Adaptability

It occurred to me the other day, as Will and I were waiting at the bus stop, that he no longer flinches when he hears the squeal of the bus' brakes. They were awfully loud that day, even I felt like covering my ears, and Will didn't seem bothered at all. When he was 6, he used to cover his ears every time the bus stopped.

It makes me wonder . . .

What is better for our kids -- us adapting to THEIR idiosyncracies, or exposing them more often to the very things that bother them? For instance, if a child doesn't like his routine changed at all, is it better to adhere to that concept of keeping that routine, or does it help the child in the long run if you are constantly shaking up that routine, so the child gets used to NO routine?

With the example of the bus -- I haven't done anything specific, but obviously, over time, Will has adapted to the noise of the bus on his own. If we never had him wait for the bus, always drove him to school to avoid the bus noise, he never would have adapted to the noise. It makes me wonder if there are other situations where it would be good to help him adapt to the very things that bother him -- noise from the kids on the bus, noise in school, distractions while he's doing his homework, etc. Obviously, I'm not going to force him to do something he really can't stand, but those things that start out as minor annoyances, maybe exposing him to those very things will help him adjust.

Kris