It was a cold and cloudy day; much like today. Actually, for
the record, it was today. This morning, in fact. With nothing else going on,
Ellie and I chose to spend our morning getting things done around the house
that needed to be done. Things like doing dishes, picking up the kitchen, and
putting away toys that weren't being played with were just some of the things
on the list.
As I stood at the sink washing the last of the dishes, Ellie
on a chair beside me, I began to gaze out the window at the drops of water beading
up across our deck. I understand people don't really gaze at beads of water
under normal circumstances. However, as I've spent the last couple of days
staining our deck, I was more than excited to see it taking place. The thing
about looking out a window is that you really don't get the full picture of
what's going on. Therefore, I decided to pop outside for a quick second to see
what the deck and stairs looked like.
The thing about having a toddler is that you don't really
get to go outside without them wanting to do so as well. Unfortunately for
Ellie, I decided she should stay inside to avoid the cold, especially since I
would only be outside for a minute or so.
After taking a quick glance at the floorboards and the
stairs, I was ready to head back inside. For the record, they look great! I grabbed
the doorknob and twisted it freely only to find the door didn't budge.
Panicked, I immediately tried the same thing again only to experience the same
result. Finally, the truth set in; I was locked out.
I didn't have to be Sherlock Holmes to piece together what
had happened. Since I was outside, Ellie decided she needed to be outside.
However, instead of turning the doorknob, Ellie instead turned the deadbolt,
locking me outside and herself inside.
As I stood there shivering, barefoot, and lacking a cell
phone, I began to think about my options. I could go next door to one of my
neighbors and call my wife to come home and let me in or I could try and break
down the door like a real-life action movie star (Lots of glass in our door =
Ouch!). However, the most realistic option was to try and talk Ellie through
opening the deadbolt.
Now, I don't know if you've ever tried to talk a
two-year-old through unlocking a door but it's not an easy task. For one, if I
tapped on the glass and pointed to the deadbolt, Ellie's reaction was to mimic
me rather than help. If I pantomimed unlocking the deadbolt, her response was
to mimic that as well. For the most part, she didn't seem to remember that she
had twisted the deadbolt just minutes earlier. Before long, she had
both the doorknob and the deadbolt locked.
Finally, after she managed to unlock the doorknob again, I
convinced her to grab a chair and stand on it next to the door. It was then
that she was able to see the deadbolt right in front of her eyes. She grabbed
hold of the deadbolt and turned it one direction only to find it wouldn't spin.
Then, after much pleading, she finally twisted it the opposite direction,
unlocking the door and letting a very cold and damp daddy burst inside. For the
record, I was only outside for about 15 minutes.
I should end this little tale with the disclaimer that I
didn't really know the best thing to do in regards to punishing Ellie. She had locked me out but she had also let me back in. Therefore, I
decided a thank you was in order but she did receive a spanking as well.
My hope is that she doesn't play with doors anymore but also
realized I was grateful she let me in. I'm guessing she'll instead associate
the words "Thank you" with being spanked. Therefore, sorry in advance
for my daughter's lack of proper etiquette. It's because of that one time her
father spanked her while saying "Thank you." #DaddyWrite
No comments:
Post a Comment