I consider myself to be of reasonable intelligence, street smart as well as book smart. So why is it that I routinely get out-smarted by two little boys, ages 7 months and 10 years?
The worst part is, is that I thought I might have a chance that little Bee may never outsmart me (or at least not start negotiating at 16 months like Connor did). I would just cut all of those intelligence-boosting games, books, etc. off at the pass that I used with Connor. But guess what? I couldn't remove the one PERSON that could pass those tips and tricks along--Connor himself.
Oh, yes. Somehow Connor got to Bee. I'm not sure when it happened, or HOW it happened (considering Bee doesn't yet "talk" or even sit up by himself), but it happened. Connor has officially started to pass along the Jedi mind-tricks to Bee.
Connor's Jedi tricks and negotiations started early and went something like this--upon entering an unfamiliar Target, Connor (obsessed with Thomas the Train) would separate the weakest of the "animals" (adults) from the herd and say (while scratching his chin--pretty cute for a 2 year old), "Hmm...*insert weakest link's name here* I wonder if they have Thomas at this Target?". He would walk away with a train.
Connor's Jedi tricks and negotiations now are often easier to spot, but are harder to negotiate with. His greatest trick is allowing you to honestly BELIEVE you have out-negotiated him so you have therefore won the fight. Wrong. An hour or even days later it hits you--you completely lost that battle. And Connor has most likely been smiling and patting himself on the back the entire time you thought you had busted his tactics.
Now little Bee...his Jedi lessons have just begun. The first one? Nap time. When it is not nap time, Bee is loud--he loves to talk and sing to himself, he stomps his heels on the floor, tears apart his playmat, rolls around and pulls himself all over. He'll jump in his Jumparoo, wrestle stuffed animals...you get the picture. He's a very busy baby and you always know where he is in the house. Nap time was always the time Bee was quiet because he was SLEEPING. Well, not anymore. At least not 60% of the time.
Here's the deal--he does everything right to lead me along. He gets a little whiny, rubs his eyes, looks for Tucker (his lovey), and then goes quiet as I leave the room. I even use a monitor and I hear him quiet in there. But he's not always napping. Oh, no. When he finally gets bored of trying to yank his socks off or throwing Tucker around, (often an hour to an hour 1/2 later), he'll start jabbering away again wanting to get up. Lately, my instincts tell me he has most definitely NOT been sleeping. Why? Because ten minutes after waking up he is truly exhausted and really cranky.
I have witnesses to prove this happens. My husband. My nanny. My friends. My family. I'm NOT crazy. Both of my boys are working their intelligence AGAINST me. A gift from me to them, through my DNA. They now use it was some sort of weaponry. Connor? Master negotiator. He'll talk you in circles until you throw your hands up in defeat. Bee? His current label is Nap Ninja. I'm afraid to think about what Connor teaches Bee next...
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