..

The difference between Momma and Daddy

Ava loves routine. She has been on the same routine since she started school at Primrose, back when she was 12 weeks old. The school is so great at following the same routine from classroom to classroom, teacher to teacher. I really think it is up to the parents to maintain a routine at home. I am not so good with routine. At least not in MY life. But with Ava, I stick to her school routine even when I keep her at home. Little things, like snack at 10 or lunch at 1145, nap at 1230--we follow the schedule.

Morning time is Ava's Daddy time. They both are early risers. They get up and eat breakfast together every morning. Then they sit on the couch and watch cartoons until it is time to get ready for the day. Ava practically has the morning Daddy routine down to knowing the exact minute when she needs to quit watching cartoons and get dressed. Daddy gets her to school at precisely the same time every morning. Daddy picks her up from school at the same time every day. Daddy LOVES routine also.

Well, Daddy is out of town this week. Momma is NOT a morning person. Momma gets out of bed after hitting the snooze 8 times, rushes into a 3 minute shower, and gets dressed for work in 15 minutes. Momma is a "here, eat a piece of bread in the car til they serve breakfast at school" kind of Momma. My lack of a morning routine really throws Ava for a loop. She gets that ARGGGG look on her face. Basically she puts up with me.

Today I took a holiday and stayed home with Ava. I wanted to suprise her and have breakfast at the table, watch cartoons--like she does with her Daddy. She gets up, sees me and says "that's ok Momma. I eat marshmellows. Momma go take nap."

I guess she reserves her morning routine only for her Daddy.

Does this make me sad? Heck no. It makes me realize how incredible my husband is at being a Daddy.

There are definately routines Ava and I have that she loves. She loves our bedtime routine--the way I read her stories at night and how I play airplane with her, hippo and our new friend "Little Monkey" (see my Build a Bear blog) every night. She loves our shopping days, where we leave Daddy at home and get all dressed up and hit WalMart and Target, with a Sonic stop in between. Well, we go to other places besides WalMart and Target--but those are her two favorites. She especially loves the stops at Barnes and Noble because she gets double pleasure..first she plays with the trains they have set up, and she ALWAYS gets a new book. Also, she loves that I "bounce" with her on the trampoline, that I color the sidewalk with her...

And to answer your questions..yes, I did let her have marshmellows this morning for breakfast, and no--I did not go take a nap after she saw I was up. We watched Franklin and then the Wizard of Oz. We had lunch and then a nap. Then we got all dressed up and went on a shopping trip that included Walmart and Target, with a Sonic happy hour stop in between.