The Bunny Trail

   It’s been a tough week on the bunny trail.  As a stay at home mom, my job is to get our girl ready for school, among other things.  Recently, it’s been too much fun for humans.  I had been dreading this since before kindergarten.  Mercifully, a babysitter friend came up with the idea of charting her for behaviors needed to get her out of the house.  A trip to Staples and a lot of velcro later and we were in business.  The first few weeks were rough but eventually, we managed some semblance of a routine.  

   These days, waking up our honeybun has become more like poking a bear with a stick.  My husband and I argue over whose DNA this is when our little cherub gets beastly.  Unfortunately, this one is all mommy.  I don’t expect and can’t handle ‘perky’ in the morning. I’m far from a basket of sunshine myself, certainly before coffee.  Cooperation, however, would  be nice.

  Clearly, she’s tired and I can understand.  It’s exhausting having no work, being able to eat anything you want with no fear of weight gain and having everyone tell you how cute you are.  I find it hilarious when she says ‘Look at me mommy!‘  She’s an only child, who else do we look at??!!  We have established a reasonable bedtime but this has lately become a chess game of stalling.  

   Every evening she is marched upstairs and the gauntlet is thrown.  ‘I’m hungry!‘ ‘I’m thirsty!‘ ‘Is it a bath night?’ ‘Let’s read this book, Daddy!‘ Our little bibliophile will try to choose the five year old equivalent of ‘War and Peace’.  This last part is also amusing since Daddy’s audience has the attention span of a squirrel.  I also wonder what our little princess is doing up there. There can’t be wild stuffed animal parties we don’t know about.  Our daughter walks like a Clydesdale so we know when she’s out of bed.  I’ve become a crazy person yelling at our ceiling, ‘Go to bed, Claire!’. ‘Less yapping, more sleeping!‘    

   There is of course, the temptation to administer alcohol, but mommy really can’t afford a hangover.  I also have to shovel my own fanny out of bed first on school days.  Besides, the lifestyle, I admit I’m jealous of her energy.  She may not be ready for bed by eight at night, but her parents are.  Maybe we should invest in a treadmill?  Is there a way to power the house with the energy she generates? 

   We are still working on her bedtime issues.  I remind myself that if this is the worst we struggle with we are blessed indeed. 

   Can’t wait for the teen years!