Monday, October 27, 2008

It's Not Always Easy Sorting Out Who is the Boss of Whom

Last night Jacob and Elizabeth were sitting together at their little kiddie table, enjoying a little conversation over dessert. This is what I heard:

Elizabeth: I am the boss of you.
Jacob: No, you are not the boss of me. I am the boss of you. It goes like this: Daddy is the boss of Mommy. Mommy is the boss of me. I am the boss of you. You are the boss of Caroline. Caroline is not the boss of anybody.

Ah, so much that needs correcting, so little time. First, given that everything we do is dependent on Caroline's sleeping schedule and her mood, I would say that Caroline is the boss of all of us. Also, we tell Jacob and Elizabeth every day that if they would just worry more about themselves, and less about being the boss of the other, then their days would be much more harmonious. Finally, David will need to tell us himself whether he feels like he is the boss of me. David?

7 comments:

Carolina Belle said...

Heh. That sounds like a conversation between Patrick and Rebecca at our house a few weeks ago. Oddly enough, that also included a "Daddy is the boss of Mommy" statement. Apparently, height is the deciding factor when it comes to determining who is the boss of whom.

Alli Denning said...

I hear you, but I don't know about height being the deciding factor. I am exactly the same height as Brannon, maybe even just a smidge taller and that gains me no ground whatsoever in the who's-the-boss race.

Love your blog, Cathy!!

Cooking for Comfort by Jennifer said...

I am cracking up at your post...so funny!

I am a Southerner living in New England!

Lady Baker said...

I was 4th born of 5 as you know, and I think I did relish even for a brief moment the thought that I 'owned' the youngest one...but truly the 'who is boss of whom' was relative. As I remember, in our triad of the younger 3, who hung around each other a lot--consisted of an older brother, myself, and our younger sister. It was the eldest who was the 'boss'--but only until the youngest yelled "Mom!!" loud enough to call attention to whatever it was he was doing...and in a snap of a finger, the tables were turned and she had control. She could reduce the elder brother to begging and pleading "please don't tell--come on, I'll do anything...don't tell her what I did..."
Now if she yelled "Dad!" you KNEW she was annoyed and she went straight to the top, all bets were off. A yell for Dad could not be recalled...

Aaahhhbuckles said...

We've had this conversation many times in our house. The answer from the children depends on who's asking (I'm the boss when I ask), or who's being nicer at the time (when Mommy's being mean, Daddy is the boss), and who's answering (Meghan generally says I'm the boss, and Michael says that Daddy's the boss).

As for the height thing, I've found that kids correlate that to age. Even though I'm the oldest of three, my kids think I'm much younger than my 5'8" sister and 6' brother. Nice!

Ellie

Cathy said...

This is so helpful! It does seem that your place in the boss hierarchy is dependent on a combination of age, height, and overall meanness, although, in contrast to Ellie's (hey, stranger!) experience, around here, meanness (or perceived meanness) will only enhance your boss credentials. Therefore, Alli, I've gotta tell you that I often use your highly effective "do I need to give Daddy a bad report?" line -- with great results! -- but it only works if we all believe that Daddy is the boss of us.

Lady Baker said...

hey cath--it seems to be Award Season...come to my blog for an award for THIS blog! :)

 
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