Cartwheel Problems

My 7 year old daughter loves to do cartwheels. It's not the kind of thing where she occassionally does cartwheels. She does cart wheels ALL.THE.FREAKING.TIME. I am not exaggerating. When I pick her up from camp, she does cartwheels all the way out to the parking lot. When we get home she does cartwheels all the way up to the door and then through the hallway and into the kitchen. She barely walks anymore, she only does cartwheels. At first it was kind of cute and funny but now it's just wearing down on me.

She does cartwheels at the worst times and at the worst places. She is apt to kick a table, her sister, me, the bed....anything in her way. She will stop and say "Owww" and then continue to do cartwheels. I will tell her to stop and she will but then goes into another room and when I discover her - low and behold she is doing cartwheels again.

A few weeks ago we went to Moe's and she was cartwheeling down the sidewalk - with her shoes off. That's her second favorite thing besides cartwheels. As soon as we get into the car - the shoes come off. If we go out to eat, it never fails she will get real close to me and whisper in my ear, "Mama, can I take off my shoes?" "No." "But they're itchy and sweaty." They are always itchy and sweaty- no matter what shoes - they could be flip flops. "NO." But at some point I will hear it - the plop, plop of her shoes hitting the floor. Then I usually sigh and pray for patience and contemplate just leaving her. On her way out, she does a cartwheel.

I lost it the other night. I was sitting on the floor, folding laundry and I asked her to get in the shower. She goes into the bathroom and emerges a few minutes later - completely nude- and starts doing cartwheels around my room. It was the most obscene sight I had ever experienced. "SERIOUSLY? You are being completely inappropriate. Go do naked cartwheels in your own room with the door closed." She stopped and looked at me and then did one more. I threw up my hands, "Why do you have to do cartwheels all the time?" She shrugged, "I have my hobbies and you have yours." I laughed, "And what are my hobbies?" She thought for a moment, "Folding laundry and being a jerk." She's got it all wrong - I don't fold laundry frequently enough to have it considered a hobby of mine. I had enough of her for one night.

"Just get in the shower." "NO." "This is your last chance, do it now." She just sat there. I had to get up and bring her to the shower. She went limp like a noodle. When we finally got to the shower it was a struggle - she hung onto the door, put her leg out to block and when I finally did get her in, she pulled me in half way too - so I got soaked from the shoulders up. I slammed the shower door. "AFTER THIS YOU ARE GOING STRAIGHT TO BED!!!!" And she thinks being a jerk is MY hobby? Puh-lease. At least there were no more naked cartwheels.