When I stayed with my friend in DC a couple of weeks ago I was amazed at the energy of her dog – from the moment she got up in the morning to the moment she went to bed. Much like a toddler. They have remarkable and unshakable focus and concentration when it’s something they want (such as begging for the phone) but are incapable of focusing on a task that you find important for more than 2 seconds before something (oooh look at that toy!) captures their focus.
As Asher was running around the other morning I was thinking the big difference between having a dog versus a toddler was that with a toddler while they are running around in this hectic haze of constant distractions you also have to wrangle them out of their pajamas, into a new diaper, put clothes on them, brush their teeth, and a dozen other tasks all while trying to keep them quiet (why are the guitar, drum set, radio and every loud toy/object so very alluring in the mornings?) so that the other parent can rest (particularly when they stayed up late working on a joint paper).
I was contemplating this as I was brushing my teeth, and looked down to realize my charge had lost focus of brushing his teeth and had disappeared.
I found him on the bed poking his father in the face with his toothbrush.
I think that’s the toddler equivalent to a dog on the bed licking your face.
(My observation on the similarities is not new - see this old post on the topic)
No comments:
Post a Comment