The house was quiet and I was very into my latest read - Ina May Gaskin's Guide to Childbirth...
Snapping out of my bathing, relaxing euphoria - I heard Maddie's door open and within seconds the bathroom door also opened (why should I lock it if they're both asleep???).
The following is an actual account of our conversation:
"Maddie, what are you doing out of bed?" I asked rather impatiently.
"I need to look at my tongue," she replied rather excitedly.
"WHY do you need to look at your tongue?" I asked, not sure if I really wanted to hear the answer.
"Because it has sparkles on it - I want to see them," she stated rather matter-of-factly.
"Where did you get sparkles on your tongue?" I demanded.
"From my card," she replied.
My mind instantly conjured up the image of the birthday card I gave her for her third birthday. It was a Disney princess one with lots of glitter.
"How did the glitter get on your tongue?" I wondered aloud.
"I licked it," she explained.
My daughter has a weird oral fixation. She chews on things, mouths things, sucks on thing - all of this seems odd to me - her constant need for oral gratification. We've fought the pacifier for so long now - and her answer for why she can't give it up is because she wants something soft on her tongue.
Well, my dear - glitter is not soft!
I sent her back to bed - she never did go to sleep - she was mad because I denied her the privilege of seeing her "sparkly" tongue because she had disobeyed me when I told her to stay in her bed and not get up.
A few hours later she started to complain that her tongue hurt - and I'm sure it did - glitter isn't exactly soft on the edges.
I can only hope that she learned her lesson - and doesn't go around licking any other cards with glitter on them!
