Last night on our way back from the dog walk I went into the store near our house while Brian and Santi waited outside. I picked up the cookies and soda for pizza night, and as I was leaving, I was asked by the store owner to return a precocious 2 year old who was hanging around to her home. I had a general idea of where she lived but she insisted that she lived around the corner in another house. As I approached the house she insisted was hers, a man stuck his head out the door. The tot yelled “Dad” to which he firmly replied, “That’s not my kid.” Now fearing that I was going to be permanently stuck with this kid, I went to the house that I thought was actually hers. Peering inside the ger, a woman looked up from where she was sitting on the floor and without missing a beat said “Where have you been?” to her daughter (keep in mind this kid was as big as Cindy Lou in the Grinch). As I left the house, I could hear the little miss in tears-she clearly was not finished with her evening out.

Update: Today as I was leaving the same store, I met my little friend on her way in. She had some money clutched in her tiny hand this time, so clearly she had plans to make a purchase.  As crazy as it seems that any parent would be alright with their two year old going to the store on their own, I think it is even crazier that a kid that size has the guts to do it. Mongolia-where bold kids are born and raised!