The Slapdown

On a typical morning, either my husband or I will get up with our daughter, take her out into the living room and set her down on the floor while we get her breakfast warmed and ready. No matter how many times we look at her from the kitchen, smile and try to reassure her with, “Hang on, Sweetie. I’m getting your breakfast,” she cries in protest of having been set on the floor -- unless we can distract her. That’s where this:

comes in. Quite often, if we pop up the animal heads before we head to the kitchen, we can buy ourselves a little time while she closes them, or rather, slaps them until they close. As if it offends her that the animals have their heads up, she will swat against them repeatedly until they shut and stay shut. If she manages to get them all closed before we’re ready to feed her, she’ll whine again, but quite often, popping them all up again will give us the time we need. It doesn’t always work, and I’m sure it will lose its effectiveness all too quickly, but I’ll enjoy it while it lasts.