I am helping my younger daughter purge her room, to make space for a big girl reading nook, and as we moved a small bookshelf, we uncovered a bright blue stain on her carpet. No one remembers how it got there except me. When our younger son was three, we had a (cue parenting euphemism) long season of obstinate behavior and that blue stain is 2/3 of a bottle of Windex. Turns out Windex cleans windows but it stains carpet.
In an effort to blog weekly right from the start, I am adding new posts every other week. On the off weeks, I will post essays I have already written. In light of the blue discovery on my daughter’s floor, today’s post is a list I compiled when our younger son was thick in the season of making me second-guess all my parenting “strengths.”
10. A child knowing he is “riddy riddy funny” is not always a good thing.
9. If left long enough,
even the most clogged toilet
will eventually drain itself.
8. Wooden cribs and toddler beds are a food group, especially during “nap” time.
7. A two year old CAN button pajamas. Correctly.
6. Said two year old can also change out of wet pajamas and into dry ones. Alone. In the middle of the night.
5. Pee is power.
4. High efficiency liquid laundry detergent is very viscous and can take hours to remove from carpeting, especially in large quantities.
3. Though cat litter is dry and crumbly, it is sometimes more difficult to clean up than toothpaste, shampoo, hand soap or perfume, especially when spilled on Legos or in sheets.
2. Washable marker does NOT always come off of skin. Or fabric. Or walls.
1.Even after you’ve been there and done that with older children, the youngest can still surprise you. Daily. Multiple times.