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Last night as I was putting Ella to bed she asked me a simple question.

"Daddy, can you leave my door open? I want Mesquaki [our cat who likes the kids] to sleep with me."

I said no. We want her door closed or she will come wandering out or get woken up. I gently explained that sometimes we leave Claire's door open for the cats because she is older.

She tried again.

"Daddy, can you leave my door open? I am scared and want Mesquaki to help me."

Still no, but that rarely stops a persistent child.

"Daddy, I need my door open. I went to the doctor."

At this point I'm a little baffled, and I bite.

"Why?"

"I went to the doctor, and the doctor said I'm a big girl. Can you leave my door open?"

There was some truth to this. She had just gone to her annual check-up and had gained about eight pounds and grown a little. She didn't stop there - a fabulous monologue began.

"The doctor looked at me and said I'm big. He looked at my arm..." she pointed to her arm, "He looked at my nose", she touched her nose, "He said I had all of my toes", and lifted a foot under the covers.

"The doctor put me on my belly and made me naked, and said I had a back - see my back? He looked at my back, and my mouth. He looked in my mouth. I have a good mouth. I have teeth. Then he put the pancake on my belly, and my leg". Here again she started pointing. Finger pointing in the wide open mouth. Leg lifted to demonstrate. Hand placed on belly where the pancake went.

Pancake? I suspected Melanie had taken her to the I-HOP Doctor, but as she went on I realized what she was talking about - a stethoscope. Pancake. Heh.

"The pancake was on my belly Daddy"

"Oh really?"

"Yes, and he looked in my mouth" she repeated

"And he looked at my button."

"Your button?"

"The button of my belly. He put the pancake on my button. See?"

As she pulled the covers down and her PJ shirt up to show me her bellybutton. I gently tucked her back in, explained that the door would remain shut, and kissed her goodnight.