On the other hand
It’s probably bad form to liken one’s child to an executioner, but in the last few days he’s let the noose around me loosen a little. It used to be that if he was awake, I needed to be entertaining him — but now he’s happy to let me have a hot chocolate or read a chapter of the current book, while he watches his hand.
I don’t think he’s realised the strange appendage actually belongs to him yet, but he’s happy to spend time pincering the fingers, or catching the thumb in between them, and jiggling the fist in front of him.
My husband and I make enthusiastic predictions about whether Timmy will be right- or left-handed. Each of us, of course, imagines he is destined to be on our own team. (My husband is left-handed, which seems an impractical thing to wish on one’s child — he’d forever be smudging the page as he writes, wouldn’t he?)
It seemed the left-handers were winning in the probability stakes, just because Timmy’s only fascinated with staring at the left one. But then I made an observation that I believe puts the right-handers ahead: Timmy may like looking at his left, but he grasps with his right. Yes! (Too soon for a victory dance?) He grabs his little woollen mouse by the leg and waves it about, and he’s now taken to grabbing my sleeve when I’m trying to change him, which slows the process a bit. And whenever he’s wearing a bib, his right hand is constantly pulling at it.
But when I’m feeding him, he now attempts to hold the bottle himself…with his left hand.
One more point for the left-handers, then?
26 Jul 2012
You would not believe how many photo’s I took when Natalya first discovered her hands… I look at the album now and think “what exactly was I taking the same photo over and over for??” It was so exciting at the time!
I don’t think “handedness” really comes into play until a few years away… prompts me to do a bit of research (off to google as soon as I’ve scrawled this). It doesn’t matter much until preschool when they are starting to write and use scissors etc… then it is useful to determine which is dominant.
Love your writing… keep it up 🙂