There’s a great Peanuts cartoon that has Lucy and Charlie Brown talking back and forth and Lucy says:

“I counted down the months until Christmas…then the weeks…then the days…then the hours…and then the minutes…

And now it’s ALL OVER!”

Today I’m walking around my living room and I’m still picking up bits of wrapping paper that was scattered on the floor from frenzied gift opening nearly a week ago.  My tree looks a little bedraggled and I’m facing the “deck the halls tear down” in a few days.  Such a big build up and though memories have been made to last a lifetime, I find myself just a little sad that the Christmas season has come and gone for another year.  No sooner has the tinsel been pulled down than the New Year’s champagne is uncorked and yes…the first Valentine’s hearts are seen in the stores.  Wow.

I have tried to make resolutions over the years, but though my intentions are good, I usually fail keeping them after the first week.  Loosing weight is a great goal, but no sooner do I resolve to lose weight than immediately after New Year’s I see all those Valentine’s chocolates hit the store shelves, well…’nuff said.

So I thought about what New Year’s resolutions would actually be practical and that everyone could keep throughout the year, and throughout a lifetime.  I was babysitting my granddaughter, who has just turned three months and I wondered what kind of resolutions she might have if she could verbalize them to me and that led me to writing this list.  Today we’ll focus on the Kid Resolutions.

Resolutions For All Ages:  Age appropriate resolutions that anyone can keep!

Kid Resolutions:

0-3 months – I resolve to make sure that all my immediate needs are met by crying, pooping and eating at all hours of the day and ensuring my new parents get as little sleep as possible.

3 – 6 months – I resolve to bend in such a way so I can successfully suck my big toe without going cross-eyed in the attempt.  I also resolve to sleep through the night at least once a week.

6 – 12 months – I resolve to climb on anything and anyone who looks remotely interesting.  I also resolve to pull the dog’s tail, eat something off the floor, do one perfect face plant while trying out this new concept of using my legs to walk.

1 – 2 years old – I resolve to learn as many new words as possible, especially ones that make people laugh or become horrified when I say them out loud.  I promise to throw something, preferably Dad’s toothbrush, into the toilet several times this year.

2 – 3 years old – I resolve to discover as many new foods as possible that I will then refuse to eat.  Then I resolve to subsist on macaroni and cheese.  I resolve to try to share my toys with the little boy next door, but if he bugs me I resolve to clock him over the head with one of my Tonka trucks.

3-4 years old – I resolve to watch the same Disney movie at least once every single day.

4-5 years old – I resolve to visit Grandma and Grandpa as often as possible and tell my parents I would rather live with them because I have more fun there.

5-6 years old – I resolve to make at least one new friend at school and not clock him over the head with anything if he bugs me.

6-7 years old – I resolve to sit still and not fidget in church at least two Sundays in a row.

7-8 years old – I resolve to make my parents breakfast in bed at least once this year.  I resolve to pay attention when mommy teaches me how to clean the kitchen afterwards.

8-9 years old – I resolve to try to keep my room neat for at least one week…or at least for one day.

9-10 years old – I resolve to do something so epic that it may result in a broken bone…like climb to the top of the apple tree, or jump my skateboard off a step, or balance on the neighbour’s fence.

10 – 11 years old – I resolve to keep my room neat for at least a month…or at least for one week.

11-12 years old – I resolve to babysit my little sister and not complain when she wants to watch the same Disney movie over and over again.