it is at these strange times, that i rejoice in small children. and i stop to rejoice that i had a reason to go to chuck e. cheese, and a reason to get ice cream yesterday at 6:00. I got to pretend to "get married" today about 6 times to both my niece and my son. and i get to read children's books - i honestly think i like some of them more than grown up books. I have found more depth and beauty in Eric Carle's "A Home for Hermit Crab." than i have in many 200 page adult fiction novels.
kids are funny. like when ford decided he must wear his new long sleeve t-shirt with an excavator on it - immediately - while still in the cart at Old Navy. he literally rubbed it on his belly until i put it on him, despite it being 90 degrees outside. he then refused to take it off. i had to break off the tag and hand it to the cashier. i love the contagious zeal for life that these two have. i love how everything that frank does - he does 100%. we get ALL the stuffed animals onto the couch with us, and then we put ALL the blocks into the boat we are building. and then we put all of his army men into battle at the same time. He is either ALL in or definitely ALL OUT of his activities. I am never bored as a home staying mom of two.
damn. i just found a spider on my foot. curse you ozarks.
anyway, sometimes i just want a glass of chocolate milk, just like they do. how happy i am to get to be silly and be a part of so much newness and fascination in two little boys' lives.
that is until i have to decide what the consequence should be of deliberately waking up your younger brother by stomping as hard as you can accross the floor of your shared room after i specifically reminded you not to wake up your brother. this part does not make me happy, because i don't know what the consequences should be for throwing a bear at your mom when you are angry and disappointed. i don't know how to deal with hitting and pushing your brother after he messes up your lego cars. i don't know the answers to all these newfound situations we find ourselves in. and i can't study for it, because no matter what i think i am going to say when i have caught you in a lie, or watched you deliberately disobey me, no matter what i planned on saying, usually something else entirely comes out of my mouth.
i don't have all the answers to my sweet, goofy boys. but i am so glad to be here to watch it all go down. and when i hear my oldest one say to his cousin today from the way back of the car, "my mama never lets me down," i sigh and smile and say well, i guess he's glad to have me here, too.
now i can't sleep becaue i am afraid a spider is in my bed. i bet whoever said that we eat ____ number of spiders in our sleep per year probably lived in the ozarks. i kill at least one to two daily. at least they don't crunch like the roaches.
p.s. as of friday - i officially have a working washer and dryer. isn't that somethin? now i have to resume my trips to the basement. ugh
You don't need all the answers in advance. You just need what you already have: the heart. Frank's endorsement says it all. Love and miss you. Please wear shoes down to the basement. PS Not only would my mother NOT have let me wear my new long sleeved t-shirt, she would have insisting on washing it first, and waiting until she had a full load. You rock.
ReplyDeleteLove this post. Makes me miss you way too much. Also, I see you are brave and let them paint on the porch again. Or was this a pic of the first time? AND, seriously, that basement is scary. I hope you have a lot of light down there.
ReplyDeleteAnother book--Christina Katerina and the Box by Patricia Lee Gauch. I loved it as a kid and found it recently at my parents' house where it was thoroughly enjoyed by a new generation. Christina Katerina and her friend Fats Watson turn a refrigerator box into all sorts of wonderful things. When it is finally demolished, Christina Katerina's mom is thrilled, then Fats' mom gets a new washer and dryer, and the fun begins anew.
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