Hide and Seek

I have always wondered why kids love to play endless games of hide and seek. Even as a child this was not really my thing. Looking sucked and I wasn’t very patient during the hiding part either. Here I am all these years later once again playing my least favorite game. The best part of playing this time is who I get to play with. Dakota has just discovered this game and hasn’t really figured out the point yet. She knows that she needs to go into the other room and cover her eyes. She knows how to count, but sometimes only gives me a count of 4 to hide. She yells out “Ready not! I come!”. The part she is struggling with is the SECRET hiding place. When she hides she tells me exactly where I should come find her. “Mom go count and then find me in my bed” When it’s my turn to hide she tells me I have to hide in her bed and she will find me. I’ve tried to encourage her NOT to tell me where she is hiding and also that she doesn’t always have to hide in the same place. Contrary to her order, I once hid on the ground at the foot of her bed. I sat Indian style with her quilt over me. I was peeking so I had a good view of her racing into her room anticipating the moment she got to unveil me from my pre-assigned spot on the bed. She stopped dead and said “mom!” then “Mommy?!?” She ran out of her room calling for me. She got to daddy in the kitchen and I heard her tell him that I was gone. The poor thing was close to tears when I started yelling for her to come back into her room. As a result of my poor listening skills she told me today that I had to hide ON her bed and not on the floor. Soon hide and seek will become more complicated and she will discover the fun of finding the best hiding spots in the house, until then, I know exactly where to look.