This Little Light of Mine.....

Please meet the hero of my story.....Mr. HyTop Lemon Juice.
But first an intro:

There are certain pet peeves that a momma must work around or learn to finagle......

In our family, the peace at dinner time is one of them.....

I'm not sure what's in the water...but within five minutes of sitting down to eat.......ATLEAST one of my kids has to run to the restroom.....fine. No problem.

That is......unless it's your 3-year old who WILL NOT go the bathroom by herself.

Instead she would like company.....and if you follow her...prepare to be entertained!

She'll tell you a story, sing you a song...all the while 'doing her business.'

You ARE her captive audience afterall!

It can be a cute trait......something I tell myself to treasure in some weird way......

she won't always want company in the restroom......right?

So most of the time we humor her.

But when this time falls at dinner time....and I've JUST stuck a bite in my mouth....

well, the last thing I want to do is visit a water closet!

My hubby tends to feel the same....especially at the end of a long day, when we've finally poured drinks for everyone, distributed napkins, fetched the placemats, etc.....

all we're thinking about is enjoying our food.

So one night my clever hubby tells Talia to go ahead and go by herself......we'll be there to help her 'clean up'....but go ahead and get started without us. (Now before you go thinking we're sending a rookie in there alone......please know that she's been potty trained for over a year.....there judgement gone................ she KNOWS what to do in the bathroom!)

But of course, in her sweet little mind, it's MUCH too dark in there to go alone. Sure there is a light, but what will she do until that switch gets flicked?

Sad faces, and pleading ensues.....and Natalia is just as eloquent as Daddy here ;)
So he snaps out of HIS whining and tells her....."Take this bottle.....it's your special lantern."

Enter our hero.........."I'll save the day!"

Surprisingly this WORKS!

Natalia took the 'lantern,' set it on the counter .....and even sat in the dark (!) so she could see her lantern 'glow.'

I was amazed that it worked! So needless to say we checked our theory several more times.....and lo and behold! She loves this bottle of Lemon Juice!

It takes ALL of our self-control not to giggle when she says, "Oh! I have to go potty." Then she runs to the fridge, gets out her lantern and runs off to use the facilities! Now I must add....that it's not gullibility we're working on here......She knows perfectly well that this is all a game....but she CHOOSES to play along....and it's inspired such independence! So I say....play on!

I even had to fill the darn thing with water when I used the last of it to make lemonade!

So there it sits, peacefully inside our fridge door.....serving no purpose other than to ensure a peaceful dinnertime!

Who knew it could be that easy?

so I say.....Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine!

What's your favorite use for Lemon Juice?