The Rankin Zoo

Last night I was giving Coral a bath. Everything was fine, she was enjoying herself. Then it came time to wash her hair. Usually, she likes it when I wash her hair – she lays back in the water to rinse it off instead of getting the cup dump on the head.

For some reason last night was different. I managed to get her head soaped up but then she said she didn’t want me to wash her hair. She started yelling, “I want mother to wash my hair. I don’t want father to wash my hair, I want motherto wash my hair!”

She’s been having some rough spots lately, which we think is caused by one or more of the following: our house being in a disarray due to the kitchen remodel, Coral going through a growth spurt, and/or her being 2. So, it wasn’t that surprising to see her quickly get upset about something small. Plus, it was getting late so I’m sure she was tired.

The funny thing was that when I asked her why she wanted “mother” to wash her hair and not “father” she replied, “Because I don’t love father – I love mother.”

Ouch! I admit it stung a little but the fact that she was calling us mother and father instead of mommy and daddy was cracking me up so much that I wasn’t really offended. Later, at bedtime, she did give me an unprompted, “I love you daddy” – so I think all is well.