Ollie and Me: He's a master negotiator

My grandson, at age three and a half, is involved in approximately 300 - 400 decisions and negotiations per day.

“Would you like eggs for lunch, or leftover spaghetti, Ollie?” my wife will ask.

“Spaghetti, please. Can I bring a toy (to the table)?” he’ll ask.

“You can pick one.”

And so it goes all day.

We had three cookies on the table today, one for each of us.


["Ollie knows how to negotiate with his grandparents"]

“Would you like a butterfly cookie or a frog cookie?” I asked.

“A frog cookie,” he said.

“Would you like a frog with blue eyes (small Smarties) or a frog with orange eyes?” I asked.

“I’d like both of them,” Ollie answered.

And so would I, I thought, and laughed.

Oh, he’s learning the ways of the world already, eh?

.