"Mine"

I saw a new side of Adelyn today. We've seen hints of it on the horizon but now we are fully emerged in a new stage. Her favorite new word is, "Mine."

The "mine" is delivered sharply, loudly, and authoritatively.

Oh goodness.

While this had proven to harmless thus far, this "everything I see is mine" attitude did not go well with our little play date with her BFF, Eleanor.

From the moment Eleanor came onto Adelyn's turf, Adelyn declared war. It was very much a one-sided battle, however. Eleanor seemed to be confused by this new Adelyn she was encountering. Every toy Eleanor went to play with, Adelyn would intervene declaring possession.

The first 30 minutes that Eleanor was at our house, Adelyn was in timeout four times. Both Eleanor and I were wondering where the fun-loving Adelyn had gone and how a smeagol version replaced her so quickly.

After a lot of intervention and some quality time in time out, Adelyn finally chilled out and was able to play a little better. They had a great lunch together as you can see below.

They did great coloring together until Adelyn decided she had seen enough of her crayons get used and cut off Eleanor's supply in a rather creative way. I was laughing too hard at this gesture to reprimand it.

It's not fun to see the dark side of your child. You want to believe the best about them and not think of them as the trouble maker. It's easy to make excuses for her but the reality is we have a strong willed, slightly dramatic toddler with lots of opinions on how the world should work. I'm thankful for a daughter with personality and heart but am also learning that parenting this type of child is going to be a long, hard process. Lord help us when she turns 13!

Hopefully we can navigate these hostile waters quickly and be done with this stage before she loses too many friends. Hang in there Eleanor!