Of our two children, the Boy, perhaps not surprisingly, is always the first to wake. His usual time, left to himself, is around 7:00. If we’re lucky on the weekend, he might sleep until a little closer to eight, but he also likes to get up around five just for a change. Still, no matter what, he wakes earlier than L nine times out of ten. And so we do the logical thing: we change his diaper, dress him,  and take him into the Girl’s room and ploop him beside her.

His reaction is now always the same: he looks for L’s nighttime sippy cup. He’s begun using a sippy cup — adorned with illustrations from Cars — and he likes to help himself to L’s princess sippy cup.

Eventually the Girl wakes up, usually quite glad to see the Boy. The giggles, tickling, and general silliness begin, and so everyone starts the day with a smile.

A perfect start to the day.