"No, Boy!"

During a visit to Babies R Us this morning, we could hear a little girl crying. We could hear her throughout the store; whe was very sad. Tucker even commented. He repeatedly signed sad baby, sad baby.

As we finished our shopping, we turned the corner to find her in the arms of her mommy, still crying. Again, my sweet little boy signed, sad baby. She wasn't quite a baby, but actually a bit older than him. She had fallen down, and she and her mom were talking about what had happened and how she might feel better.

Suddenly, she spotted Tucker and shouted, "No, BOY! No, BOY!"

To my child. Yep. That's right. To my little boy, who showed great concern for her emotional well-being, she shouted, "No, BOY!"

Her mother said, "Oh, that's not very nice."

The little girl continued, "No, boy! Boy hurt!"

Tucker wasn't bothered in the least, but my Momma Bear instincts shot right up... who is this little girl, yelling at my child this way? He hasn't done a single thing to harm her, and in fact, he is concerned for her. We walked on by, leaving her to the arms of her mother.

As we walked on, I listened to her: "No, boy!"

I'm not sure what brought on her accusations and angry shouting, and I'll never know. But interestingly, this little tiny standoff with a toddler gave me a glimpse into how I might feel down the road when Tucker encounters a mean child on the playground. Not good.

One thing's for sure: a mother's protective instincts are not to be messed with, by an angry toddler or anybody else.