Monica stood up unsteadily, her tiny legs wobbly as she toddled forward into the big colorful playroom. Her padded steps made soft crinkling sounds, but she didn’t pay attention—everything around her was just so big and bright and full of color. Her eyes sparkled with wonder as she looked around.
She toddled past a few playmats, eyeing a big plush bunny but a toddler girl in pigtails grabbed it before Monica could reach. Then she saw a stack of colorful blocks and made her way over, but other two baby girls were already deep in their building project. With a little pout, Monica turned to explore more.
“Hmmph... nuffin’ left for me,” she mumbled around her pacifier.
She tried again at another toy bin. This one was full of blocks and plastic animals, but most of the “best” ones seemed to already be in the hands of other children. Monica sighed a little, then puffed up her cheeks and toddled along again, determined to find something fun.
As she wandered deeper into the playroom, she noticed a group of toddler girls and baby girls sitting cross-legged or laying on their tummies in front of a small TV mounted in the corner. Their eyes were wide and glittering, their mouths slightly open or busy sucking on pacifiers as they watched.
Monica blinked, curious. “Whatcha watchin’?” she asked, more to herself than to anyone else, her words slurred slightly with her paci still in her mouth.
She shuffled closer, then plopped down onto the soft rug in the middle of the group. The cartoon playing on the screen was bright and cheerful, with bouncing music and big-eyed characters. A talking bunny in overalls was teaching the viewers how to share, but every few seconds, the scene would cut to a wildly goofy character—a rubbery frog or a clumsy elephant—getting into hilarious cartoon trouble: slipping on banana peels, bonking heads gently, or getting launched into the air with a “Boing!”
Monica’s eyes grew wide. She blinked once. Twice. Then she started giggling.
“Ahahaha! Froggy go zoom!” she squealed, clapping her tiny hands.
The other girls giggled with her, bobbing along with the music. A few of the babies cooed and bounced on their bottoms. Monica started to mimic the characters when they said silly catchphrases.
“Wiggle waggle!” she chirped, throwing her arms up just like the bunny had done on screen. “Uh-oh! Bwue Elephant go ‘oopsie-daisy!’” she repeated, bursting into another round of giggles when the elephant tripped over its own trunk.
Monica was completely caught up in the world on the screen. For a moment, she wasn’t thinking about anything. Just her, surrounded by other girls, giggling and clapping at the cartoon chaos.
Monica continued watching television until.....