My June Cleaver Experiment

Today is the first day of my week long June Cleaver experiment. This week I am going to dress and behave like June Cleaver from the old time Leave it to Beaver show.

Hypothesis: Looking and behaving like June Cleaver will make me a better housewife and mother.

Procedure: Every day I will wear a skirt, blouse and my pearl necklace. When I cook I will wear an apron. I will kiss my husband as he walks out the door to go to work, fix his collar and hand him his lunchbox. I will treat my children in a sweet and gentle demeanor. I will do my housework with a smile, hum a song, and enjoy it. I will bake cookies at least one day this week from scratch. I will make the beds every day. I will keep my kitchen sparkling clean.

Data Collection (Day 1): Today as I was getting dressed, my oldest daughter inquired why I was wearing a skirt. She knew we attended church yesterday and was a little bit confused. In the morning we tidied the children's rooms. Because this week brings in the spring season we retired the black patent leather shoes and long sleeved velvet dresses and took inventory of the spring attire. After lunch, the children and I watched TV programs about volcanoes, St. Patrick, and doll making. We read a chapter out of the book Ginger Pye by Eleanor Estes. I fixed the traditional Monday night supper of grilled cheese and tomato soup. As a I put on my apron to prepare supper, Wendy looked a bit confused but told me she thought my apron was pretty. Today I balanced supper with a fruit serving of applesauce. It was a swell day!

I must admit that I fell out of character a few times throughout the day. I am certain that June did not chug a Diet Pepsi in 10:30 in the morning, trek out the trash wearing her husband's big rubber flip flops, use I Can't Believe it's Not Butter spray on her grilled cheese, nor power cycle her cable modem. I also question whether she ever dozed on the couch while she nursed her infant because our only evidence of her perfection begins when her youngest is eight years old. So after the mishaps of the day, I remind myself that June was a fictional mother of only 2 children. I look forward to day 2.