The world according to Ryan and Lucie revolves around whether or not they'll have a bath that night. We've never been ambitious enough to get baths going every night, and instead have settled for an every other night schedule, or every three nights when we're feeling really wiped out. Since they know there's a schedule, Ryan, and sometimes Lucie, will often turn to us randomly during the day and ask, "Mommy, iz it baff nite?" He likes to know what to expect."Baff nite" and non-bath night both have special treats that accompany them. On bath nights, the bath, of course, is a big treat. They love bath time and happily splash around, practicing their back float and covering every inch of bathroom floor space with water. It's a well-loved ritual. But the extra special part about bath night is that they get to use a different kind of toothpaste (actually a flouride rinse) instead of the usual night of brushing. They're something about dipping their toothbrushes in this rinse that gives them such glee. They love it so much, that bath night has now been renamed "dippers night", or "dippas night!" in Ryan speak.
Lately the treat on non-bath nights has been Daddy's puppet show. It started out as a regular puppet show, but once one tossed puppet got accidently stuck on the ceiling fan, it's now become a game of throwing puppets on the fan and sending up puppet friends to rescue their buddies. This game is talked about all day long -- R & L adore it. They love to get right in on the action, laughing hysterically as Ryan the Rhino or Cherie the Cheetah get stuck once again on that fan. Watching these two giggle so intensely is the most incredible thing. I soon start laughing uncontrollably, and am amazed by the pleasure a handful of puppets can bring.
Though bath night and non-bath night are loved, the true favorite in our house is the night when a bath happens during the day (most often due to an art project gone head-to-toe). On these days, they get all the benefits of both nights -- "dippas" and puppet show. Oh, how exciting life the life of a three year old can be!
