No!

I've found myself telling Brigid, "No! Not for you," and meaning it for the first time ever. Our ever-more athletic and alert girl is getting into everything. When I change her diaper, she spends her time arching her back, craning her neck, and trying to play with the Balmex tub. I don't want her playing with this, because it has tons of germs on it - after all, our hands go from baby bottom to tub every time we change her. So it's a firm, "No, no. That's not for little girls," and I take it out of her reach. It's not huge, it's not with any anger at all, but it is disciplining my daughter, which is a new thing for me. Hopefully setting boundaries early and gently will make life easier on all of us in the future. She'll never remember a time when there weren't rules (which, in my experience, makes the difference between brats and sweethearts).

Other no's: "No, no. That's mommy's hair. Don't pull." "No, no. That's mommy's earring. Don't pull." And, from Adam, "No, not daddy's beard!" Hmmm, what do these all have in common? Yep. Brigid's amazingly active hands and amazingly active curiosity. So what do we do? say no, and then give her something else to play with. Like her feet. :)