Kitty has been upset about me leaving and she cried again this morning when I went in her room to say good bye and that I will be back Thurs evening.

Because she has been doing a little sewing lately, I had come up with the idea that she could make an easy stuffed animal, a frog. I could take it along, take pictures with it, and email the pictures back home, so it would be like she was there, sort of. They started working on it last night. If they get it done this week, I can still take it on the second trip. I saw the cut pieces of fabric this morning and said something to Dolly about the problems with them, e.g., rounded off leg, a missing foot. Kitty heard me and started crying in her room. I wasn't being critical, just stating the facts: the frog wouldn't go together like that. No value judgment about her work or her in general. When we all talked about it, she said that she was upset because I didn't like it. I explained that it will be okay and I'll take it with, if they finish it. They are planning to patch up the foot or cut a new piece. I hope she's not sloppy about cutting the new one, so the pieces all go together well, but it will be fine either way and I'll take it.

She has little sewing experience, so I don't expect it to be perfect. It's going to be a children's craft project, with its quirks, but it will be good regardless of how it comes out. I want to encourage her to develop her skill if she wants to learn to do sewing, like mom. Any of her efforts are part of that progress. She's very sensitive to judgments of her work. I try to give comments that will encourage her and build her confidence in her efforts, but it seems like I say too much, particularly this morning, and I come off as personally critical when I don't mean to be.