Sly Fox (or, Like Mother, Like Daughter)

I was wandering through Lyndsay's place over at I Used To Be Witty, 'cause I always leave there with a smile. This post was about a conversation she had with her little princess, which just cracked me up. Her little princess is a bit like my little princess in that she's really smart, and a sly little fox. It made me remember many such conversations with my Pookie when she was little like that (and even now that she's older) .. so, I thought I'd share a few of them ;)

Age 2-1/2:
( I was pretending to be sleeping, she was bouncing all over my bed)

Pookie: Mommy? Get up mommy. You want bekfas? Mommmmmmmyyyyy time get up?

(mommy does some great fake snoring, but pookie doesn't buy it)

*bounce bounce, poke mommy in the eye*
(mommy rolls over, drags pookie with her and holds her down on the bed)

*squeals giggling, Mommymommymommymommy you hungy? Me hungy. *poke poke*

*quiet... too quiet*

*in a voice that said she was in total awe of whatever she was looking at* Oooooo, mommy! Look! A SPIDER.

... I won't go on, it was ugly. Did I mention I'm scared of spiders? Not just a little .. a LOT scared. Like .. pack up and move in the middle of the night because of spiders scared. Suffice it to say ... There was no spider.

She just knew that would get me outta bed with a quickness ... and I knew in that moment, looking at my baby, that little 2 year old who was grinning like a Chesire cat, that I was in for a heckuva ride with that kid. ;) I wouldnt' trade the ride for the world. It's fun having a Mini-Me.


Age 7, bedtime is 9, the negotiations start at 8:
Pookie: Can I stay up just a little late tonight?

Me: How late?

Pookie: I'll do the dishes if you let me.

Me: How late?

Pookie: Just a little .. I'll clean the bathroom.

Me: Until. What. Time?

Pookie: Well, you see, there's this thing on that I really really really want to watch. I've been waiting for days now. It comes on at 9.

Me: HOW. LATE?

Pookie: I'll get up early and do the dishes, and I won't be grouchy or too tired for school and only until 11.

Me: No.

Pookie: How about 10:30?

Me: How about no?

Pookie: Can I just stay up until 10? Please please please please please?

Me: The movie is on until 11, but you only want to watch half of it? That's kinda borderline idiotic, isn't it? No. You'll go to bed at 9.

Pookie: But mommmm .. I really really want to see this one part, can I just stay up until 9:30?

Me: How do you know that the one part will be on by 9:30?

Pookie: Well, if it isn't, then I could just wait a few more minutes....



Age 8

Her Pookieness was on the phone with the sperm donor's mother. I'd already talked to grandma and she said she wasn't going to make it over to pick the Pookie up because she was tired and really wasn't feeling well. She'd been out of town for 2 days and had gotten home late. So, I knew the gist of her end of the conversation, even though I could only hear Pookie's. Here's what I heard:

Pookie: Oh. Well that's okay grandma. *pauses, then .. using a very familiar kind of tone .. understanding, but just the slightest tinge of sad disappointment* I just really wanted to come over this weekend because the outdoor theater just has this one show left this summer. But that's okay grandma. Maybe we can go next summer.

Grandma: -totally caved-

So, she gets off the phone with grandma with a a smirk of smug satisfaction ... until she saw the look on my face.

Pookie: uh .. she's sending Unk to pick me up.

Me: POOKIE! You do NOT manipulate people like that.

Pookie: *trying her darnedest to look innocent* I wasn't mom! I was just telling grandma why I wanted to come this weekend. I said it was okay that she didn't want to come!

Me: And you knew she'd cave if you told her you "just really wanted to come" because she spoils you rotten.

Pookie: Um .. no I didn't?

Me: When you tell grandma it's alright that she's not coming, but then you say something else that you know will make her do what you want her to do ... THAT is being manipulative. You DO NOT manipulate people. It's not nice.

Pookie: *thinks about that for a minute, then looks me straight in the eye and says* Well, you do it.

... I blinked a couple times and realized where that familiar tone came from all of a sudden. Then, when I stopped laughing ..

Me: Yeah .. well. I'm an adult .. and I don't do it to family. Much. I better never hear you doing that to my side of the family. Do you understand? Nana will never buy it, she raised me .. she knows all your tricks. But if I catch you doing it to grandma & grandpa, you're toast.

Pookie: Ok mom. I did really just want to go this weekend to the outdoor theater though. We've only gotten to go once this summer.

Me: Save it kid, that crap doesn't work on me.