Kiss and Hug.

I read about this...how toddlers start forming attachments to dolls and hugging and kissing them.  I not-so secretly dreaded this because I hated playing with dolls as a kid.  My twin sister loved them and would make clothes for them and put them to sleep at night.  I hated them and would convince my sister that if she played Solarquest (my favorite board game) with me then I would play dolls with her.  Usually after the board game I would get up and run away.  

Fast forward to my first child.  Clara has been showing no signs of liking dolls.  Until this week...(cue scary music) But you know what, it is quite possibly the cutest thing I have ever seen in my life so I guess it's okay.

Today she got out two of her soft bowling pins - a donkey and a puppy.  She walked around her room, hugging and kissing them.  Then she put them in her pink toy stroller and started pushing them all over the apartment.  She would not slow down long enough for me to take a picture of her in action, so instead I present to you this image: Donkey and Puppy  in stroller. (right where she left them - in the kitchen.)

Donkey and Puppy -  Side by Side.

Welcome to the Zoo.

As I read Clara countless books about zoo animals and farm animals, and play with puzzles about zoo animal and farm animals, and watch cartoons about (you guessed it) zoo animals and farm animals...I wonder: Why does Clara need to know so much  about zoo animals and farm animals???  Sure they're fun...and talking about horses and cows and zebras is endlessly interesting to Clara.  (And I do mean endlessly.)  But is she destined for a career in animal husbandry? She lives in Manhattan...not in a little house on the prairie. This animal inundation must be to blame for the thousands of little children who want to be zookeepers and veterinarians when they grow up. 

Should I be worried that most of Clara's first words are animal sounds?  Today when I asked her "What sound does a cow make?" She smiled at me and said: "Moooooooo" for the first time.  Moo has expanded her repertoire of animal sounds which currently includes: Quack Quack, Cluck Cluck, Oooo Oooo Oooo (monkey sounds, in case you were wondering), Oink Oink, Woof Woof, and Meow (she does a dead-on impression of our cat, Pistachio).

Is there a psychology behind this?  Actual science?  Does quacking like a duck make toddlers smarter? Is it a conspiracy by children's book publishers to inculcate malleable minds with a love for animals?  Is a monkey doll cheaper for toy companies to manufacture than a Cabbage Patch kid? I suppose, the question really is, who can I blame for this?  I mean seriously, at least don't include the animals that don't make sounds.  (I'm looking at you, Giraffe.) You try thinking up what sound a camel makes when your kid is pointing to the picture and looking up at you for an answer. (I settled on: "Ptoo!" which is my version of a camel spitting.)  The other day at the swings another mom and I compared notes on fish sounds.  Her sound for a fish:  "Bloob Bloob."  I prefer: "Glug. Glug."

In the meantime I guess I'll move onto: "Clara, what sound does a sheep make?"