The Story of Mimi Juice (Or, How We Tricked Our 2 Year Old Into Drinking Milk)

In September, my mom, sister and brother-in-law came to STL to visit. In preparation for the visit, I bought some of the groceries that I knew my mother would like, mainly coffee for the morning and creamer to go with it. (Chris and I take our caffeine in a different form.) The creamer came in a brightly colored bottle and I kept it right beside the milk. Matthew saw his "Mimi" pouring the creamer into her coffee and decided that it must be good stuff.

After Mom left, Matthew would go to the refrigerator and get the creamer, asking for "mimi juice." He was insistent that I pour him some to drink. Of course, I may let him eat out of the trash (remember?), but I was not going to let him drink coffee creamer. After a couple of times telling him "no" and the ensuing wrath of a denied toddler, I figured out that maybe he would drink milk if I told him it was "mimi juice." So I pretended to pour him some creamer and instead gave him milk.

Of course, he didn't fall for it. The creamer was a different shade than the milk. How stupid did I think he was? He could tell the difference between mimi juice and milk, and he was not going to fall for the old switcheroo trick.

So, I added a teaspoon of Ovaltine to the milk, which turned it a shade darker (but not too dark) and it officially became "mimi juice." So now Matthew will drink milk, I mean mimi juice, every day without complaint.

However, after watching the Wiggles' song "Another Cuppa," he's been asking for "rosy tea." How the heck do you make "rosy tea?"

P.S. Spell checker's suggestion for "ovaltine" is "ovulation." Hee hee.