SALT LAKE CITY, UT — A local mother took a deep breath and reminded herself that her children were wonderful blessings after her toddler asked her to read Dr. Seuss's Hop on Pop for the 73rd time today.
Diana Richards was able to refrain from showing any annoyance when her 3-year-old son, Parker, once again asked her to read Hop on Pop despite the fact that there were, at last count, 258 other children's books on the shelf in the playroom.
"Children are a gift from God," she whispered to herself as she sat down on the couch and lifted Parker onto her lap. "I may suffer a psychotic break if I keep having to read this book, but I love my child dearly, so I will gladly dive headlong into insanity if it means making him happy. Mental hospital, here I come!"
Diana then began the 73rd reading of the Dr. Seuss classic, believed by experts to be the most since the well-documented Stephenson Family ordeal of 1970, in which a young girl drove her parents mad by having them read it 126 times in 24 hours. "It's a remarkable feat," one observer said. "She does appear to be teetering precariously on the brink of psychosis, however."
Diana was able to complete the reading of the book without incident, though she feared her next attempt may not be so uneventful. "It's only a matter of time," she said. "I can feel my mind starting to crumble."
At publishing time, Diana had received a temporary reprieve when Parker began asking his father to keep rebuilding a tower of blocks after repeatedly knocking them down.
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