This Pouting Thing

Yesterday while working on a homework assignment, I sat my laptop on the couch intending to quickly run into the kitchen to put a glass in the sink, and the second I took a step, Zoe charged at it. I was hardly two feet away, so I said, "No, no, Zoe!" and I picked up the laptop and took it with me. When I returned to the living room, Zoe was standing in the middle of the room with her head down. I looked at her for a second thinking what on earth is she doing? Then I realized... she was pouting!

Pouting!

It was the funniest thing. I just stared at her for several minutes while she stood there, still as a statue. I "Psssst!"-ed at Scotty to get his attention and then pointed to Zoe and whispered, "She's pouting!"

It was quite a phenomenon for us to behold, you see, because we've never had a child who pouts. Our kids are big tantrum throwers - they have all excelled at screaming and thrashing around on the ground like they are possessed. When they are experiencing strong emotions, they let us (and the entire neighborhood) know it!

None of them has ever pouted in that isolated, silent way!

I remember about five years ago when I was babysitting another child. I don't remember what happened to make him upset, but he ended up standing in my living room with his arms folded for about an hour. He was completely silent with his head down. I kept checking on him to make sure he was still there, and he stayed firm in that position. I was blown away. Then I realized that I'd never seen this child scream or throw a tantrum for his mom. I asked her afterward if he ever threw tantrums, and she confirmed that he never did, he would just sulk when he got mad.

I couldn't help daydreaming about what that would be like. Just think, if my kid got mad at me in the grocery store, instead of screaming and throwing himself on the ground in front of the shopping cart, he would just stand still with his head down. I could easily put him in the cart and push him around while he pouted, and he wouldn't disturb anyone! And if he ever got mad at home, he wouldn't roll on the ground and kick the walls. He would just stand in the living room out of the way and sulk and it would be quiet. What a different life that would be!

I don't know if there are any long-term differences between children who loudly express their anger via tantrums and those who do so quietly through sulking (maybe one is more likely to end up a serial killer), but I am fascinated by this pouting thing. It will be interesting to see if Zoe continues to do this in the future or if it was just a one-time thing. Either way, at this point, it's new to me, and I admit I'm intrigued. Don't get me wrong, though, the girl can still throw a mean tantrum. In fact, a couple of cashiers at Sam's Club know her by name because of her tantrums (she's made her mark).