Owen's Conundrum

Last week as the kids and I were shuffling through Target and in an effort to get them a little something without buying a lame toy or candy, I let them each pick their own toothpaste. It was a no-brainer for Cal - he's used the same toothpaste for years, kind of a creature-of-habit. Tess was equally as easy: Disney Princesses. Done. Owen took just a second to decide between Toy Story and CARS and quickly settled on the latter.

The real dilemma surfaced at each brushing time over the next few days. Owen quickly realized that Tessa's princess paste was bubble gum flavored and he was instantly jealous. She was fully willing to share, but that would mean that he would have to ASK to have the PRINCESS product placed on his toothbrush. The first few brushings, it was just too much and he would resort to Lightning McQueen. After about a day and a half he finally whispered for the princesses. It only took 1 time and he was a convert. There were a few sad looks at his old toothpaste, but the choice was clear: bubble gum was worth the teasing for using Cinderella to clean his teeth.

As lame as it is, I'm pretty proud of Owen. It's impressive to see him make a choice and stick to it even if it means catching some crap from his big bro (or me). You can be sure that I'll be reminding him of this story years from now when he's making teenage choices.