No, I'm not going to talk about the movie where the actor meets the new wife and they hang out in Japan. I haven't even seen that movie because it doesn't have a talking car or a panda doing martial arts. No, I'm talking about how I tell my kids something and their minds process something different. We've all been there haven't we?
Something that happens daily is how my oldest two behave when they come home from school. Though they both KNOW where backpacks and shoes go (we are an asian household, so no shoes indoors), I often find myself tripping over their belongings in the entryway. It's as if these things over encumber them so much they literally need to shed themselves of their heavy load as soon as possible and forget about it. I even got into the habit of telling them, as we turn the corner of our street, to make sure their things are put away correctly when we get home. Somewhere in the two minutes it takes me to tell them this, park the car, and go into the house, their minds have already gone off track to other things.
It's not always a frustrating thing. Sometimes, it's funny. I've been trying to get my two-year-old in the habit of making his bed in the morning. I never expected him to be great at it, I just want him to know this is what we do after we get out of bed. I figure if I start on him now, he'll pick it up before grade school starts. It is really interesting to see what his perception of bed-making is. Most days, he knows to just grab the covers and pull them up. Today, was a bit of a challenge because everything was untucked and on the ground somehow (maybe he had a really epic ninja battle in his sleep). He picked up the side of his blanket, looked at his bed for a second, then leaped across it, spreading the blanket across it as much as possible. He then stood up, looked at me, and proudly said, "DONE!" I just had to laugh, because to my toddler, making your bed means making sure it is covered as much as possible with your blanket.
So if anyone figures out how to break the code and get kids to really LISTEN and follow through with directions the first time, let me know. For now, I'll just sit here and constantly repeat myself for the next 16 years or so. I'll just make sure to take time to appreciate how Carlos likes to make his bed.
