Pajama Drama

As we are three years into this parenthood gig, DH and I have both internalized the reality that really nothing should surprise us. But frankly, I have to admitt, I now am headed into a two-year ordeal with pajamas and it can be confusing…and surprising at times.

I wonder if I am alone – surely there are others out there suffering from the great torture inflicted on them after a pleasant bath time when the…gasp…WRONG PJs are offered to the toddler?

Let’s go back in time.

Summer 2007 – I thought I was SO tricky and grabbed a bunch of one-piece fleece sleepers for DD when they were on deep discount at Nordstrom. I mean really – who doesn’t love the one-piece fleece sleepers? And with the way my kid eats breakfast and refuses to wear a bib, I swooped up like seven of them.

Come Fall 2007 and I quickly learned two things:

1. My child, in fact, is the grinch of one-piece fleece sleepers. She HATED THEM. Actually, more than anything, she was still in that obnoxious phase of hating being on her back, so getting her to lay back so we could get her into the sleeper was a task even black opps special forces just back from Iraq weren’t up for.

2. One-piece fleece sleepers are NOT helpful when potty training a child who gives you minus three seconds warning that they need to go pee pee.

SO, all the one-piece fleece sleepers got packed up and off I went, begrudgingly, to purchase many more TWO PIECE fleece PJs without the feet. I mean – why are kids PJs so freaking expensive? I don’t even spend $20+ on my own PJs.

So now fast forward to Summer 2008. Once again, I’m in the Carter’s outlet store and I think I am a freaking GENIUS. The two piece fleece PJs are on sale, I swoop up five pairs – each one a different color and theme – your garden variety dog, kitty, hippos, princess, etc. By now, not only do I think I’m so clever because I know not to waste my $$$ on one-piece sleepers but I’m also getting them on sale. I freaking rule.

Or so I think.

Enter cooler fall temperatures recently.

Guess what?

By now, I’m schooled enough with the toddler set to know that you must offer a choice – you want doggie or kitty cat PJs tonight? They need to be in control and the final decision maker. Or so they think.
But see – that’s not enough.

What I never expected was this –

ONLY DOGGIE WILL DO.

It’s like her eyes are burning when she is offered the cat, hippo or princess pjs. Note -the ONLY difference between these guilty PJs and the dog ones are this: color and theme – one small dog or one small cat.

But apparently this difference is really a sticking point. To her it’s like the difference between voting Obama or McCain. (Obama is obviously the dog here).

So – what happens when DOGGIE PJs are DIRTY?

Oh lord.

I bet some of you know.

The tantrum of the year happens, the kicking, the screaming, the sobbing, the begging, the drama..the pajama drama…..the others are cast aside, thrown to the floor in total disgust, DD is begging for doggie, as if we are torturing her. And at first, we are totally amused because this is so ridiculous..but after time passes, KT hears herself begging DH to make a run to Macys at lunch on Monday as his TOP priority of the day- in a desperate search for like 5 more pairs of the SAME doggie PJs.

DH suggests we just put her to bed in her diaper and let her see how that feels and then maybe she’ll change her ‘tude about poor old hippo tonight.

And once again, I am defeated.

I have lost the battle of the PJ’s.

Two years in a row.

So what will I do next year? 

I will probably buy several pair of PJs in ONE THEME – thereby limiting options. Maybe third time will be a charm.

I’ll let you know in 2009 how that strategy works out for me.  But I guarantee you this, when pregnant the first time, I never considered just how much time and strategic thinking I would put into PJs.