I've instituted a bit of a crack-down on certain behaviors that have gotten out of control.

One of them is Theo's habit of opening up DVD cases and playing with the DVD inside.  I'm just as happy for him to destroy Thomas and the Cranky Bugs as not, but I don't want him ruining library DVDs, right?  So, now, he gets a time out whenever he does it.

"Oh, how cruel!  He just doesn't understand.  He's too young to control his impulses yet."

Uh-huh.  Too young.  Doesn't understand.  Yup.  Sure thing.

Yesterday afternoon, he came into the study while I was writing.  He went rooting through the closet and came up with a Thomas video.  "Remember you're not allowed to open it," I said.  "Just look at the pictures on the outside."

"Okay, Mommy!"

He played around with it some, looking at the pictures, turning it around, banging on it, whatever.  I watched through the corner of my eye.

Then he looked at me--directly at me--and put his little fingers on the edge to open it.  He waited until I looked at him.  (Because he didn't understand that he was about to do something wrong, right?  Because he was just doing it accidentally, right?  Because he can't stop himself, right?)

I, of course, gave him my patented You Must Be Joking Me look.

He moved his fingers away from the Danger Zone.

He played around with it some more, looking at the pictures, turning it around, banging on it.  I watched through the corner of my eye.

Then he stood up and left the room.  He was out in the hallway for about four seconds.  He came back and said, "Mommy, I just going to close your door."  He closed the study door.

What do you think he was doing when I went out into the hallway?

Rule of thumb: if they understand enough to try to deceive you, they understand enough to stop doing it.

After three days of the world's nastiest cough (and a day and a half of the world's nastiest cough medicine), I have perfected the throat-soothing Hot Toddy.  I have also consumed a goodly portion of the whiskey Certain Very Nice People left at our house and have urged Stephen to reconsider his aversion to curtains--at least in the kitchen, the window to which which faces our next-door neighbors' living room window.

Would you like the recipe?

There's actually a daytime version and a nighttime version.  (Think DayQuil/NyQuil.)

For daytime, you heat almost to boiling:
1/3 c water
2 tbl fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 tbl honey
while stirring well to get the honey good and dissolved.  Then you put 1 1/2 tbl bourbon into a good china teacup (mostly to fool the neighbors, but also because using the right cup can make the medicine more effective), and pour the almost-boiling lemony stuff over it.

It makes a very small but moderately effective serving.  I wouldn't drink more than two of those per day, especially if you plan on a nighttime serving.  Also if your neighbors monitor your recycle bins.  Or work for CPS.

For nighttime, you halve the honey, double the bourbon, and increase the water to a scant 1/2 cup.

Because getting a good night's sleep is half the battle, right?