> <div> <div> <h2>Tim Curry Terrorized My Childhood</h2> <div><h3>Yes, I do have a terrible memory from when I was a kid of having my ears pulled

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out and mocked (almost as the lovable baby elephant in…</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*zCJhwFBaNM4OP-2wpKThVw.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="e372" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/my-cravings-my-childhood-daecd71c34b2"> <div> <div> <h2>My Cravings = My Childhood</h2> <div><h3>I have been drawing everyday for a couple months now on a weekly theme. Last week’s prompt was food, and I noticed a…</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*-org818eHcud1EFI5bdk0w.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="772b" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/the-last-thing-grandpa-told-me-fe7393e4e287"> <div> <div> <h2>The Last Thing Grandpa Told Me</h2> <div><h3>I kissed him goodbye like mom always made me despite my youthful disdain for old people smell. He hugged me, held me…</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*EOx3H5eu1P-Rs4L6cK8YDQ.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><h2 id="52b9">Full “Pull Quotes” of a 4 Year Old list:</h2><p id="8a57"><b>😀 <a href="https://readmedium.com/a-personality-5a473cd856b3">A Personality (Weeks 1-2</a>) 😱 <a href="https://readmedium.com/a-flair-for-the-dramatic-bf77bee9fff2">A Flair for the Dramatic (3-4</a>) 👹 <a href="https://readmedium.com/an-active-imagination-5396b874ee1a">An Active Imagination (5-6</a>) 🙋🏻 <a href="https://readmedium.com/a-growing-independence-ccac380927a2">A Growing Independence (7-8</a>) 🏡 <a href="https://readmedium.com/e95fe351a63d">A Happy Homelife (9-10</a>) 💝 <a href="https://readmedium.com/a-sweet-heart-df7f137fcad6">A Sweet Heart (11-12</a>) 👀 <a href="https://readmedium.com/a5868ca74412">Her Mother’s Eyes (13-14</a>) 🚀 <a href="https://readmedium.com/a-sense-of-adventure-7e533e1e6db">A Sense of Adventure (15-16</a>) 💃 <a href="https://readmedium.com/a-kick-in-her-step-d73a44a88722">A Kick in Her Step (17-18</a>) 🎤 <a href="https://readmedium.com/a-song-on-her-lips-f64b42cb1e21">A Song on Her Lips (19-20)</a> </b>🌟 <a href="https://readmedium.com/a-star-in-the-making-e32b92018ad6"><b>A Star in the Making (21-22</b></a><b>) 🌀 <a href="https://readmedium.com/a-swirl-in-her-hair-bb0d8f8d1e41">A Swirl in Her Hair (23-24</a>) 👂🏼 <a href="https://readmedium.com/an-ear-for-language-889a04f77699">An Ear for Language (25-26</a>) 😏 <a href="https://readmedium.com/her-fathers-smirk-f25905c10e9f">Her Father’s Smirk (27-28)</a></b></p></article></body>

A Strong Will

“Pull Quotes” of a 4 Year Old: Weeks 29-30

In grade school, when asked to describe a character in an assigned story (I probably didn’t read), my go-to answer was “determined.” It was a word that sounded smart and (well, if we’re reading about this person in a book) chances are: they probably were.

It’s still funny to me when I come across the word now or when someone is described that way. And funnier, too, that I see that universal characteristic in my own daughter.

→ ICMYI: catch up on “Pull Quotes” with the full list below.

Before I get to the goods, allow me to share my recent birthday reflections (many of which obviously include the little star of these stories) in a story titled “42 Moments in My Life with Teary Eyes.” Please enjoy if you may. Onward.

Here are my daughter’s “Pull Quotes” in recent days:

Monday, July 16

“Once upon a time, there was a little castle and a big castle. The end.”

Tuesday, July 17

“You help me.”

Wednesday, July 18

“What do ‘yada yada’ mean?”

Thursday, July 19

“He has four fingers, so he’s a real boy.”

Friday, July 20

(of the Statue of Liberty) “She’s holding an ice cream?”

Saturday, July 21

“Feel my muscles.”

Sunday, July 22

“Daddy, can we watch ‘Mister Rogers?’”

Monday, July 23

“How about this face?”

Tuesday, July 24

“Whoa. Daddy look, that’s cool!”

Wednesday, July 25

“We are already waked up.”

Thursday, July 26

“Let’s gooo…!”

Friday, July 27

Daddy: Who’s that? Daughter: I don’t know. Daddy: That’s fine. Daughter: No it’s not. That’s not his name.

Saturday, July 28

“Ready, let’s race!”

Sunday, July 29

“Do you mind if I hold your hand?”

Often when someone is described as “determined” or having “a strong will,” it is used in a negative light — as a nicer way of saying they are stubborn or hard to deal with. And too often “difficult” children are labeled such as a way to dismiss them.

I don’t see things that way. I grew up with the even-then dated notion that “children should be seen and not heard.” I try to give my daughter free reign when it comes to her emotions, her development and her curiosity. I want her to feel okay to speak up, to ask questions, to cry and, yes, even get angry. I’ve let her know it’s okay to say “I don’t know,” to feel shy sometimes, to be scared, to let people know when they hurt her feelings.

If she grows up being labeled difficult or too hard to handle, I think I will feel good. Knowing she will stick up for herself, for her friends, her neighbors, her fellow human beings. She will ask the questions, get emotional, be passionate brave and bold.

I’d be proud to have raised her to be “determined.” And maybe one day, she’ll be written about in books and kids will describe her as such.

If you’re happy and you know it, and you really wanna show it… 👏🏽

Editor’s post-script: Read the next in this series below:
A Good Memory

You may also enjoy:

Full “Pull Quotes” of a 4 Year Old list:

😀 A Personality (Weeks 1-2) 😱 A Flair for the Dramatic (3-4) 👹 An Active Imagination (5-6) 🙋🏻 A Growing Independence (7-8) 🏡 A Happy Homelife (9-10) 💝 A Sweet Heart (11-12) 👀 Her Mother’s Eyes (13-14) 🚀 A Sense of Adventure (15-16) 💃 A Kick in Her Step (17-18) 🎤 A Song on Her Lips (19-20) 🌟 A Star in the Making (21-22) 🌀 A Swirl in Her Hair (23-24) 👂🏼 An Ear for Language (25-26) 😏 Her Father’s Smirk (27-28)

Parenting
Family
Strength
Children
Growth
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