And In This Ring....Ella vs. Snow White

We put Ella down to bed one night and went downstairs for the evening. On the monitor I heard Ella talking to her babies in her bed, as she usually does since she has like 5 babies in bed with her at one time some days. Sometimes we can hear her repeating some of the things we said during the day, or laughing and giggling about what we talked about just before bed. Other times we will hear her rearranging the babies in her bed before she falls asleep.


This night I heard her talking to the new Snow White doll she just got at Christmas. She was disciplining Snow White for not doing something she told her to do. I couldn't understand what was happening but could hear her yelling at her doll, then a few loud bangs and grunts of disapproval after telling her she would be put in the naughty chair.

So I went up into her room and opened the door slowly. I almost wanted to catch her last position prior to my entering her imaginary argument with Snow White. My visions were that maybe Snow White would be thrusted over Ella's head ready to be thrown against the wall (which was what I assumed the loud bangs were). I found her sitting on her bed with Snow White in her lap. I asked her, with a calm and curious voice.....

Mommy: "Whats going on in here?"

Ella: "Snow White wont listen to me!" With a profound expression of frustration.

Mommy: "Well, What are you asking her to do?" Still with calmness and curiosity in my voice.

Ella: "She wont stop kicking me!"

As I turned on the light, I saw Snow White laying in Ella's lap, her removable shoes on the floor and with her plastic legs twisted one to the front, one to the back.

Mommy: "I heard you yelling at her from downstairs. Were you throwing her against the wall?"

Ella: "YES, because she wouldn't listen to me!"

Mommy: "Why would you throw her against the wall. We don't do that when we are upset. That's not very nice."

Ella: "Oh."

Mommy: "I think Snow White should come sleep with Mommy and Daddy tonight in our bed. Mommy will take care of her and you wont have to be angry."

Ella: "Okay. I love you good night."

Within a second of me closing her door, she starts screaming at the top of her lungs.

Ella: " Mommy, don't take Snow White! I love her and I want her to be with me in my room!"

I went back into her room and explained the whole thing over to her again. She would understand my reasoning for taking Snow White in my room and that she could crawl into bed with us in the morning. Every time I left the room, the screaming would start again.

Ella: "But I love her! I don't want to fight with Snow White! I love her!" (Think Rocky calling out Adriene's name in the movies.)

My heart was so broken. She was so hysterical after 15 or 20 minutes that nothing I said to her would be of any sort of comfort until she got Snow White back. It was a battle of the wills. I COULD NOT go back on my word and let her have the Snow White doll after it had gone on for so long. That would be giving in and she would start to think that she could cry herself into a fit and get what she wants. Its something we are working on already. Keith went into her room once or twice too. Finally, after another 45 minutes of screaming and then silence, screaming and then silence (every 10 minutes or so) she fell asleep.



*Sigh*
(envision me fallen onto the couch, one arm and both legs hanging off the end with the other arm to my forehead and a warm cloth over my eyes.)

Another day, successfully (?) completed.