My little Thelma and little Louise

Do you remember that one crazy, reckless thing you did as a kid? That thing you knew you definitely should not do, but you were feeling daring and decided to throw caution to the wind? That 'burn the ships' mentality that you were going to do it and to heck with the consequences?

Remember that feeling?

I would like to introduce you to two little people in my home who most certainly experienced the euphoria of deliberate naughtiness this evening.

I don't know what came over them. It was like their Thelma and Louise moment.

And boy, did they ever live it out to the fullest.

It went down like this:

7pm. Bathtime. A tiny revolt concerning wanting to take a shower instead of a bath, but I quickly squashed the uprising and all was well. I got both of them in the tub, where they were all smiles and sweetness, and left the bathroom for just a moment.

During that "mere moment", my children went a little bit temporarily insane. Really. If I could have access to their minds, I'm sure I would see that their mental state became highly erratic and unusual.

I retrieved a couple fresh towels for my bathing beauties, checked on the older one who was managing a shower on her own, and made the short trek back to the master bathroom.

It was in that moment I came upon a scene I was not really expecting. I heard a sound that evokes fear in the hearts of mothers: unexplained, deep belly laughter.

There in my bathroom, were two giggling girls. The tile floor all around them was covered in about an inch of water. Drenched. Completely submerged. Water on the walls, the laundry hamper, the bath rug, you name it, it had water on it.

I won't lie. I went a little berserk. I mean, honestly. It's not like this is new territory and they had no idea this behavior was off limits. We have been fairly clear in our requirements regarding water being KEPT in the tub. We left no room for loose interpretation.

The story came out as I began immediately mopping up the floor with no less than six large bath towels. Apparently, for lack of anything better to do, they began literally pouring large cupfuls of water directly onto the floor. They had caught the vision that they could create a small ice skating rink if they poured enough water out.

That makes perfect sense, right?

Now I know that one of these days I'll look back on nights like this and laugh. I will miss the silly childishness of my girls and wonder why on earth I let minor things they did get me worked up.

Tonight is not really that night. One of my girls handled the laughing part just fine for both of us.

She laughed all the way through the rest of her bath, laughed while she picked up all those sopping wet towels and walked them across the house to the laundry room, and giggled as she heaved them into the washing machine.

She poured in the detergent and turned on the machine, a big smile on her face.

I was kind of seeing red just a little bit as she giggled at their deviant behavior. This kid knows how to play me like a fiddle.

I have to attribute their boldness and lack of repentance to the absolute state of euphoria one experiences when doing something daring. They were both on a naughty behavior high and it would take just a little while for the fun to fade.

But boy, did it fade. And fast. They lost their privilege to have book time and got snuggled into their beds just a little bit earlier than usual.

And so, as I kissed their freshly washed little faces and breathed in the sweet smell of clean little girls in pajamas, they finally showed remorse for their actions.

Looking at me quite seriously, the ringleader of the two spoke her darkest secret:

"Mommy, I'm sorry. The ice cream I ate tonight made me naughty."

Well, that's a new one. Blaming the groceries. It's original, I'll give her that....but I WON'T be giving her ice cream for a few nights.