The Featherless Duck

When Evie gave up her pacifier we went and bought her a stuffed animal, hoping to replace the paci attachment with something a little less babyish. That day we bought a stuffed dog, one who Evie named Leash and who has since been played with rather haphazardly. Instead Evie has fallen in love with Duck. Yes. Duck.

This is Duck. The infamous Duck these days. Because Evie cannot go anywhere without this blue-furred creature. And this Duck is not to be confused with the chicken named Duck. They are in no way related. And Evie gets aggravated if you get confused.

I spend a lot of time with this duck because this duck spends a lot of time with my kid. I kiss Duck goodnight. I feed Duck breakfast. Duck has to have a special seat on the couch so he can watch TV at night. Duck has to be fed a snack. I have to watch Duck play the piano. No joke, Duck plays the piano. And my child insists that I spend a lot of time interacting with Duck. Guess she doesn't want him to be left out.

There is a distinction between cluck-cluck Duck, Evie's pet chicken, and this duck, who goes just by Duck. I know it seems a little confusing.

I initially thought that it was pretty cute, Evie's mild obsession with this fuzzy critter. Then as the mild obsession became more serious, I worried about whether or not this was a healthy fascination. After some searching online and some reading through parenting books I discovered this is apparently completely normal. Apparently just as infants are becoming incredibly independent toddlers, sometime during their 2nd year, they develop a strong attachment to some sort of lovey. Not all toddlers do it, but a lot do. And it's not only normal, it's good for them! Apparently having something there to support them helps support their budding independence and helps them to cope with the fears their increasingly complex imagination comes up with. Kinda neat.

So I'm back to indulging the obsession. While simultaneously keeping it in check. Duck is not allowed to go outside and play. If Duck goes with us on trips to the store or other errands, he has to stay in the car. When we go to the park or for a walk, Duck can go with us, but he is not allowed out of the stroller. Duck has to have regular baths. All in all, we don't typically have a lot of problems out of Duck. It is occasionally left up to me to make sure and remember Duck though. There have been mornings that in the rush of getting both babies, myself and Mushu (who goes to doggie daycare at my mom's boarding kennel) out the door, Duck is left behind. And I have to make sure that Duck has made it to the car, otherwise we might be 10 minutes down the road and have a meltdown because Duck isn't in the car.

It is sometimes a complicated life I lead...