What really matters- Emotional Connections to Dolls- Most toddlers develop an attachment to a security blanket or some object that becomes important to them early on. You will also see a expansion in the number of love objects during the second year and dolls seem to fit the bill. eebee, the character in Whitney’s favorite DVDs series (co-founded by her father), was definitely Whitney’s favorite friend. Not only would she request to watch eebee on TV but she developed a affectionate relationship with the eebee dolls she had around the house. We should encourage these relationships with our toddlers dolls as our toddlers can project a full range of emotions and feelings towards the doll as well as make believe the doll feels them as well-- practicing their empathetic skills. (See Quarterly write-up for full description of “Empathy & Heart Qualities”)

How to put it into practice-

My Experience-

Of course as a proud parent of both Whitney and eebee, I loved it when Whitney would demonstrate her excitement for eebee (see eebee doll video). You can see that I encouraged whitney to keep dolling out those kisses for eebee.  But the real important feelings are those that Whitney is demonstrating. She had a true affection for the eebee doll and I should have been helping her reflect on that.

Tuning In-

The way to help her reflect on her affections is to better tune into the cues she is revealing. In the eebee video, Whitney appears to want to collect not just one but several of her eebees. Here I could have remarked saying “Oh, you found one eebee; now you want to find more eebees; eebee makes you feel happy; the more the happier.” Don’t know if this reflection is accurate but speculating and narrating what you think your child is experiencing and feeling is always a good place to start.

In the “Crib Stuff” video, Whitney has just woken up and she decided that she needed the comfort and company of all her crib favorites to come with her out of the crib. We can acknowledge and appreciate that need for the security and comfort of all her friends and try to articulate the bond she is feeling toward them as she tries to start the day.

Extending/Bridging-

We can help extend these moments by role playing and perhaps bringing the feelings of the doll to life to objectify the emotions and feelings being experienced and helping our toddlers see these feelings more concretely. We can take hold of the doll and pretend to play out the dolls role such as kissing back while saying “oh, eebee loves you to and eebee feels like giving you a hug and a kiss back.” Anything to make the feelings and affections more tangible and visible for our toddlers.