What an adventure you're having, both in Unalaska and with your daughter!
Is it dangerously cold outside or just unpleasant? If it's just unpleasant, maybe you could manage to still go outside for 15 minutes, maybe once in the morning and maybe once in the afternoon. Not so long as to cause physical harm, but long enough to just be outside in the natural light. You could tie your mini-excursions to a science topic or you could just go outside for unstructured play and/or exploration. We live where it's quite cold (although not as cold) and the kids still go out even when it's below zero, at least for very short bursts of time. But, for the rest of your indoor time, what about a plastic basketball hoop, self-created obstacle courses, exercise videos you do together, pop-up tunnels and forts, a mini-trampoline, a Nerf soccer ball, etc. for regular bursts of physical activity? Some people here clear out their garages and get their "outside" activities in there. What about a lot of cooking and recipe-concocting, board games, building toys, cardboard boxes, art supplies, etc. for calmer times? Oh, also chores: teach her to dust, vacuum, do laundry, sweep and polish the floors, anything that is a useful life skill. Or, have her write letters or draw pictures for her friends and relatives back on the mainland, or have her e-mail. You could also buy her a cheap digital camera and she could take pictures to send as well. I feel like I'm mentioning things you've already thought about, so I'm not sure if I'm helping.
As far as Girl Scouts goes, have you tried approaching them as a homeschooling parent? You might tell them that you fully intend to register her for school in the next year or two (even if you decide that you *don't* fully intend to) and would like to integrate her into the group of (older) kids with which she will be likely placed when she does enter school. Ask at least for a trial period of just visiting the troop to see how it works out and allow them the out if it doesn't work out. Another option would be to find out the name of the leader for the local Daisy troop and see if she will allow you to unofficially join the group. When your DD earns the badges that the other girls do, you can always go buy the patches yourself so your DD can have them, too, if she has to remain unofficial. A third option is this:
"Although troop membership is still the most common way to participate in Girl Scouting, girls who do not desire to participate in troop activities can sign up as an individual Girl Scout, known as a Juliette. Juliettes attend activities independently and work individually on badges and awards. The Juliette program is descended from the Lone Scout program, in which a girl living in an area without a troop could register directly with the National organization."
I guess a fourth option would be to just buy the guidebooks yourself and work through all the activities, just for fun. And you could always allow her to design her own uniform and patches and you could create them together. That sounds ambitious to me, but it might be great fun for your DD!
I totally get the concern for her socialization and I think any contact you can get with lots of people of lots of ages can only be helpful. And, too, it sounds like your DD is introspective and precocious enough to have conversations with you about how to interact with "little kids" her own age who frustrate her. Still, I wouldn't worry too much, since if we were talking about a ND 3-year-old, no one would really expect that child to take on the other child's perspective and always react in an acceptable manner. This is where the asynchrony comes into play with our expectations of the child. She's 3, and while she often makes rational decisions and thinks carefully through her reactions, she's three! Sometimes I find myself having to repeat, "he's only seven, he's only seven . . . ."
Thanks for the update and welcome back!
Last edited by mnmom23; 12/17/10 08:43 PM. Reason: Adding As I Think of Things!
