The Great Negotiator

When Katie was about 18 months old, I started saying that she is "a natural leader who lacks the gentle art of persuasion". It cracked me up because it was sooooo true. Now, she is The Great Negotiator. Most of Katie's sentences begin with "How about...". She never just accepts things. She negotiates everything. The best part is that she's really good at it. She has used logic to persuade me on many occasions!

Last night, Bethie used her own tactic. Dan was scooping out ice cream for himself and the girls. His had an extra scoop in it because he's 35 (can you believe it?!), he's 3 feet taller than the twins, and he works hard for the money that provides the ice cream. Bethie saw the three bowls, pointed to Dan's and said "This one is for me". Dan said "No, it's mine. You can have the other one". Bethie took a closer look at the one she was offered and went ballistic! She cried and ran into the living room. Dan coaxed her back with the offer of a little bit more ice cream in her bowl. When she sat down at the table she said "I left because Daddy didn't give me very much ice cream. Then he added more and I came back." In saying that, we realised that Bethie is the true negotiator: She is willing to walk away from the table until her demands are fulfilled.