Alright so yesterday I decided to actually try that whole Maurice Sendak “Where the Wild Things Are” thing with my little guy, Leo. He’s four and honestly? His energy level makes those Wild Things look kinda tame most afternoons. Figured it might help tame the bedtime chaos. Big dreams, right?
My Big Wild Plan (That Wasn’t So Big)
Started simple. Dug out my old, kinda battered copy of the book – love that musty smell. Picture time! Gathered Leo and my youngest, Chloe (two and way more into chewing books than reading them). Goal: Make reading it exciting, not just words and pictures. Easy, I thought. Hah.
How it Actually Went Down
Leo saw Max’s wolf suit and yelled “MONSTER! Like me!” immediately started stomping around roaring his tiny head off. Chloe, bless her, screamed and threw her sippy cup. Instant chaos, zero focus on the book. My calm reading corner plan? Flopped harder than Max’s sails in the doldrums.
Okay, regroup. Tried being the narrator, doing big growly Wild Thing voices. Bad idea. Made Leo roar louder and scared Chloe again. Almost chucked the book across the room. Deep breaths. Remembered the whole point was about feelings, not just noise.
What Actually Worked (Surprisingly!)
Next afternoon, different approach. No forcing it at bedtime when everyone’s fried. Prepped stuff:
- Crayons & Paper: Said “Let’s draw Max’s boat!” Made my own terrible boat drawing. Leo copied me, kinda. Chloe scribbled wildly – close enough! Felt calmer just making marks together.
- No Big Performances: Read it normal voice, but asked dumb questions. “Woah, Max looks mad! What happened?” Stopped after Max gets sent to his room. Leo whispered “Maybe he sad?”
- Wild Thing Yoga? Kinda? Post-story, didn’t say “roar”. Said “Show me your Wild Thing face! Huge grins, silly faces, not scary. Then “Show me your calm Max face.” They tried. Got giggles, not roars. Small win.
- Talked Like Max: When Leo got wild later, instead of yelling “STOP!” I tried “Leo! I’ll eat you up I love you so!” Said it silly, scooped him up. He laughed and actually stopped tackling the couch cushions for five seconds. Mind blown.
The Takeaway Mess
Didn’t magically turn them into quiet angels. Chloe still tried to eat a page corner. Leo still wanted to roar sometimes. But it clicked more than I expected. Using Max’s wildness as a mirror for his big feelings? Way easier for him to understand than me nagging. Those Sendak dudes knew a thing or two about tiny tornadoes.
No fancy techniques. Just grabbing the grumpy moment, throwing in some book stuff they kinda got, and rolling with the chaos. Might try finding sticks tomorrow for “rumpus” tools. Expecting more mess. Totally worth it.
