Hooliganization

Today CJ was GRUMPY. She had already napped and was still just as grumpy as ever. Finally I couldn't stand it anymore and took her to her time out spot: the top of the washing machine. I told her that as soon as she was ready to be happy and say she was sorry, she could call for me to get her down.

While she sat there pouting and making angry noises, I returned to my room and tried to put laundry away as Bun pulled the folded piles apart. I thought to myself, "I am pretty lucky that CJ is scared of heights. How on earth could I keep her in time out when she is grumpy like this? I wonder how I'd react if she ever dared to jump down? Would I be angry that she defiantly left time out? Would I be proud that she was brave and jumped?..."

Then, I walked out of my closet and saw CJ coming around the corner with a triumphant smug look on her face. Yikes! Make a decision. Make a decision! I uncharacteristically opted for the second reaction on a whim.

Me: "Wow! You are so brave to get down by yourself! You must be ready to be happy and say you're sorry."

CJ: "Yeah! I climbed down the door! Sorry, Mom."

She was happy and sweet the rest of the day. Which is great. But now I have to figure out what I'll do tomorrow if she needs a time out!

ALSO

I can record this story as it is finally hilarious to me:

A week ago, we were able to have Tay's brother, Mike, and his family here for a visit. We had a great time with them here. CJ was happy to play with a cousin her age. 15 minutes before they were supposed to leave, I decided to check on the girls who had been happily playing upstairs for quite a while. When I got upstairs all the doors were closed and I could hear them in Bun's room laughing and jumping. It's a great room to jump in. Lots of surfaces: Bun's bed, guest bed, and a few air mattresses were set up, too. The only rule we've ever given CJ about jumping is we don't jump on other people's furniture. Our furniture (to a certain extent) is free game. I opened Bun's door with a big open-mouthed smile on my face ready to join in the laughing with CJ and my niece when my entire body was hit by a solid wall of baby powder. I guess there is nothing more fun than turning the ceiling fan on high and jumping with an open bottle of baby powder. Even after my extensive cleaning, that room smelled awesome for a week.