Whoa. Drama.

Today has been one full of needless drama in the Rowe household.  Beginning with Julia's complete and utter melt-down over the fact that I wouldn't let her wear a tank top and shorts to school in the 40-degree morning weather (She's going to stay in her room for the REST OF HER LIFE!  She's NEVER going to school again!  She's NEVER PLAYING WITH HER FRIENDS AGAIN!), and ending with the news that Madeleine made Julia cry multiple times while I was at work (apparently she was throwing princesses at her sister...), there have been tears, tears and more tears from the kids throughout the day.  And it wasn't only Julia playing the drama card.  During her Creative Movement class this morning, Madeleine decided that instead of participating, she would rather drape her body face-down in a variety of inconvenient places: in the middle of the rug, around which kids were marching and running in one of the class exercises, across the gym mats that kids were stepping up onto in order to climb up on the rest of the equipment, and perhaps my favorite spot, on the trampoline, with half of her body actually on the trampoline and her head and arms hanging off over the edge.  I don't really know what her deal was, but those of you who know Madeleine are aware that laying still is not really her usual behavior.  This is the kid who spent her last play-date with Anja playing Couch Olympics.  (As she put it, in the midst of climbing over the couch, "Mom!  We're doin' THIS!"):




I don't know what exactly precipitated the princess throwing this afternoon, since my baby-sitter was the one here when it happened, but I do know that the afternoon was off to an overly dramatic start right before I left for work.  Madeleine had the misfortune of waking up from nap at the most inopportune time; just as Julia was watching the last thirty seconds of "Barbie: The Princess and the Pauper," and just as I was about to walk out the door for work.  Deeply grieved by the fact that a) the tv was turned off just as she walked into the living room, and b) I was leaving, Madeleine contributed to the household flood of tears by sobbing inconsolably about wanting both Barbie and me.  So I have to admit I'm not surprised to hear that she was throwing princesses at her sister while I was gone.

Luckily, by the time I returned home, the princess incident was a thing of the past, and the girls were friends again.  Moreover, Madeleine recounted her misbehavior for me, even telling me, wide-eyed, "Yeah!  And Julia CRIED!  Poor JULIA!"  I tried to videotape her account of the whole incident, but by this point she was much more interested in making Polly Pockets Cinderella and Sophie make out with each other, and seemed completely unapologetic about her earlier princess-hurling behavior:




I wish you all sweet dreams, lovely fairy tale dreams of Cinderella awakening you with a kiss.  I wish myself a much less drama-filled day tomorrow...