Bye-bye Boogar!

We aren't great at routines, but as far as bedtime routines go Roland's is pretty fun. (For the record, this is mom's version, dad's is a tad bit different.) At 7PM we start with the announcement of "bath time!" which starts an excited march of "left, right, left, right" as we climb the stairs. We identify Roland's clothing as he undresses while the bath is filling up. We also practice sitting on the potty, but we're pretty sure nothing has connected - yet. After identifying and wash many, many parts begins play time. Here of late we've been washing Octopus along with Roland, who takes a cup and washes him off. Octopus also serves as the boogar wiper where at the end of the bath we wipe the nose for boogars and then ceremoniously wash them away with the shower sprayer. Hence: "bye-bye boogar!" Now, I know many are thinking this vulgar and crude, but it's much more than that. Try cleaning a child's nose sometime and you'd think he was being beaten. The fascination of seeing the boogar and washing it away - with no tears or resistance - is enough to make mom and toddler very proud. Boogars safely down the drain it's off to the bed for a frolic in the pillows, one quick dive into a diaper and pj's, a brush to the hair and teeth all the while unwinding to the British humour of Kipper on Sprout. We then read a couple books, drink some milk, say some sweet things to each other and then off to bed by 8PM. I'm fairly certain this is a pretty awesome bedtime routine as far as bedtime routines go. While it may seem outlandish, it does mean that from 8PM till 7AM Roland is one happy, sleeping boy. (Note: boogar is acutally spelled booger, but Roland pronounces it with an a, instead of an e, which is extra cute. It's mentioned 6 times above. Also, that's Octopus being thrown around the tub.)