When we last saw Li'l Miss and Li'l Man, they had enlisted the assistance of the family pet, Chester in Operation Exhausted Mommy. It seemed that, at last, their plan of wearing Mother completely down would indeed become a reality. That was, until Father came to Mother's rescue. (To read previous episodes, click here.) Several days have passed as we check in on the relentless trio...
The pair of youngsters were obviously unprepared for the powerful match that Mother and Father proved to be, for it began to cause dissension among the ranks. Suddenly, Li'l Man enjoyed the idea of sleeping slightly later in the mornings (emphasis on slightly). This apparently did not sit well with Li'l Miss as she had counted on Li'l Man's early wakings, allowing her to sleep in and prepare for her late-night shift. So she devised a plan of her own.
Knowing that Li'l Man was having trouble napping, due to his incoming teeth, Li'l Miss usually allowed Mother to rock Li'l Man back to sleep when he woke early from a nap. However, now that Li'l Man was neglecting his morning duties, Li'l Miss thought it unfair to allow him an extended nap as well. So another ingenious plan evolved. Li'l Miss would allow Mother to go in and calm Li'l Man when he woke early from a nap. She would wait patiently until she knew Li'l Man was just about to sleep (how she knew, no one knows). Then Li'l Miss would burst into Li'l Man's room, snuggle up on the couch next to Mother (who was holding an almost-asleep Li'l Man), look up at Mother with her deep, brown eyes, and sweetly proclaim, "I just wanted to be with Mommy." The interruption obviously started Li'l Man completely awake, and Li'l Miss's adorable proclamation made Mother feel hugely guilty for any frustration or exasperation she felt toward Li'l Miss for the interruption.
Mother then had no option but to get Li'l Man up and continue through her day, battling her own fatigue while entertaining a cranky, teething, sleepy Li'l Man. As for Li'l Miss, she carried on as if nothing at all had happened...and she seemed to be the happiest of them all.
Stay tuned to see if the duo succeed in Operation Exhausted Mommy...or does Mommy find the strength to endure and prove to be more powerful than the pair ever suspected? Only time will tell...
Showing posts with label The Great Conspirators. Show all posts
Showing posts with label The Great Conspirators. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Thursday, June 26, 2008
The Great Conspirators, Episode 2
When we last left our tiresome duo, Little Miss and Little Man were deep in the workings of Operation Exhausted Mommy. (Read the first episode here.) We join them now several days later...
Little Man had underestimated his stamina--or was it that Mother had won the battle of wills in the night waking department? Either way, L'il Man began to neglect his nighttime wakings for the luxury of sweet sleep. He was growing accustomed to 10-11 hrs a night, much to Mother's glee. However, he and Little Miss had formulated a new plan: L'il Man grew weary around 7:30, which meant he would be awake and refreshed between 6:00 and 6:30 the following morning. L'il Miss could last late into the evening, sometimes as far as 9:00, with endless requests for "one more drink", another trip to the potty, or a simple, sweet request for Mother to "stay one minute." This left Mother (and Father) little, precious time to finish their daily chores, spend a few quiet moments alone together, and retire at a reasonable hour to prepare for the early wakings of L'il Man. It was working beautifully when another phase of their masterminded plan began to evolve.
Again, no one knows when or how it happened, but either L'il Miss or L'il Man had the genius idea of drafting the family pet, Chester, into Operation Exhuasted Mommy. They did not know that long ago, when Chester was a mere pup, he had instigated the original plan to wear Mother to sheer exhuastion. But Mother proved stronger than he realized, and he eventually wore down and succumbed to her need for sleep. But now that he had two comrades in arms, the plan was once again a possibility. It was simple really...on the mornings when L'il Man neglected to wake Mother early enough, Chester would take over the responsibility by coming to Mother's room and jingling his collar, whining at her bedside, or simply panting or scratching so loudly that it was sure to wake her. If all else failed, Chester could summon the "Barking Brigade"--a chain of canines throughout the neighborhood who, upon special request, would set in motion a loud, obnoxious chorus of barking promptly at 5:30 a.m. The chorus would last just long enough for Mother go be completely awake so that she could not easily return to slumber.
And that is what happened this morning. Chester, sensing that L'il Man was neglecting his early-morning post, set in motion the Barking Brigade, which promptly woke L'il Man, who then babbled loudly until he woke L'il Miss. The only thing that saved Mother's sanity was the chivalry of Father who sweetly offered to get up with L'il Man. Of course Mother was so awake by then, there was no going back to sleep...the plan was working beautifully.
Will Father's self-sacrifice and chivalry be able to save Mother's sanity, or will The Great Conspirators (now that there are 3!) win out? Stay tuned...
Conspirator #3--Chester
Little Man had underestimated his stamina--or was it that Mother had won the battle of wills in the night waking department? Either way, L'il Man began to neglect his nighttime wakings for the luxury of sweet sleep. He was growing accustomed to 10-11 hrs a night, much to Mother's glee. However, he and Little Miss had formulated a new plan: L'il Man grew weary around 7:30, which meant he would be awake and refreshed between 6:00 and 6:30 the following morning. L'il Miss could last late into the evening, sometimes as far as 9:00, with endless requests for "one more drink", another trip to the potty, or a simple, sweet request for Mother to "stay one minute." This left Mother (and Father) little, precious time to finish their daily chores, spend a few quiet moments alone together, and retire at a reasonable hour to prepare for the early wakings of L'il Man. It was working beautifully when another phase of their masterminded plan began to evolve.
Again, no one knows when or how it happened, but either L'il Miss or L'il Man had the genius idea of drafting the family pet, Chester, into Operation Exhuasted Mommy. They did not know that long ago, when Chester was a mere pup, he had instigated the original plan to wear Mother to sheer exhuastion. But Mother proved stronger than he realized, and he eventually wore down and succumbed to her need for sleep. But now that he had two comrades in arms, the plan was once again a possibility. It was simple really...on the mornings when L'il Man neglected to wake Mother early enough, Chester would take over the responsibility by coming to Mother's room and jingling his collar, whining at her bedside, or simply panting or scratching so loudly that it was sure to wake her. If all else failed, Chester could summon the "Barking Brigade"--a chain of canines throughout the neighborhood who, upon special request, would set in motion a loud, obnoxious chorus of barking promptly at 5:30 a.m. The chorus would last just long enough for Mother go be completely awake so that she could not easily return to slumber.
And that is what happened this morning. Chester, sensing that L'il Man was neglecting his early-morning post, set in motion the Barking Brigade, which promptly woke L'il Man, who then babbled loudly until he woke L'il Miss. The only thing that saved Mother's sanity was the chivalry of Father who sweetly offered to get up with L'il Man. Of course Mother was so awake by then, there was no going back to sleep...the plan was working beautifully.
Will Father's self-sacrifice and chivalry be able to save Mother's sanity, or will The Great Conspirators (now that there are 3!) win out? Stay tuned...
Conspirator #3--ChesterWednesday, June 11, 2008
The Great Conspirators
There once lived two young children in a small Midwestern town, a Little Miss and a Little Man. The Little Miss loved her brother dearly, for in him she found a kindred soul and a fellow conspirator. You see, at a very young age, Little Miss had determined that her Mother was so well rested from her many years of sleep that she should never need to sleep again.
As an infant, Little Miss would wait patiently and quietly until Mother's work was done and the weary woman laid her head to rest. That was the signal to Little Miss that her work should begin. She would cry, fuss, talk, squirm, wiggle, giggle, or make any noise imaginable to keep Mother from sleeping. It didn't matter if it was the middle of the day, or the darkest night, Little Miss rose dutifully to her calling. Eventually, however, even she wore out and began to neglect her duties of rousing Mother from slumber. This caused Mother to once again grow accustomed to the tantalizing ritual of blessed sleep.
When Little Man entered the picture, Little Miss was reminded of her mission. Having grown accustomed herself to a good night's sleep, an evil plan began to form in her sweet little head. With a partner in crime, she could split the Mother-waking duties and not neglect her own blissful rest. To this day no one knows how or when it happened, but Little Miss and Little Man put their heads together and hatched a plan. Thus, The Great Conspirators were formed. Little Man agreed to take over the night watch, Little Miss would rule the days.
Little Man would wait patiently for Mother to finish her endless tasks of the day and fall lifeless into bed. Then his work would begin. However, he worked a little differently than Little Miss. Instead of crying (for he is a generally happy baby), he would simply sit or stand in his crib and loudly proclaim, "ya, ya, ya...da, da, da...ma, ma, ma." Then--and this is the ingenious part--he would be silent long enough for Mother to assume he had gone back to sleep and begin to drift off herself at which time he would start the whole chorus over again. The beauty of it was he could do this for hours!
Little Miss was pleased with her new apprentice. He was catching on quickly, and he had talents she hadn't even dreamed of such as constant motion from the time he woke to the time he slept--an added bonus in Operation Exhausted Mommy! All Little Miss had to do now was hold up her end of the arrangement...and what 3-year-old doesn't enjoy an endless barrage of questions, requests, demands, and tantrums from morning until night? Before long they will have accomplished their goal to wear Mother down to sheer exhaustion or drive her completely mad!
Do The Great Conspirators succeed in driving Mother over the edge? Or does Mother finally get some rest, restore her sanity, and return to reign again? Stay tuned...(even I'm not sure at this point!)
As an infant, Little Miss would wait patiently and quietly until Mother's work was done and the weary woman laid her head to rest. That was the signal to Little Miss that her work should begin. She would cry, fuss, talk, squirm, wiggle, giggle, or make any noise imaginable to keep Mother from sleeping. It didn't matter if it was the middle of the day, or the darkest night, Little Miss rose dutifully to her calling. Eventually, however, even she wore out and began to neglect her duties of rousing Mother from slumber. This caused Mother to once again grow accustomed to the tantalizing ritual of blessed sleep.
When Little Man entered the picture, Little Miss was reminded of her mission. Having grown accustomed herself to a good night's sleep, an evil plan began to form in her sweet little head. With a partner in crime, she could split the Mother-waking duties and not neglect her own blissful rest. To this day no one knows how or when it happened, but Little Miss and Little Man put their heads together and hatched a plan. Thus, The Great Conspirators were formed. Little Man agreed to take over the night watch, Little Miss would rule the days.
Little Man would wait patiently for Mother to finish her endless tasks of the day and fall lifeless into bed. Then his work would begin. However, he worked a little differently than Little Miss. Instead of crying (for he is a generally happy baby), he would simply sit or stand in his crib and loudly proclaim, "ya, ya, ya...da, da, da...ma, ma, ma." Then--and this is the ingenious part--he would be silent long enough for Mother to assume he had gone back to sleep and begin to drift off herself at which time he would start the whole chorus over again. The beauty of it was he could do this for hours!
Little Miss was pleased with her new apprentice. He was catching on quickly, and he had talents she hadn't even dreamed of such as constant motion from the time he woke to the time he slept--an added bonus in Operation Exhausted Mommy! All Little Miss had to do now was hold up her end of the arrangement...and what 3-year-old doesn't enjoy an endless barrage of questions, requests, demands, and tantrums from morning until night? Before long they will have accomplished their goal to wear Mother down to sheer exhaustion or drive her completely mad!
Do The Great Conspirators succeed in driving Mother over the edge? Or does Mother finally get some rest, restore her sanity, and return to reign again? Stay tuned...(even I'm not sure at this point!)
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