wow, what an imagination... (x posted in toddlers)

[yentroc]

does anyone else have a toddler (dd is almost 3) who pretends ENDLESSLY to be someone else?

she's been doing this for quite some time, either characters out of stories, or off of a favorite tv show. she goes thru phases of being positively OBSESSED with a book or show and then for months will only be a character from the book/show and we also have to be another character and act and be them for the whole day.

it was kinda cute in the beginning but now it's getting so tiring, she gets so upset if i call her by her real name, she says "ainsley's not here, she's at home with her mama".

i guess i just want to know if this is relatively normal behavior... and will it ease up?

i'm about finished being "buster" from the koala brothers. (darn my mom for getting the koala brothers book that started this current obsession)

[crazydiamond]

My DD's a tiny bit younger than yours, but I can definitely see her doing the same thing.

So far she hasn't enacted any characters, per se, but she's on an endless "kitty cat" streak. All evening she meows, crawls on the floor, wants to be pet and scratched. . etc. If I ask her a question, she answer in "meow". The only thing that works is asking her a yes/no question and telling her 1 meow for yes, 2 meows for no. Getting old, definitely.

And last night she insisted she was mommy. And that I was her. Thankfully it was about bed time so I managed to get her to bed by staying in character and she mysteriously woke up this morning as herself

[getting_there]

My son is much older now but he did this for the longest time, it did start to irritate me but looking back now? Now harm came from it and he is perfectly normal. Robin Hood was the longest character that lived in my house.

[fairejour]

My DD is 4 1/2 and she is still the same way. She never stops. Some days it's playing doggy, some days it is from movies. When it is an animal she gets so into it, that we can "tie" her to a spot and she will pull to the end of the leash and pretend to get yanked back. She also "marks her territory"
It is annoying but we love it anyway. DD is just a nut.

[Starr]

My daughter becomes a puppy at dinner time... fun times I tell you...

[yentroc]

thank you so much everyone!! I really enjoyed everyone's stories.

I think the only part that bothers me is when I need to ask her a question and then she says, "I'm not Ainsley!!"

[crazydiamond]

Originally Posted by cortneydc

thank you so much everyone!! I really enjoyed everyone's stories.

I think the only part that bothers me is when I need to ask her a question and then she says, "I'm not Ainsley!!"

Can you ask the question using her character's name?

When my DD is being a kitty, she won't answer to her name. But if I say "kitty, do you want a snack?" or "kitty, please come here" she'll respond just fine.

[yentroc]

Originally Posted by crazydiamond

Can you ask the question using her character's name?

When my DD is being a kitty, she won't answer to her name. But if I say "kitty, do you want a snack?" or "kitty, please come here" she'll respond just fine.

I do, just lately I can't keep track of who she is in the moment, it keeps changing. It's gone from playing games throughout the day of pretending to be something/someone, to lately she remains in character ALL DAY LONG! I have to confess, sometimes I miss her!! Sounds strange, I know.

Maybe she'll just be really into drama/theatre someday.

[MissSJ]

I'd say perfectly normal. We go through the same type of thing but it is normally a lion, okapi, giraffe, gorilla, etc. He too won't answer to his name when he is pretending to be an animal, sometimes he won't speak engilsh and only growls his answers if I ask him something. What drives me crazy is when he does something he shouldn't he will then say that the lion did it (or whatever animal he was pretending to be. Try to enjoy it, childhood goes by so quickly!

SJ

[J-Max]

Perfectly normal! My dd#3 (also a 3/05 baby) is currently in a Cinderella phase. She is Cinderella, dh is "the guy who dances with Cinderella" and we are constantly looking for glass slippers and her mice friends. Oh boy, did we have a problem the other day when one of her sisters purposely sat on her imaginary glass slippers!

DD#1 was constantly a dog when she was 3/4. She would bark and lick when people came to the door or tried to talk to her. Trust me I much prefer Cinderella

[LittleYellow]

My daughters are always pretending to be someone else too. They are always saying "I'm .....". I have to address whoever they are pretending to be.

The favorites right now are Laura and Mary (from My First Little House books) and also Frosty the Snowman. I can't call my dd Frosty though it must be the entire "Frosty the Snowman". When she is Frosty the Snowman I am often called "Just Snowman".

They have also designated two of thier dresses as the Laura dress and the Mary dress.

[Doodlebugsmom]

My ds is 3.5, and half the time he's running around in a pink velour leotard saying he's "baby troll". Dd loves it. She thinks he's absolutely the cutest thing ever when he's baby troll. Dd is almost 6, and she's someone else most of the time too. She gets home from school and assumes a different, random persona. I think it's great.

[yentroc]

I'm the OP and really loved hearing about all these wild imaginations...

Since my dd is on a Koala Brothers kick, I have to speak in an Australian accent all day, it's not easy.

[mlleoiseau]

My dd is so like this, too. All day long every day and the characters change throughout the day. One of her things is being a baby raccoon and me being the mama (from a informative book about raccoons) and we have to find garbage cans to tip over. Oh and she has to nurse, too, and looks for a teat--usually finding one on my back or under my arm!

Some days I really get tired of it.

[gwerydd]

when i was two i was obsessed with the movie Annie. i always wanted to play "orphans". my Aunt still tells me about how i would go around playing "orphans" and singing all the songs.

[HannahsMomma]

My dd does it too. She'll pretend to be a kitty (her favorited animal), a character from a book or a cartoon character. She often gets dh and I to act along with her but it's usually just her acting. It's so funny. A lot of people are shocked when they first see her doing it because she's only two and a half. It's very entertaining !

[Curious]

When Dd was 16 months old we took her to a farm and she saw the piglets. For the next YEAR AND A HALF she was a piglet and needed to be addressed as such. After that she had a few stints as a cat, who would only eat from a bowl on the floor, but these would all last under a day. She is now a very well adjusted 6 year old girl, most of the time, unless she is one of a cast of admired adults, real or fictitious.

[Jug]

My son is pretending to be an elephant right now, he uses his right arm as the trunk, you just have to imagine all the funy thinks he does, he even does the noises, darn cute

[teachma]

So cute, but...it brings me back about a year to the time my dd was pretending endlessly, and it really can drive one crazy. My daughter never pretended to be something different, but there were all these imaginary things in her world. "No, mommy, I can't help you. I'm holding baby squirrel." Imaginary baby squirrel. So her arms were actually empty, and she actually could have helped me...That kind of thing happened all the time. Now, as she nears four (she's a 3/04 baby) she incorporates this stuff into her play with her dolls and animals. It's pretty constant, but it's usually independent of me.

[yentroc]

Originally Posted by teachma

So cute, but...it brings me back about a year to the time my dd was pretending endlessly, and it really can drive one crazy. My daughter never pretended to be something different, but there were all these imaginary things in her world. "No, mommy, I can't help you. I'm holding baby squirrel." Imaginary baby squirrel. So her arms were actually empty, and she actually could have helped me...That kind of thing happened all the time. Now, as she nears four (she's a 3/04 baby) she incorporates this stuff into her play with her dolls and animals. It's pretty constant, but it's usually independent of me.

Thank you. I sometimes feel really bad for getting impatient with dd, it IS really cute and I love that she's so imaginative...sometimes I just need a break from having to be someone else with her! Like I said earlier, I have to talk in a "funny voice" (Australian accent) or dd gets so upset because I'm not playing her game. It gets really tiring and I've already set times (dinner) when we can be mommy, daddy and dd.