Our Own Royal Protocol

The Queen has established the new Order of Precedence to take into account the new Duchess in the family. You can read about it here in The Telegraph. Apparently, within the family, there are those who are disgruntled when the rules are adjusted and those who are, on occasion, inconvenienced.

I only read about this because a friend posted it on facebook today. He was quite upset about it. There was a rather angry rant about stupid and arcaic rules, there wouldn't be a Royal Family without support of the proletariat, blah blah blah, rant rant... And then others chipped in with how silly it all is, etc... etc...

In reply to both of the above, I would like to tell you about the strict pecking order and some of the family rules and rituals that apply in our house. After all, if it's all right for the Royals to publish theirs it's all right for me to publish mine.

 1. DD has to *brush* her teeth first, before I give them a once over. There is no compromise on this and all hell to pay if it is not adhered to.

2. Before leaving her at Nursery I have to pick DD up and give her a kiss and a cuddle. Then she has to give me me a kiss and a cuddle. Following this, with her still in my arms, I have to say, "I love you, I love you, I love you." Then she has to say it. Then she goes down and has to run to the balcony so that we can say 'goodbye' when I get outside. It sounds complicated but these rituals do eventually become second nature.

3. I am never allowed to sit on DD's chair at the table. Never. End of.

4. The flannel that DD uses to cover her eyes when I rinse the shampoo off her hair, has to be folded in a particular way. This conforms to the ancient practice, first observed when she was quite small. No deviations are tollerated.

5. A kiss and a cuddle in bed in the morning are mandetory. If I'm up first I am sometimes commanded to lie down again for the purpose of the above.

6. DD must throw her bath toys into the bath by herself. Mummies must not interfere.

7. Cutlery must be chosen from the drawer by the user.

8. Bottles with drinking nozzles in the cap that can be clicked open and shut, take precedence over simple flat caps. DD gets first choice, always.

So there you have it. We are equally as tied up in our own rituals as the Royals. Funnily enough, no one seems to be as emotionally charged by ours as they are by the Queen's. What silly rules and rituals does your family follow? Apparently it's the season to reveal all.

*All pictures are from Google images.