Niranjana, Melissa and Andy

In recent weeks, our parenting strategy has taken a somewhat competitive turn. It began innocently enough, but we aren't quite sure where this will lead.

Niranjana can be somewhat pokey in the mornings, but we learned a technique to speed her up when we want her ready for school. We've turned things into a competition.

"Who's going to get out of bed first? Daddy or Niranjana?"

Niranjana will scramble from bed because she wants to win.

"Who's going to get dressed first?"

Niranjana runs for her room and gets dressed in a (relative) flash.

Now, our little angel turns most things into a competition. Who can get their socks on first, who can get downstairs first, who can eat dinner first, etc.

This must be going on at school, too, because Niranjana will mimic one of the teachers sometimes by saying, "It's not a race!"

So here's how this goes now:

-- If Niranjana eats/dresses/walks/anything first, she lets out a triumphant, "Niranjana wins!"

-- If Mommy or Daddy do something first and declare themselves the winner (usually to prod her along), she declares, "It's not a race!"

Thus, she never loses!