This weekend I discovered my children have become master manipulators when it comes to one person - their father.
My daughter was the first to exhibit her abilities this weekend. At a mere 12 months old, I have underestimated her ability to turn a situation. Yesterday she was engaged in one of her favorite pastime - throwing food off her high chair. She generally will chuck the food - one bit at a time to signify her displeasure with the choices presented her, or to indicate she is satisfied and ready for another activity.
I have come to view this activity as "just one of those thing." After all, that's why god created dogs and vacuum cleaners. And I think its kinda' cute.
My husband, on the other hand, thought he could get Sophie to stop chucking the food by, get this, telling her to. He asked a couple of times... remember, she's 12 months old, and then he spoke "sternly." The results were priceless. In response to her father"s tone Sophie promptly burst into tears.
Actually, she didn't just cry. First, her face crumpled. Her lip began to tremble. Her eyes welled. And she began to wail.
"Stern daddy' is not an individual we see often around the house, and I suspect, after this incident, he has gone to hide in the closet for a couple of months. Or years.
Today, I watched Anders practice a much more subtle form of manipulation on his daddy. It's Sunday, which means Steve and I should be able to sit in the kitchen enjoying our breakfast and reading the Boston Globe.
Should, except that reading the newspaper is far too mundane an activity for our 4-year old. So he asked, many, many, many times, if daddy would play cars with him. After Anders served us a meal of plastic green beans and mac and cheese, the manipulation went down something like this:
A: Wanna' play cars with me?
S: Anders, daddy wants to read the paper and eat breakfast.
A: Wanna' play cars with me?
S: After breakfast, okay?
... moments of quiet as we read the paper.
A: Are you done with this (indicates fake mac and cheese)
S: Yes, thank you.
A: Now you have to say 'may I be excused.'
S: Huh? Oh. Okay, may I be excused
A: Yes daddy. Now you can play cars with me.
It was sheer genius. I didn't know the little guy had it in him.
I've never been so proud.
