Madeleine as Clara

Even though Madeleine is lukewarm about whether or not she actually *likes* Auntie Shannon's chihuahua, Clara, she certainly seems to want to BE Clara lately.  Madeleine has developed a sudden fondness for crawling around on all fours and emitting high-pitched, squeaky barks, holing herself up underneath tables, and, best of all, actually licking the rest of the people in our family on our faces to give kisses.

While it's pretty obvious when she has decided to be a dog, Madeleine makes sure to point it out to us any time we don't FULLY acknowledge her canine nature.  The way she likes to point it out is by saying, in some sort of baby talk/foreign accent-hybrid, "I'm Clara.  I'm a DOG." 

Because...dogs can talk.  In baby voices.

I guess Madeleine is pretty convinced her dog-like nature has us all fooled, because this evening, as she was yet again Clara during dinner, she seemed concerned that we had actually forgotten her true identity.  I give Aunties Shannon and Caitlyn all the credit for their wholly believable acting as they exclaimed this and that over Clara's unusual human features.

AUNTIES: Wait...Clara is wearing a skirt and a shirt?  Wait a minute...Clara can stand up and walk on TWO LEGS?  What?!?  Clara is wearing a ponytail in her hair??  Hang on a minute.  Clara can TALK? 

Madeleine grew visibly more fidgety as these exclamations went on, finally needing to unburden herself and share the truth with us.

MADELEINE: (breaking into a bright smile) No, I'm...I'm...I'm REALLY a HUMAN!

Woah.  She sure tricked us.

Here are a few videos of Madeleine being Clara after dessert this evening.  You may notice that her embodiment of a chihuahua doesn't get in the way of her OCD need to have every drawer and cabinet closed in the kitchen during video #2, however:







So, what's the consensus?  Are you all TOTALLY STUNNED that what you were just watching was actually a HUMAN GIRL and not a real dog?!?  This kid has a career in acting, if you ask me.  If she can play a DOG with such realism, then who knows what she can do with a human role??