Is This the Face of Future Law Enforcement?

Don't be fooled by the lovey-dovey turtles across her chest, nor the vintage crystal earrings. This is the face of an enforcer. No wait...The Enforcer. With a capital T and capital E. J-bird has firmly toddled into the age that loves routine. That craves routine. Oddly though, when I tried to perform a Google search of what I thought was a common attribute (I mean, her brother thrived with routine, too - doesn't that means ALL children love it?!), all I could come up with were snippets such as

• you will enforce it by an immediate return to bed...
• As she gets older, you can enforce...
• consider hitting to impose pain in order to enforce toddler...
• Set limits for your child and enforce them...

and my personal favorite

• punish in order to gain control or enforce obedience....
  
  
  
  

Riiiiiight!
Nice.

Not really my style, and truly laughable. Yes, I believe in boundaries and limits and routine - but I certainly know from experience that wielding punishments doesn't really gain control, nor can you enforce obedience. Compliance, yes. Obedience, no. That has to be learned, since obedience is an action that begins within ones heart and mind.

But I digress! I'm blogging about our own small enforcer, not the big enforcees. (Is that even a word? The red line under my typed draft assures me that it is not.) For example, when Trav arrives home from work, it is J-bird who is standing at the door to make sure he takes off his shoes and hangs his keys - in the correct place. When the washing machine signals a completed cycle, she is right there to make sure her mum stops anything she's doing at the moment and deals with the laundry. A cat sneeking into the nursery is reprimanded with cries of, "Out! Out! Out!" in a very high pitch with surprisingly clear enunciation. Prayers are mandatory (of course!) before each meal. And don't even TRY to toss your jacket on to a chair instead of hanging it. Jackets belong IN THE CLOSET.

The irony of this is J-bird's desire for routine is for the routine of others. She's not so particular about consistency for herself. She's already evolved into Miss Busybody, and she's all about micro-managing others. It appears that she's destined for corporate America!

Now, if she could just get her brother to drop his clothes into the hamper, rather than on the floor....