Kid Fears

A few nights ago, I heard Lexi crying. I went into her room to see what was wrong. She was half awake and complaining that the “black lady” was going to get her. Since she doesn’t know any terms for racial differences, I knew she didn’t mean African American. So, I asked her which black lady. She told me the one in Sleeping Beauty. Since then, she is scared of her dark room and it is my fault.


As a teenager, I babysat a lot of kids so I know that the Disney Princess movies can be scary. That is why I planned to wait until Lexi was at least 5 to let her watch them. Last week, I broke my own rule. Lexi wanted to watch a movie, Jordan was taking a nap, and I had a LOT of work to do. I rationalized that she is advanced for her young age and that she really likes the princesses. Besides, she doesn’t seem to be afraid of anything. …blah, blah, blah. Of course at the end of the movie, she talked about Aurora and the fairies and everything nice. I didn’t think much of it until I heard about the “black lady.” I’m back to the rule about waiting until she is FIVE.