behavior problems?

[maawmawlynn]

My granddaughter is 5. She is very bright .Her father died when she was about to turn 4.She misses him very much, talks about him and to him  all the time.  She has lots of make beleive friends also. She looks in the mirror and sees someone else that she has named Melody. Is this normal? She gets along well at school but she does tend to be very bossy. When at home she mingles well with  us, her grandparents, and her mother, but her other grandparents, and great grandparents, she very rarely talks to. She pulls away from them, won't kiss them, or talk to them. She tends to be very shy around others, especially large crowds. Is this normal?  Will she outgrow this shy behavior. She sees her g. grandparents every day and still has very little to do with them. They seem to think something might be wrong.

[momagain59]

I am just guessing but, due to your g. grandparents age, I wonder if she is worried about them dying also. Could she be disconnecting from them to protect herself from another loss? I am sorry that she had to go through such a major loss already.

I have always heard that it is normal for children, especially only children, to have make believe friends. I bet she enjoys playing dress up. Maybe she has a future career in acting. She sounds like she is very intelligent but may be a little lonely for playmates. Does she have many friends her age that can come over?

I used to be very shy but once I became a teen, I got over it. Enjoy it while you can. I only wish my children would be shy just once in awhile.

My children send balloons with notes attached to their Grandma in Heaven. It seems to help and they really enjoy it. My youngest son with special needs will look up in the sky and say "Hi Grandma".