An evening activity for three

Ok, so perhaps this is exploiting my children and turning them into massage slaves at the age of 3 ½ and 2. But our evenings here are long. My husband usually gets home after the kids go to bed so during the ever-popular “witching hour,” we’ve had dinner, watched a show, read some books, done some dress up, taken a bath, done a craft (PlayDoh, paint, stickers, take your pick), played Bingo, etc. After a very long day of whining from both my kids, I decided after their bath, it was my turn. I filled up the tub with hot water and poured in the bubble bath, got in and grabbed a magazine. My kids, with teeth brushed and fully PJed were listening to The Wiggles in their room and playing with Mr. Potato Head.

Alex rushes in and grabs a cup. He loves to pour water into water or water on me so I agreed he could play while I read my magazine. He stood there happy scooping up sudsy water and pouring it over my shoulder and down my back. Anna runs in and sees the water. She, in the early stages of OCD, loves to wash her hands—all day long. Any passing of a bathroom reminds her to “wash heends in da bafroom.” So she digs into the bubbles and starts rubbing them on my shoulder and back. What started as handwashing turned into a gentle massage from a 2-year old, followed by a thorough rinse from her brother. This went on for 15-20 minutes. Of course, by then I had put my magazine down and seized the moment to connect with my kids turning this into a nice memory. If only I’d had my wine with me . . . nah, that would have been a little cruel. I figure as long as we stop this potential evening ritual by the time my oldest starts kindergarten, I should be OK, right? Nothing like pampering from your preschoolers.