Friend Bingo

Everybody loves Bingo, but Philip has an especially close relatioship with him. I have always loved dogs and I was determined that my children would also learn to be comfortable around them. Before we got our own dog though, this wasn't very easy to achieve. I admit I was the crazy lady who chased after dog owners to make sure Matilda and Philip got to stroke and say hello to as many dogs as possible. Matilda was generally happy as long as the dog was reasonably calm, but Philip was a lot more apprehensive. Ok, downright terrified. Even small, calm dogs would be observed from a safe distance, and every bark, jump or sudden movement reduced him to a quivering mess.
When Bingo joined us, he was a small, bouncy puppy with very sharp teeth and Philip was really not impressed. Slowly, they both got better and learned how to behave around each other. Now they're inseparable.

Philip calls Bingo his "friend Bingo," and includes him in most of his games. Right now as I'm writing this, Bingo is apparently being a tiger in the jungle. Every time Scrabble gets stroppy with Bingo (and it happens often!) Philip jumps in to rescue him. "Run Bingo! It's a Giant Cat attack!" And Scrabble gets a shove for good measure.

Yesterday morning I was having a cuddle with Philip, and told him my favourite thing is cuddling with my boy. "And what is your favourite thing Philip?" I asked.

"My favourite thing is Bingo."