Not Crying.....

So Austin spilled a tall glass of milk at the dinner table a couple of months ago and it all ran down the crack in the table.

It was that awful kind of spill that just keeps running and spilling all over everything, no matter how quickly you work.  It got milk all over the table, which I could have dealt with rather calmly, but it also ran the whole length of the crack, spilling milk all over the rug beneath the table.

I may, or may not, have freaked out a little.

And, my reaction may (or may not) have freaked him out so much that he ran away, refusing to help clean it up at all., 

Anyway, I happened to spill a glass of milk on the counter, as I was pouring it for him the other day.  I can't even remember the last time I spilled milk like that.  But, instead of freaking out again, I thought "Aha.  Now I can show him by example what you should do."  Because we all know that actions speak WAY louder than words, right?  (Right?)

So I said very calmly, "Austin, I just spilled a whole glass of milk.  What is the proper reaction?"

Austin automatically answered, "Scream."



Well, I guess I had that coming, so I calmly cleaned up the mess, showing him where the rags are and what to do.

When it was all over, I thought I'd try again.  I said, "Austin, now that you know the answer, I'm going to ask you again.  What could a person do if they spill a whole glass of milk?"

Without looking up from his homework he answered, "Panic and leave the mess?"

Let's just say he will be getting half glasses of milk for a while.