Yesterday evening seemed to be going normally. I picked Sasha up from her babysitter around 5:30, stopped at the supermarket to buy some overpriced organic milk, then lugged her stroller, diaper bag, the mail and the groceries up the stairs while Sasha gingerly climbed ahead of me.
But once we were inside, Sasha—after playing with her new stacking cups for a few minutes—spotted the remote control. Picking it up, she pointed it at the TV (the wrong way) and started saying “baby, baby.” When nothing happened, she walked to the TV, turned it on and said “Baby, baby” again—evidently, she wanted to watch “Baby Signing Time,” her favorite DVD. Luckily, the cable was off and no image appeared.
And so, the first sign that I am failing as a parent: My 14-month-old is addicted to TV and wants nothing more—even after 20 minutes futzing with a remote—than to come home and plop down in front of the same crap she’s watched a million times already.
Christopher: You were right.