A Stinker is Born

Lucy just , and in addition to turning a year older, she’s turning into something else: a little stinker.

While she can still throw an epic tantrum every blue moon, she’s mostly left that old game behind in favor of making mischief instead. Rather than pitching a loud, kicky fit when she doesn’t get her way, new technique is to leave our sight and quietly get into trouble somehow.

Despite recent repeated airings – at her request - of the classic song “Nuttin’ for Christmas,” where the little boy singer tells of various snitch-worthy offenses he committed such as making another kid eat a bug and putting ants in the sugar bowl, Lucy persists in doing things that get her into trouble.

This mischief can take many forms, all designed to get us parents to yell at her. One of Lucy’s favorite techniques is to do things to irritate her little brother, such as pinching his ear or snatching away one of his toys. The other night, we suddenly heard a thump and then , and then found him on his back on the floor of her bedroom while Lucy stood nearby. Her matter-of-fact confession: “Do you want to know why I knocked him down? Because he was trying to play with my toys, that’s why.”

And so as you can imagine, there have been in our house recently. I’m not sure how long this stinker phase will last, but I’m hoping – and I’m guessing her little brother is also crossing his fingers – that it won’t be around too much longer. After all, I’m curious about what comes next.