Confidence in Company

Confidence in Company

Every day seems to bring a new change in Monkey at the moment.  The last few months have really seen Monkey find his feet in all sorts of areas.  It’s been a joy to watch, and I’ve felt immensely proud of my little boy as he’s faced challenges and adapted to new situations both in and outside of school.  An area that we’ve seen a real change has been with his confidence in company.

Monkey has always been extremely shy in company, even with members of our own family.  I can count on one hand (excluding myself and Daddy P) who he instantly connects with.  These people aren’t necessarily people he sees regularly, but he’s always relaxed into their company immediately.  These people have seen him, as I see him, from the off.  But for the rest of the population it’s been hard work.  Monkey has literally hidden behind me when meeting people, but even with family and close friends.  It’s been a long road for him to feel comfortable and confident in the company of others.

Last week we saw a big change with Monkey and his confidence in company.  We  sometimes go out for something to eat with a friend of mine, and hr son, who’s 6 months older than Monkey.  They used to be a pre-school together, but are now at different schools, and indeed, in different academic years.  Every time we’ve met up, Monkey has been the same, really shy, only talking through me and it’s taken pretty much the whole meal before he relaxes and starts interacting more socially.

Confidence in Company

All that changed last Wednesday.  We were going out for dinner and arrived in the car park before my friend. Monkey could not wait for them to arrive, and as soon as they did, he was out of the car, chatting away.

My friend was quite amazed at the difference in Monkey, since the last time we’d all got together last Autumn.  He was orchestrating games to keep him and C amused, put on a ‘magic show’ to entertain us all.  He really was growing in confidence in company, and it was wonderful to watch.

Confidence in Company

We saw it again at the weekend.  We drove up to Birmingham to see my niece who’s at University there.  The two share the same birthday date and Monkey was so excited about seeing her, and where she’s living.  Once we’d had a look round, we met up with other friends and all headed off to the Thinktank museum.  A new environment normally means that Monkey would be glued to my side, but not on Sunday.  He was off! Running around, trying new things and chatting away as he went.  There was no nervousness about seeing his cousin, which is probably the first time ever that he’s just started talking to her straight away.  It was lovely to see.  He happily went off with her at lunchtime while Daddy P and I queued for the food and drinks.  He was even happier telling us both what to do and where to go.  No idea where he gets his bossy streak from.

Monkey is growing up, changing and is so full of life.  He’s a joy to be with and I really hope that his confidence in company continues to grow in the weeks and months ahead.

 

20 thoughts on “Confidence in Company

  1. This is such a lovely thing to read. No wonder you’re proud of him. It’s lovely that others have noticed the change in him too.
    My daughter used to be extremely shy, which was strange as the boys never were. It turned out the poor kid couldn’t see! As soon as she got glasses at the age of 3 she was transformed. She’s nearly 10 now and she does sometimes still talk through me – mainly with adults she doesn’t know.

  2. This is a lovely post to read, especially as I’ve read previous posts where the shyness was an issue. You must be so proud to see him develop and grow in his confidence, and he looks so happy in these photos. Well done Monkey, you’ve clearly made your Mummy very proud!
    xx
    #SSAC

  3. My oldest is like this. Very shy, he’s 9 now and he’s come on leaps and bounds. It is difficult to teach confidence. I was very shy as a child and the one thing I wanted for my children was to be confident. You are doing a great job and it’s so lovely to hear how well he is doing. Hugs xx

  4. Oh that is really lovely to read. I think our Monkey’s have been quite similar though I think mine is a little more confident now too. So lovely to read how well your Monkey is doing though! Xx

  5. This is so lovely to read, what a gain in confidence for Monkey. It must be lovely to see him blossom like this. I hope his confidence continues to grow, I’m sure it will.

    Thanks for linking up with Small Steps Amazing Achievements :0)
    x

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