Something's Funny Here...

This morning is proof of why they don’t pay people to be parents. I’m certain that there is no job I would ever return to if I were subjected to the events of this morning if I had a choice.

Unfortunately, I don’t have a choice in this one and it’s really my own fault for getting this mommy job! I hear it takes two to tango!

So, while my spleen would love to splurge on all of the hideously awful aspects of this torturous morning, I think I need to take a step back, be grateful that the children are all snug and quiet in their beds for naptime, and reflect upon the charming aspects of the last bit of time.

For example, we had a visit from Isaiah’s sister and brother-in-law. That was a good thing!

We went to Lambert’s with them because Claton has an indescribable love affair with the “home of the throwed rolls” and it was the closest he’d been to the restaurant in seven years.

Our good friends Brenton & Kelly joined us for the adventure. Brenton was Isaiah’s best man at the wedding and vice versa. They moved to North Carolina a few years ago and we’ve missed them! Now we have a Lambert’s memory of joy.

And, now that my blood pressure has gone down by recounting some of the blessings in our life, I feel that I can disregard the morning and instead tell you about the hilarity caused by my offspring yesterday afternoon.

After Isaiah headed to the airport with Renee and Claton the girls were very, very wired and decided to let loose some energy on pretend play. I love it when they do this – the information I read says I’m supposed to encourage their imagination at every opportunity and since they often play together, it’s a fun time to do much more boring adult things like, say, enter the data for all the residence hall damages from the spring semester.

Every once in awhile they cross a line, however. I was happily typing away, watching them scamper from one room to another and talk loudly, gazing at Mikayla in the bassinet, when I heard Mia introduce herself to Maggie:

“Oh, hello, little girl!” Mia says. “My name is Kaitlyn. Do you have a mother? I do.”

Maggie is wide-eyed and nodding along, trying to get a word in edgewise. But Mia is like steamroller with this act and not going to be stopped.

“My mom is 17 and my dad is 81,” Mia announced. “I have a brother – he’s 82 – and my sister is 80-20.”

The realization burst upon me – we’re a non-traditional family! That must be why people look at us funny sometimes when we go to the store! But... Hey... Why isn’t my husband in jail?! I’m a minor, gosh darn it! And where is my oldest boy??

While all of this was circling through my head the tide of the play turned and all of the sudden the girls lept on the sofa, pulling every toy they had out with them. This created a mountain of pink and purple dolls and such, but they were happy because their prize possessions were safe from the “hurricane.”

Maggie was the designated reporter.

She put her hand up to her ear in the classic “I’m talking to you on the phone” posture:

“Hi, police car? We have a problem,” Maggie chirped. “There’s a swimming pool in WalMart and a tornado!”

Small pause and she listened to the police car respond. Then she screeched:

“Ayudeme! Ayudeme!” and dove onto the sofa. Apparently the tornado/hurricane/swimming excursion was getting overwhelming.

Who needs bilingual education when obviously Go, Diego, Go! is quite capable of teaching the most important conversation starters??

Some of our students dropped by the house to visit the girls. I don’t even pretend they came to visit me. They played with Mia and Maggie while I held Mikayla and thought grateful thoughts about how they didn’t even need me to form a coherent sentence because I wasn’t sure I could do it.

When Isaiah walked through the door, the girls shrieked their joy, he talked to the students – in coherent sentences, no less! - and then Maggie disappeared and reappeared from the bedroom in costume.

A swimsuit. Her winter bunny hat. And one fuzzy pink glove, a la Michael Jackson. She pulled on Isaiah’s pant leg and asked for help going potty. He agreed.

And when he got her to the bathroom she looked at him and said with surprised pride, “I have a bunny on my head!”

That, my friends, is why I’m so tired at the end of every normal day.

Finally, having the family in town helped us remember a few special Mia/Maggie vocabulary words we haven’t thought of in awhile.

Remember when:

“Yucky Bugs” = A Bug’s Life
“Crazy Babies” = Jon & Kate Plus 8
“Oklahoma” = Bartlesville (oh, wait! That’s still happening!)

Hanging on by my teeth – and grateful I have teeth to hang on with...

JJ

Ha! I just opened my email and found this from BabyCenter.com: Your child's imagination is boundless. This year, maybe more than any other, you'll see that creativity during play. It's through fantasy that your child tries on different roles and "practices" new experiences and emotions. You don't need to buy anything special to encourage imaginative play. Your child can cast himself as the lead in any drama he can think up without a single theater-quality prop.

Ya think??