Complaint: "I Don’t Want to be Captain Hook."

Alert Readers: Can you identify the sources of the two orange quotes in this post? If so, give yourself a hearty handshake and celebrate with a beverage of your choice.

"I don't want to be Captain Hook."

That’s what I said to my four year old today. She was doing her “Mommy, you be this and I’ll be that” shtick, which normally I find quite charming. But after a long day of errands and too much time indoors on a nice day, and frankly, too much summer, I wasn’t feeling it, you know? So when she said she was Tinkerbell and I had to be Captain Hook, I regressed a little.

Okay, a lot.

Why do I have to be the villain? I have to be good cop and bad cop with my kids most of the time, being the primary caregiver monkey in the family. So why would I want to be a bad guy when all I’m trying to do is cook the damn dinner? It's the end of the day. I've played along all day. I just wanted a Pepsi, and she wouldn't give it to me. Just a Pepsi.

I guess I just wasn’t in the mood.

Usually I go along with whatever the kids want to pretend. But today, I just didn’t have it in me.

My mom says some days are like that. Even in Australia.