Chris and I were praying the rosary in the kitchen when John finally skittered away to the den and we were relieved he was finally playing quietly.
A little too quietly.
A couple of rosary decades later he returned with his empty water bottle and asked for more water. I said 'sure' and was filling it up when it dawned on me that he had drank that water a lot faster than usual.
"Honey, you aren't doing water play in the den, are you?"
"No, I'm washing the books!"
That did not sound good at all, so I investigated. Indeed, John had "washed" a stack of his books, some toys, a hat, and the entire sofa (which is, thankfully, leather).
All's well that ends well. I didn't even get mad at him because he actually doesn't understand that water damages books and, when I explained it, he adamantly refuted me. He washed books, he didn't hurt books, and why didn't I understand?
Good for you, boy you sure are getting to be a seasoned mom. I can't imagine you being so chill about this a year ago.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a great opportunity for a little school science experiment! Make some "books" out of loose leaf (or get some contraband books out that you need to destroy :)) and douse them in water and then try to turn the pages. That will probably stick with him!
I like that idea Sarah Faith had.
ReplyDeleteGreat job keeping a cool head. I don't know that I would have fared so well.
i too was going to mention the fact that that is quite *heroic* that you didn't lose your cool... not sure i wouldve been like that, sadly. but youre so right... he wouldn't have known that water would harm books/paper.
ReplyDeletethanks for a nice reminder to think on their level :)
The only resource to knowing how to respond to John's "washing" his books, is in your heart and unconditional love. You are an awesome mom, Katherine!
ReplyDeletelove, mom