Saturday, February 19, 2011

Pat, We Love him/her!


The girls have an American Girl doll, a Bitty Baby. The doll isn't displayed on a shelf, and we certainly didn't pay whatever the going rate is for it either. It's a hand-me-down from my mother-in-law's sister's grandchild. Because of the doll's rather androgynous look, my husband donned her Pat and continues to confuse the girls by mixing pronouns. I think I am the only one who consistently refers to Pat as a "she." (I tend to go with Pat's preference, and all her clothes are girly so I figure that's what Pat would want).



Because the girls prefer to sleep with the most uncomfortable of their toys (they would take, say, a backpack over a stuffed teddy bear any day), Pat is most coveted at nap and bedtime.


The other afternoon, Claire chose Pat for her naptime companion. I got Claire to sleep for her nap, Pat sleeping next to her with her requisite doll pillow and blanket. I am in Macy's room getting Macy to sleep. Macy decides that she must have a doll. I run around finding a doll to satisfy her. The preemie Cabbage Patch doll from my youth, LuLu, would not fit the bill. The suggestion of LuLu even set Macy into more of a tizzy. So, I ran into our room where Claire was quietly napping and took Pat. I snuggled LuLu in her place. Because everyone loves Pat, this did the trick for Macy, and she settled down and fell asleep. I felt mildly deceitful in a robbing-Peter- to-pay-Paul sort of way, but when I was in the living room eating my afternoon bowl of ice cream I was gloating in my maternal resourcefulness.


An hour and a half into Claire's nap I hear a thud upstairs. It wasn't an alarming, child-fell-out-of-bed thud, but it was enough to have me concerned that these antics might wake up Macy. I bounded (as much as a daily ice cream eating preggers does) upstairs. Claire had tossed LuLu out of the bed and was pretty distressed that Pat was missing. Seriously, for a child who has to be reminded every time to wipe, wash her hands, use soap and to put the towel on the bar when she's done, she's got a pretty good memory...


So, for the second time that afternoon I crept into a bedroom and took Pat away from an unsuspecting, sleeping child. I tiptoed out of Macy's room and gave Pat back to Claire.


Luckily, when Macy woke up she didn't inquire about Pat's whereabouts. Thank goodness, because I wasn't sure who would really have custodial rights on that one...