More Goofy Ellie Stories

I believe that all parents love to hear the creative ways their children learn to interact with others in the world. One of my favorite stories was relayed to me by our daycare provider. But first some background:

Ellie has a stuffed doggy that was originally mine. My mother gave both me and Dorann these stuffed dogs as a gift one time when she visited. We had kept them in our room where they were appreciated, but not really embraced until our daughter Ellie was old enough to recognize them. Ellie likes all animals, but is especially excited by dogs. One of her first words was "doggy" and anyone walking their dog past our house is greeted with a voracious chorus of "doggy, doggy!"

For whatever reason, she has decided that the stuffed dog that was originally mine, is the preferred doggy and is to be with her as much as is possible. The other doggy, originally Dorann's, is offered for guests to hold. Sort of like a proactive peace offering to keep other's filthy mitts off her doggy.

About two month's ago, Ellie had held onto the doggy as we gathered her belongings to go to daycare. I had no problem with her bringing the doggy there for the day. The following was relayed to me by one of the teachers when I picked her up that afternoon:

Ellie was holding her doggy and playing with the other children and at some point, dropped her doggy. Her friend Megan (about 2 months older) picked up the doggy and decided she liked it. Ellie immediately noticed, but did not freak out. She politely asked Megan, "doggy, please" and held out her hands. Megan refused. Ellie again asked, "doggy, please" to again be rebuked by Megan.

Our little negotiator then pulled the pacifier out of Megan's mouth (taking Megan's most prized possession) and once again asked "doggy, please". To which, Megan immediately handed over the doggy and Ellie returned the pacifier.

I give the little girl high marks for solving the doggy dilemma non-violently and with style! Which was quite good for a 17 month old!