early morning drama

[This goes on every single day around here, in some form or another. My child is either horribly moody or totally normal. I can't tell.]

The setting: 7:45am, Sunday, the kitchen. Breakfast.

Andy asked for a bowl of cereal. Due to a recent visit to his grandma's house, we have a box of Fruit Loops in the kitchen. I don't like them as a breakfast option. He also has a box of Fruity Cheerios, and the Cheerios folk would have us believe that they're vastly superior and contain fiber and protein and such. (I didn't buy the fruity Cheerios either. I don't think a cereal should be any color other than that of wheat or oats or corn. But I'm a breakfast stickler.)

Anyway, he asked for a bowl of Fruity Cheerios. So I got him one, and covered it with milk. After only a few bites he pointed to the box of Fruit Loops up on the fridge and said, "I want that one now, Mommy."

I said, "Andy, they're they same cereal." (Not entirely true, but they're both red boxes full of multi-colored O's. One just seems to have less sugar. )

He seemed satisfied with that answer for a few minutes only. Then he asked me again for the Fruit Loops and I again said no.

Then came what I have dubbed "The Andy Response". He made an angry face at me. Then at his cereal bowl. Then he pushed it away and put his head down on the table. I ignored this. When he didn't get a response from me he picked his head up, sighed loudly, and pushed his cereal bowl even farther away from him so that it almost fell off the kitchen table. Then he put his head back down with a thunk.

I said nothing but picked up the bowl and put it on the opposite side of the table. Andy began to wail.

"Oh no! Now I'll never see my cereal bowl again! Everybody's so mean to me! I need to find a new family!"