Scrubbing it up

When it comes to hand-washing at the required times, Ian is pure ego, whereas Daniel can be either super-ego or id, depending on the moment. Ian very diligently washes his hands and moves on with life. (For a time, he was singing some song while he washed them; his babysitter, who is also a teacher, taught him that he should sing a particular tune, all the way through, as he washes his hands, to ensure that he puts in the time required to get rid of the germs.)

But Daniel ranges from one hand-washing extremism to the other - either he'll refuse outright (often because he had "already" washed his hands just prior to the current bathroom visit), or he'll wash them for a very long time, usually leaving a small pond on the floor as he walks out screaming for a hand towel).

The other day he was more in "maximalist" mode, and I guess I tried to interrupt his lathering up before he was quite finished:

"Daddy, I need to smooth it around and scrub it up before I wash my hands."

(September 25, 2009)