Monday, May 16, 2011
Friday, May 13, 2011
The Procrastimaster
No, this is not a new piece of exercise equipment.
It's Hana's new nickname. And it is well-earned! I have never seen a human being master the art of procrastination with such subtlety and grace that you don't even notice it happening until it's too late and you are caught in its web.
New bedtime procrastination strategies include the following:
1) The Blanket Switch Up Routine. "No I want the other blanket. No the other one. No not that one, the green one! Mommy, can you get the blanket that's in the living room?"
2) The 'Drown Me in Milk' Approach. This involves drinking all her milk and asking for more. And more. And more.
3) Kiss Me, Hug Me. This one is the most mischievous and manipulative, because who can say no to a sweet request for a kiss or a hug?
4) Stories, Stories, Stories. We can no longer just read a story. Each page is accompanied by all kinds of questions and commentary. "Mommy why is the baby crying? Is the mommy going to pick the baby up? I think the baby's sad. She's crying. What's that (pointing to something)? What's that? What's that? Is that the baby's bed?" And on, and on, and on.
5) Just One More. This is the strategy of last resort and applies to #1-4 above. Just one more book, one more kiss, one more hug, one more whatever. Often it's a clearly desperate attempt to come up with just one more thing she can do to avoid bed - turn out the light, put the baby in the chair, put the shirt in the laundry, brush her teeth again - whatever last straw she can grasp at, she'll go for it. This one is the most insidious because while you are in the process of saying no, and explaining why, she's already moved on to 'just one more' of something else, and before you know it, you've been doing that for 5 minutes - Hana asking for 'just one more X' and you saying 'no, not tonight, sweetie, it's night night time' over and over.
We love our little procrastimaster!
It's Hana's new nickname. And it is well-earned! I have never seen a human being master the art of procrastination with such subtlety and grace that you don't even notice it happening until it's too late and you are caught in its web.
New bedtime procrastination strategies include the following:
1) The Blanket Switch Up Routine. "No I want the other blanket. No the other one. No not that one, the green one! Mommy, can you get the blanket that's in the living room?"
2) The 'Drown Me in Milk' Approach. This involves drinking all her milk and asking for more. And more. And more.
3) Kiss Me, Hug Me. This one is the most mischievous and manipulative, because who can say no to a sweet request for a kiss or a hug?
4) Stories, Stories, Stories. We can no longer just read a story. Each page is accompanied by all kinds of questions and commentary. "Mommy why is the baby crying? Is the mommy going to pick the baby up? I think the baby's sad. She's crying. What's that (pointing to something)? What's that? What's that? Is that the baby's bed?" And on, and on, and on.
5) Just One More. This is the strategy of last resort and applies to #1-4 above. Just one more book, one more kiss, one more hug, one more whatever. Often it's a clearly desperate attempt to come up with just one more thing she can do to avoid bed - turn out the light, put the baby in the chair, put the shirt in the laundry, brush her teeth again - whatever last straw she can grasp at, she'll go for it. This one is the most insidious because while you are in the process of saying no, and explaining why, she's already moved on to 'just one more' of something else, and before you know it, you've been doing that for 5 minutes - Hana asking for 'just one more X' and you saying 'no, not tonight, sweetie, it's night night time' over and over.
We love our little procrastimaster!
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