Blue Bear

One day recently Blue Bear was a bone of contention.  As I recall, when we (Randy, Jonnie, es and I) went to the hospital to greet the newborn ec, we stopped in the hospital gift shop and es chose this soft, furry bear for her new brother.  For months it sat in a corner of the den with the large stuffed dog, horse, and other animals. Little ec is just now beginning to play with such toys.  Well, as soon as he picked it up by the ear one day, his sister grabbed it out of his hands.  "Mine!" she declared.  "He doesn't want it!"  I took it away from her, explaining that yes, he did want to play with it and reminding her that she had chosen it as a gift for her baby brother, and then gave it back to ec.  She promptly grabbed it again, and I took it from her. Before long she was lying on the floor crying and tossing blocks.  Eventually we sorted out the matter.  She knows that if he is playing with something she wants, she can try to trade another toy for it; grabbing is not the way to go.  And she often does try to trade toys.  We talk about what she is teaching him to do if she grabs, perhaps a hard lesson for a toddler, but I think she understands.  Now that she is part of the older class at school, she may feel she needs to exert herself more at home.  I don't know.  We certainly allow her to do things her brother can't do yet, like use safety scissors, play with Play-Doh, stand on the stool at the counter, stressing she is older and safer than he.  And most of the time she is cheerful and kind.  My challenge is helping her learn to share without squashing her sense of self.