Verbal Shotgun

Update: fixed incorrect link to the MCM.

 

We're in Minnesota for the Christmas holiday, visiting my parents. On Thursday morning, we took Ellen to the Minnesota Children's Museum with my mother. The place was absolutely great - I enjoyed it, Ellen enjoyed it, Alice enjoyed it, and my mom enjoyed it. Highly recommended.

 

The last thing we did before we went across the street to Fuji Ya (probably our favorite sushi restaurant - also highly recommended), was to stop in at the toddler area of the museum. Cutely entitled Habbitot. They've got a series of platforms, slides, and stairs that are just perfect for the kids to explore.

 

Ellen was playing on one set of stairs, and being the bossy little girl she is, decided that no one else should be able to play on them. The first little person that went by, she just yelled "no!" to. That got my antenna up - but I didn't do anything about it. Then a little boy - probably a year her junior - crawled by, and Ellen raised her hand to hit him. She's got a temper on her, but she's also pretty obedient, so I did the Dad thing and barked, "Don't you even think about it!" quickly enough that she thought the better of it and put her hand down.

 

Unfortunately, I think I put a little too much oompf into the command, because I looked over and the little boy she'd been about to hit was looking at me like I was Godzilla, tears already brimming in his little eyes.

 

Oops.

 

I apologized to his parents (who were very understanding), and fled. :)