Toddlers are brilliant

I have spent the last two years reading and thinking about how babies and toddlers are capable of more than we give them credit for. We've seen this through being surprised by A's memory and her ability to get "unstuck" from places, navigate playground equipment, and climb into the car and up to her car seat.

 

But I will admit, A got me today. She totally floored me and I'm so happy I was watching (& present), that I didn't "fix it" for her, and that I captured the last bit on video.

So here is the back story. Today I put A's big blanket in her bed for the first time (we have been using thin Aden & Anais blankets since she was born). She was thrilled to see the elephants on her blanket that match the elephant decals on her wall. She was matching them and having a great time. We also put her coordinating stuffed elephant in there. Later this afternoon, she decided she wanted to get the elephant out. She tried to pull it through the slats (this works with one of her "babies" and her stuffed cow) but clearly it wouldn't work with this toy. I just sat in the chair, observing. She climbed on the outside of the crib (like the picture above from a few days ago) and tried to reach but she wasn't able to. I started itching to help but decided to see what she tried next, especially since she wasn't even asking for my assistance. She jumped off the crib, ran into the living room, began digging around in a box, and found the shoestrings that she had been playing with earlier (they go along with a "Lace and Trace Farm") and brought them into the bedroom where this happened.

Finally, she had me tie the string around the elephant and this occurred next. She played "fisher girl" for the next 10 minutes or so, clearly very proud of herself. So creative and I would have missed it all if I had just gotten the toy out for her!