Everyone knows the "best" part of having a child
is the concept of having someone to boss around. Side note, I don't really
believe that but hang with me for the sake of this opening. I promise it will
all tie together.
The good thing about Ellie is that she's actually really
good at allowing us to boss her around. Despite her wicked independent streak,
she really does listen quite well when we ask her to do something. It doesn't
matter if it's setting her place at the table, picking up her toys, or staying
put in one place when told to.
One part of being a toddler though is having an unwavering
belief in equality. By that, I mean that Ellie feels that since we boss her
around, that means it's fair game for her to boss us around on occasions. While
she really hasn't been brave enough to do so with me, she's more than willing
to do so with Bethany.
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| How Ellie really views Bethany and I. |
Ellie's bedtime routine is well-documented by this point in
time. However, what's not well-documented is what exactly Bethany does once
Ellie hits the hay. The normal answer is to go and grab a shower while I work
on resetting the house so that Tornado Ellie can storm through it again the
next day. At least that was the normal procedure until this week.
It goes without saying that the past couple of nights have
been out of the ordinary. As soon as Bethany places Ellie into her bed and
prays with her, Ellie will immediately throw off the covers and hop out of bed.
Then, with sternness in her little voice, Ellie will demand Bethany go take a shower.
I should note that this demand goes further than your typical toddler demand. Ellie
will take Bethany by the hand and actually escort her to our bathroom. You
would think that would end it, but there's more.
From this point on, I only know what I hear from the comfort
of Ellie's rocking chair in her bedroom. Once they reach the bathroom, Ellie
will immediately demand that Bethany undress and hop in the shower. Any
hesitation on the part of my wife results in increasingly stern requests from
Ellie. If Bethany continues to ignore Ellie's orders, then my daughter will
eventually take it upon herself to solve the issue by undressing her mother
(against Bethany's audible wishes).
Finally, I'll hear Bethany exclaim with pure exasperation,
"Alright, fine. I'm in the shower. Go see Daddy." With that, Ellie
will excitedly scamper back to her bedroom into my waiting arms with a big
smile on her face.
It feels like this isn't normal toddler behavior. As far as
we can tell, this stems from one night at bedtime when Bethany left Ellie's room.
After we had both been working together to put Ellie to bed, Bethany finally
left me in charge of finishing the deed, telling Ellie that she was going to go
take a shower. On that evening, that trip to the shower included a quick detour
downstairs for a glass of water which Ellie heard. Now, we think Ellie believes
Bethany won't actually take a shower unless she forces her to.
I guess we should just be happy that we have a daughter that
values our personal hygiene so much. Now, let's just hope she still feels that
way someday when Bethany and I are at such an advanced age that we can no
longer care for ourselves. At that point though, she probably won't be so eager
to help. #DaddyWrite
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