Naughty vs. Nice

We went into a Hallmark shop today. I told her that this was a "hands in pockets" store.

"What's that?" she wanted to know.

I explained that she shouldn't touch anything.

She proceeded to not only not touch anything, but to berate me when I picked up a ceramic pig to check the price on the bottom.

"Daddy! No touching!!"

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We made a gingerbread house today. It looked almost like the picture on the box. Almost.

We told Sophie that it was for looking, not for eating. She attempted to bargain.

"Look, Sophie," I said, "It's only for decoration. We've got other gingerbread for eating."

"Oh good!" she said, "Let's eat that then!"

Her mother cackled.

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Later I found a chunk of icing on missing from the veranda. I called Sophie's attention to this and asked her what she thought might have happened.

Yes, I was being a bit cruel and so deserved the lie that came.

"That came this way," she told me. "Yes, that came this way I think that came this way."

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The cultural rut of Santa Claus is too deep to be avoided.

We fell into a discussion of naughty and nice. Lists were mentioned. The topic of a mysterious, vast and pervasive regime of surveillance was broached.

We attempted to use this chat to leverage our daughter into what we consider good behavior.

"I be good!" she told us.

Later I told her she couldn't have a piece of gingerbread before dinner. She had to wait till after she ate.

She scowled at me and shouted: "You not nice!" And she may have added: "You naughty!"