None of you know this, but I was out of town for a few days last week. My mom and I hatched a little plan to surprise my dad for his 65th birthday. All of his kids showed up at his house on his birthday without him knowing any of us were coming. It was great. It was just us: Mom, Dad, Bob, Audrey, Wendy, Sally. That's it. No spouses. No kids. Just like the good old days. We figured out that it has been 19 years since the six of us were together like that, as the "original" family members. It was pretty cool. Of course, now my parents want to make this little reunion an annual tradition. It wouldn't be a problem to me, mainly because I have one of the best husbands I have ever heard of.
He took two days off of work to stay home with the kids while I was away. He even watched the little boy I babysit every morning. (He did refuse to take my turn teaching our co-op preschool though. I knew I was pushing it when I made the suggestion, but a girl's gotta try.) When I got home I found the house completely clean (he even mopped the bathroom floors), all the laundry done, and my entire kitchen reorganized. Granted, that last part has its downside since I spent a good twenty minutes the other day looking for our paper plates (FYI - they are no longer in the pantry. They are in the cupboard over the microwave). Oh well. Organizing things makes him happy and stresses me out totally, so he always does big things like this when I am away. It helps us avoid many unpleasant conversations like this:
Me -Why are you putting the paper goods over the microwave?
Tyler -Well, because we don't use them much and this cupboard is totally empty.
Me - Yes, but now the paper goods could just as well be in Siberia. They are stacked so tightly that I have to wrench everything out to get any one item. And I have to stand on a chair while I'm wrenching. Is this really a good idea considering my lack of coordination?
Tyler -I'll get any paper goods you need down for you.
Me - Right...good plan dear.
These conversations were totally eliminated by him making these changes without me around.
Also, the kids had a grand old time with just Dad. I asked them my first morning back if they missed me.
CT: No.
Lily: No. But Dad did.
Good to know. Naturally I had to ask a follow up question to boost my self-esteem as a mother.
Me: Well, are you glad I'm back?
Both Kids: Yes.
At least there's that. And Amelia didn't scream and cry when she saw me this time like she did the last time I returned from a trip. That is real progress.
Overall, I think everything turned out great. I owe it all to my dad for being 65 already!
2 comments:
O.k, before I comment on how awesome that would be to get together with just siblings, I have to comment on your conversations with your husband. LOL--I hear ya! It seems that when our house is overcluttered, Serge wants to organize--ie. get rid of. It seems that books seem to be first on his list and DEFINATELY last on mine.
Miss you Wendy!
I'm so happy that you got to be with the fam. What a fun surprise.
Also, Chris organizes quite often. He's always bringing boxes home to "pack stuff that we don't use". Of course, we are planning on moving in the next few months, but what will happen when we actually move? I'm sure he'll just throw away instead of pack.
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