Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Rachel the Very Considerate Child

I had unusually fierce period cramps today, and we are expecting a guest tonight (my friend Warren Binford, a law prof at Willamette, who is in town to speak and attend some events before flying home on Saturday). I've been busy with other projects and didn't have time to clean until tonight.

As soon as Rachel and I got home from the playground, she ordered -- and I mean ORDERED -- me to lie on the couch. And she did more than that; she set the table all by herself, which included dragging her little chair to the kitchen cabinets and getting the big plates and glasses out. About that time Drew came home early from work and immediately asked what it was that he could do. Rachel told me she had ordered me to lie down, and then announced that she was going to clean the bathroom even though I haven't taught her that particular skill yet. She pulled on my rubber gloves, went upstairs, wet a sponge, and proceeded to SCRUB THE BATHROOM FLOOR SOLELY WITH THE SPONGE. When I came upstairs she had stripped off all her clothes and was so hot and exhausted that she said she couldn't finish (although she had cleaned the top of the sink, too).

Mind you, I had never taught her the skills to do all that. I had planned to in the next couple of months by making out a chore list and divvying it up among all of us. But because she was concerned about Mommy's tummy, she did it all by herself.

I swear I have no idea where this kid came from.

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