toddlers and sharing.

toddlers are constantly hearing the word 'share,' but what does that mean to them? i've learned that i have to teach lyla what that means before i can expect her to do it. she has to have ownership of her things before she can share them. we like to have playdates and she loves all of her toys, so naturally she has a hard time, especially with her favorites.

so when we have friends we talk about the fact that all of her toys belong to her, and no one will take them. but when her friends come over they want to play too, so she can share her things... and when they are done they will give them back. if she has a really hard time with certain toys then i ask her to pick something to give to her friends for them to play with.

we don't take toys from our friends though, even if they do belong to her because they can play with them for a little while. we try to teach her that if someone is using something, she has to wait until they are done with it before she can use it.

it seems to go over pretty well most of the time. sometimes i will have to remove her from the situation and we will sit down and have a little chat, and then she will be fine.

ahh life with a toddler :)