Thou doth protest too much

Last week was a tough week. We'd become accustomed to sleeping in and whiling away lazy afternoons over the course of our time off, and getting back into the routine of a 6:30 a.m. wakeup call took some effort. Plus, they really do frown upon you in the office if you are caught snoozing at your desk after lunch.

Just as I had trouble acclimating to work again, so did the kids have trouble adjusting to being hustled out the door to Cindy's each morning. It was rough going waking them up in the morning, and by the time we got home and settled and had dinner each day, they were starting to get testy. It worsened all week, and we had our typical Thrusday, but last week Friday did not even bring the relief it normally does.

Liam was not faring too badly, but after dinner on Friday night, Mallory was quite miserable. So I made the executive decision to give her an early bedtime. I gave her a bit of warning, and then took her upstairs to get her PJs on. She kicked and screamed the whole way, and by the time she was on the change table and I was wrangling with her pajamas, she screamed the following at me at the top of her lungs:

NO SLEEPER ON!
I NOT TIRED!
I RIDE HORSIE!
I PLAY DOLLHOUSE! ( ...referring to two of the toys she has in her room.)

I completely burst out laughing. It probably wasn't the best reinforcement for her, since she was clearly upset and I should have acknowledged that I understood. But her indignation at being hustled to bed early was too funny, and wanting to ride her rocking horse or play with her dollhouse? - those were clearly last-ditch efforts to be allowed to do something, ANYTHING in her room, except go to bed.

It didn't work - I gave her a cuddle in the rocking chair and then put her in her crib - but she definitely won points for trying.