When Jacob cried

Dear baby Echo,

You never knew your hand-me-down doll Jacob could cry. When Zoe heard him cry, she got very disturbed, and didn't want to play with him again. We removed the batteries, but to no avail. "I don't like Jacob. We should give him away." She was about a year older than you. Here is Zoe's blog entry, describing her experience.

You knew Jacob since you were born, and played with him on occasion. Expecting a traumatic reaction similar to Zoe's, papa and I didn't put batteries in him. But you were always playful with dolls, holding them, feeding them, putting them to sleep. We decide to give it a try, and Jacob started crying.

A curious look took over your face. You took Jacob in your arms, sat down, and started rocking him for comfort. We showed you how to stop him cry. You understood the batteries' role, the pacifier's role, but you wanted to play along. When I put the pacifier back in, you pulled it out, rocked him some more in your arms, and then lay him in Zoe's bed to sleep. We discovered that his thumb, and the milk bottle can be pushed in his mouth to make him stop crying, similar to the pacifier. You were entertained by the thumb sucking - and excited about the milk bottle, as now you could add variation to your play. A few days ago I heard him cry, then you appeared, holding Jacob in your arms, and one of your diapers in your hand. "Poop, poop" you said, pointing at his butt. That's why he was crying. We smelled his butt. You sniffed, waved your hand as to say "stinky." We pretend cleaned his butt, and put the diapers on. You were happy.

I love you!

Mommy.