Morning Duties

Clara Grace has what has become almost an obsessive-compulsive ritual to complete each and every morning. Each day, before she cries out to alert her mommy and daddy that she is awake, they hear one by one, pacifiers kerplunking to the nursery floor. When the binkies are all dispatched, Clara Grace calls out her greeting to the world. Each morning, mommy or daddy enters and lifts her from her bed, but before any good morning kisses or hugs can be dispensed, business must be taken care of. The little girl wriggles until she is set down on the floor. Then she pops one pacifier in her mouth and collects two for each hand. Now she stands and is ready to be hoisted back up to the side of her crib where she ceremoniously pitches the pacies to bounce around on the waiting mattress. It seems her day cannot begin until each and every binky is in its proper place. This ritual carried on well into her first year.