Stella Bella Moonpie

"This is Stella Bella Moonpie, who you met almost 2 years ago. She has the funniest game --- she LOVES nothing more than to play tug-of-war and fetch but we tire quickly of her not letting go of the toy so we can throw it. So we ignore her. In order to "trick" us into thinking that she has put the toy down, she will take her TEETH off of it, but she has to keep it in place (from dropping and rolling away) with her lip. She likes to perch the toy on our hand so that if she senses movement, she can quickly grab the toy again before we get it away from her. In this photo, she sat for long minutes in this pose, waiting for my daughter to play. She is watching intently for any signs of movement in the standoff. The ball is actually tucked between her gums and cheek and she thinks that as long as her teeth aren't on it, we are fooled into believing she has relinquished it."