Day 434 - Mimicry: The New Sincerest Form of Flattery

Does anyone remember playing the mimic game as a child? I'm not actually certain that is the formal name of said game, but it's close enough for you, dear reader, to understand the reference. In case you're still confused, it's that game that kids like to play where they essentially repeat everything someone else says until that second person spirals into pure, unadulterated madness.

Since I was an only child, I didn't have a sibling or anything to be the brunt of my abuse in the mimic game. Therefore, I instead would use my mom and dad as unwitting fodder for this game. While all would be well and good for a bit, it was only a matter of time until I'd get yelled at to stop (for good reason). Man, in writing this, I am certainly reminded of just how bratty of a kid I could be.

The good thing about the mimic game is that it doesn't necessarily have to be irritating. As a dad of a very impressionable daughter, I see her playing her own version of the mimic game quite often. Ellie's version of the mimic game stems from her desire to be like Bethany and/or me rather than to be irritating. However, that being said, Ellie's playing of the mimic game still isn't always a great thing. Need an example? Here we go.

Before I get too deep into this, I feel the need to confirm that Ellie is only two years old. Well, not quite two but close enough for the purposes of this story. Therefore, she really shouldn't be devolving into teenage-like behavior yet. What is this teenage-like behavior you ask? Simple, any time Ellie fails to get her way, she has developed a new habit of taking a deep breath before muttering the words, "Ok, fine."

 It's here that I feel the urge to explain the origin of "Ok, fine" entering Ellie's lexicon. You see, while dads do love their daughters, let's get one thing straight. Moms are blessed with infinitely more patience than dads. Or at least I'm assuming that to be the case until someone tells me otherwise. 

Throughout Ellie's life, there have been those moments where I've found myself overcome by an overwhelming desire to scream at my daughter. Normally it has something to do with the fact that she's screaming at me in that moment. Instead of giving into that urge though, I've instead resorted to laying her down in her crib and walking away while muttering two words, "Ok, fine." 

Now, my usage of this phrase comes from a good place. I generally don't want to scream at Ellie if I can keep from doing so. However, I do need a calm and steady way to express my displeasure with her from time-to-time. "Ok, fine" enables me to do just that. Apparently, Ellie feels the same way as she has found her own rules for how to properly use "Ok, fine."

No time of day seems to be safe from Ellie muttering "Ok, fine" as of this writing. There's been times where we've fought over dinner to get Ellie to eat something, anything, before finally just informing her that if she doesn't eat what's on her plate, then she doesn't eat. Ellie's response, "Ok, fine." The same occurs each night at bedtime as Ellie's new bedtime routine seems to include a never-ending stream of books. Eventually, Bethany or I will have to cut her off, only to receive a hearty "Ok, fine" in return.

While hearing one's toddler exclaiming "Ok, fine" in an exasperated tone at all times can be a bit much, I will admit that it is slightly cute. It also makes me truly appreciate my own personal decision to abstain from profanity. 

After all, let's all agree that it wouldn't be nearly as cute if Ellie was running around dropping f-bombs on unsuspecting people because she didn't get her way. #DaddyWrite

Can we agree that not all mimicry is bad? Can't decry a good double Zoolander face.

Day 431 - Voting Day Blues (and Cookies Too)

This has certainly been a busy day for little Miss Ellie thus far. However, as is true to form, the busiest days don't necessarily make for the most interesting blog posts. I mean, realistically, do I want to look back on yet another blog post 10 years from now chronicling a trip to Sam's Club and Sprout's. True, it might not be the worst subject in the world but why write about that when I can instead tackle the post that I neglected to write on Tuesday?

At least it is according to #DaddyWrite

As you can probably imagine, Ellie has a sweet tooth. While she's more than willing to bite into anything that contains sugar, there is one food that rises above all others in her heart. The food to which I am referring is the chocolate chip cookie. From the moment the first bite touches her lips, her cravings cannot be satisfied until all cookies are gone. Especially problematic if you've just baked a brand new batch. Needless to say, we don't really keep chocolate chip cookies readily available in our home. Therefore, whenever Ellie gets one, it's really a big deal.

Tuesday morning, we find ourselves sitting around not really doing much of anything. Then, an idea strikes me: I should get Ellie a cookie! Now, I should probably explain why this idea got in my head. You see, Tuesday was election day and at our local polling place, you get a free cookie after voting. So, now  you can see how the dots are connected in my head. To paraphrase the great Brian Regan, "Fill out whole ballot, get whole cookie. Fill out half ballot, get whole cookie." 

I seem to remember my joke being about snow cones and baseball...

Therefore, Ellie and I sat out on a grand adventure to Northland Cathedral to do our civic duty and much more importantly, get a free  cookie. With Ellie in her stroller and me pushing along behind, we wandered up North Oak until we finally reached our destination. Just to put into words how stoked I was about this voting experience, I literally can't tell you who or what I voted for a little over 24 hours later. After casting the ballot, Ellie and I finally took ownership of our precious chocolate chip cookie. Then, we took a seat in the lobby of the church, eating said cookie together, bite-by-bite, until finally, it was gone. 

With that, Ellie and I headed out of the building. Rather than head towards home, I instead turned south and walked around the building until we finally reached the playground. It was then that I released Ellie to do her thing while I sat back and relaxed. After about 20 minutes of playing, I told Ellie that she could finish swinging while I pulled the stroller around. As I did so, Ellie proceeded to hop down from the swing and followed me. 

Or at least she did so until she saw something situated near the baseball diamond approximately 100 yards away from us that required further examination. With that, she took off, sprinting across the grass as fast as her little legs could carry her. Uncertain what she was going for, I followed along, keeping a close distance. 

Finally, I realized the object of her curiosity. There it was, the majestic, the impressive, the unparalleled blue porta-potty. As she got closer though, she found herself feeling a little overwhelmed by all that said porta-potty had to offer. Perhaps it was that it looked bigger when close up rather than further away. Maybe it was the scent. Or maybe, just maybe it was the fact that porta-potties just aren't all that exciting, even if it was blue. Anyway, with that, Ellie turned and scampered all the way back to her waiting stroller, clambering inside, and promptly falling asleep before we even made it out of the church's parking lot.

I like to envision a dramatic spotlight shining down and illuminating this in young Ellie's eyes...

So as you can plainly see, Tuesday was indeed a big day for Ellie. Not only did she get to share a cookie with me and play on a playground, but she also got to experience the close-up majesty of a porta-potty. It's clearly the stuff dreams are made of. #DaddyWrite

Day 427 - Let Me Do It!!!

I find myself needing clarification on something. While it would probably make more sense for me to just ask people who are smarter than I am, I instead choose to just to write a blog and post it to the internet accordingly. Makes sense, right?

The first thing I need clarification on is when exactly do the Terrible Twos begin? I realize that the word 'two' is right there in the name. However, I'm wondering just how tightly we should cling to it. For example, is it possible that my precious daughter could be experiencing the so-called Terrible Twos without even being two yet? To that, I say inconceivable!

**checking definition**

Ok, I take that back. Ellie is definitely in the midst of the Terrible Twos.

While "defiant and unruly" may be a bit extreme, Ellie is definitely in the midst of phase centered around expressing her independence. What do I mean by that? Well, simply put, she is out to prove how little she needs Mommy and Daddy right now. After all, Ellie's a big girl and wants to do things by herself now.

For example, the easiest and most direct method to see Ellie's independence at work comes every morning during the 6:00 hour. I generally like to spend time talking with Bethany in the morning before she heads to work so during those times, it's perfectly normal for Ellie to disappear for periods of time. Upon her reappearance, it doesn't take long to realize something is missing. Namely, her pajamas.

I should play this song every time Ellie ditches her pajamas...

You see, Ellie has gotten into the habit of wanting to dress herself. The lone issue with this is that she isn't very good at it at all. For example, it's common to see her attempting to wear shirts as pants and vice versa. When the clothes don't work in this fashion, then rather than seek help, Ellie will instead seek out another shirt and pant combo only to repeat her same mistakes over again. I almost forgot to mention that most of Ellie's shirt and pant combos she creates should not be worn together in public. Not even by someone who's colorblind!

Now, like any parent, I don't really like to see my child struggle and I find myself overcome by an innate desire to be of assistance to her. The problem is that she doesn't really seem to want help from me or Bethany. 

From the moment I approach her or even hint at giving help, Ellie will take off running and screaming in the opposite direction. Normal toddler stuff, right? It goes further. If I really press the issue, everything escalates. She will begin to scream "Bye-bye" at me over and over in attempt to get me to leave her alone. If I don't take the hint there, it's only a matter of time before Ellie begins declaring "Leave!".

The final stage is for her to resort to crying, screaming, scratching, biting, and clawing in an attempt to get away from the situation. In other words, it's somewhat akin to the reaction of a cat anytime I've attempted to cut their claws. 

I will say that this situation isn't only rearing itself in the area of dressing. It can also be there in regards to sleeping, bath time, and meal time. If she's not getting to do these things alone, then she's not interested in doing them at all. Except for sleeping. Then she instead screams "floor" at me over and over until I finally lay down on the floor.

I feel better now that all of this is off my chest. After all, I wouldn't want people to think my daughter is raised by wolves. She's just a self-dressing, self-feeding, self-washing kind of little girl who also happens to be really bad at all three on occasion. #DaddyWrite

At least she's really good at building towers with Legos.

Day 426 - Circular Motion (in Swings and in Life)

Sometimes it's super easy to envy Ellie. She does have a pretty simple life after all. She gets at least one lengthy nap each day. There's the three meals each day in addition to a seemingly never-ending smorgasbord of snacks. Of course, I can't forget the whole lack of responsibility she gets to experience. Seriously, the only thing that is asked of her each day is to get a plate out of her drawer for herself before dinner. That and she sometimes gets silverware for Bethany and I as well.

Of course there are downfalls too. I can't imagine there are many out there hankering to wear a diaper and sit in their own filth. I know that's not high on the list of things I want to experience. Ellie doesn't always get to do exactly what she wants, when she wants. If she had her way, she'd probably spend 21 of the 24 hours of each day in her swing or at least outside. There's also the fact that Ellie lives in a world void of any kind of understanding of the complications of life.

For example, in our married life, Bethany and I have seen a veritable revolving door of friends both come into our lives and leave just like that. Don't worry, it wasn't anything we did. It's more a product of making friends with people who go to a seminary who possess the goal of eventually graduating. The good thing about Ellie's lack of understanding is that she has no idea anything will change. If anything, she's just living life one day at a time. Therefore, when we went to the park this evening for a going-away party for some friends, Ellie couldn't have been more excited.

To tell the truth, I couldn't have been more excited for her either. Let's face it; as a stay-at-home dad I probably don't do the best job in the world allowing my daughter to interact with other kids. Fortunately for both of us, this was something she actually got to do this evening. Therefore, after a short detour to 'Babies R Us' for some deep-discounted browsing, we headed to Barry Platte Park to meet up with the rest of the party. 

From the time we sat Ellie down on the ground and allowed her to run towards the jungle gym, it's safe to say she was in her own personal nirvana. And no, I don't mean the band; no 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' here. After a handful of trips up and down the slide, she found her way over to the toddler swings and was able to "convince" me to push her higher and higher. Finally after I tired of pushing her, Bethany had a new adventure for her.

Bethany picked up Ellie and carried her over to a tire swing to join in the festivities with a couple of other kids. After my wife sat Ellie down on the swing and encouraged her to hold on tight, I watched from afar as the three kids happily rode the swing around in a circular manner. Each time the swing changed direction, I could see the smile on Ellie's face become bigger and bigger. I still don't know if it's the tire swing or the playing with friends part that Ellie enjoyed more but it's obvious she was happy.

Just in case we needed more confirmation Ellie had fun, as soon as we got home, Ellie went straight to the tub for a quick sponge bath without a fight. Following that, she laid down in her crib after only two stories and proceeded to go to sleep without incident. If only every night could be that easy. 

I guess that means we just need to start taking Ellie to the park to play with kids every night. It doesn't really matter to her if we know them or not, right? #DaddyWrite