Naughty Girl!

(Please disregard the hair.  This was taken after a full day of playing and right before bath time, so Claire's curly locks were a little unruly!)

Lately, Claire has been gargling her food.  It's cute, and she clearly enjoys it, since her gargles are interspersed with squeals of delight, but it's not safe.  Although she appears to have decent control over her gargling, there's a chance she could aspirate, which would be good for no one. 

As a result, Brad and I--both usually permissive with Claire--have had to put a foot down.  So far, we have had some success stopping the behavior by asking her to swallow, swallow, but the other night, it became apparent that stronger measures might be in order.

I was feeding Claire in the kitchen, and as usual, she started to gargle.  I asked her to swallow, swallow, but she continued.  I asked her again, but instead of stopping, her gargling became more vigorous.  I then put my finger under her chin to encourage her to close her mouth and (hopefully) swallow.  It worked.  But, with the next bite, she was at it again!

Throughout the meal, I kept encouraging her to swallow, and she persisted with her gargling.  At one point, she projectile-spit food right at me defiantly as I tried to put my finger under her chin.

Exasperated, I snapped:  Claire! You need to behave, or else I'll give you a time out!

No sooner had I uttered those words than I realized I had no idea how a time out--or any other punishment--would work for a child like Claire.  I mean, really?!  What good would a time-out do?  She doesn't walk, sit up, or even roll on her own, so I'm pretty sure directing her to stay in one place until told otherwise would be pointless. 

With a chuckle, I decided I would make the most of the situation, so I threatened her with a punishment that I thought might resonate better with her:

Claire! If you don't behave, Santa's not going to bring you presents.  He's watching you, you know.

With only one Christmas under her belt, that threat didn't do much, either.  So, I continued through the meal doing the best I could to limit her gargling.

Still, the beauty of the situation is not lost on me:  It is nice to know that Claire has enough personality that she can get into trouble once in a while!