The Boss of Me

We have been brushing Baby's teeth in the evening after the bath for many months now.  At first my husband and I would hold Baby up so that he could see the mirror and sing a song (a singable song for the very young) while one of us brushed the two or three teeth to Baby's name.  Eventually, the song got old, and Baby asserted some independence - taking the toothbrush and doing the work on his own.  Nowadays, the routine has morphed into an occasional mini-battle that ends with the toothbrush thrown on the floor to let us know exactly who is the Boss Baby around here.  

This evening, before the mini-battle could begin, I thought I would try letting Baby brush his own teeth while standing on his own - which is how he brushes his teeth in the mornings with a high success rate.  I brought the toothbrush down to him while he stood in his yellow duck towel.  He spent the next minute or two using the wrong end of the toothbrush in his mouth in what seems to be his budding comedy career.

So, I thought it might help if I brushed my teeth while he brushed his - which is how the morning routine works with that aforementioned "high success rate."  I grabbed my own toothbrush and started brushing. He kept reaching for my brush.  I kept saying, "this is Momma's toothbrush - that is [Baby's] toothbrush."  Baby still grabbed for my toothbrush.  Eventually, I acquiesced . . . which led to Baby brushing my teeth with my toothbrush while I brushed his with his toothbrush.  Just in case I was wondering exactly who is the Boss Baby around here.