I believe I have used this title before, but it’s okay.  It applies to so many things in our lives.  We start off life being dependent on our parents for survival, sometimes we end our lives being dependent on our children.  We start our lives without teeth and eating soft foods and sometimes we end our lives in a similar state.  We start our lives in diapers and sometimes…well, need I say more.
On a more pleasant note though, Mini Me and the kids were over for dinner the other evening.  I was filling her in on the day we had and whether or not the kids napped and how much.  We discussed how unpleasant they can be when they have not had naps.  I know Mini Me will read this and will immediately be offended a little, but maybe that also explains a lot of things about adults.  Maybe we get a little nasty when we haven’t had our naps.  The trouble with this is that for most adults, our naps are few and far between.

At any rate, Mini Me mentioned that she was extremely tired that particular evening, and would I please send her for a nap.  This led to discussions about how I used to trick the kids into their naps.  With Calvin, I would tell him to lay down and close his eyes for just five minutes.  I promised I would time him.  Often times, two hours later he would holler for me and ask if his five minutes were up.  Thank God he couldn’t tell time yet!  The Blonde would simply get up from lunch, grab her blanket and go to sleep in her bed.  Weird.  Pook and the Surprise hated naps.  They thought they were being punished and/or they were missing some secret fun activity that we waited to do once they were asleep.  Now that thought is not completely off, because when the kids were little, Doc and I would prepare and enjoy an elegant dinner and a bottle of wine on Christmas Eve after we put the kids to bed. Maybe not their idea of a secret fun activity, but it certainly filled our bill.

In reality, small children hate naps.  They are sure they are missing the greatest moments of their lives.  Then they move on to school age and naps are not required – life is good.  Of course, when they become teenagers, you can’t get them out of bed in the morning and they would kill to have you send them to their rooms for a nap rather than help with chores.  As young adults, life is full and exciting.  Naps are only required following a night of partying.  When they become parents, they want their young children to nap.  On a rare occasion, mom will also sneak one in but as I said, it is a rare occasion.  And as we come full circle, as middle aged parents and older, we love the quiet that we can get on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon, to sit on the couch in front of a fire, watch football or a favorite movie and nap!  Isn’t life wonderful!?

Have a blessed and restful day!

P.S.  Happy 30th Birthday Calvin!!!

That is a really nice phrase, used for religious reasons to mean that you are never alone and that God is always at your side.  For a mother, it means something totally different….

It starts when you get married.  If you had your own apartment or home, you decorated it the way you wanted to.  You could walk around your own home dressed any way you want to.  You can use your bathroom any time, leave the door open and even leave things on the counter without them being disturbed.  Once you are married, you have to incorporate the wishes of your husband.  How do you get him to restrict the use of beer signs as artwork in the living room?  How do you get him to appreciate fluffy pillows everywhere?  And how do you keep him from invading your privacy in the bathroom?

Then the kids start arriving.  Time in the bathroom uninterrupted becomes a distant memory.  They follow you into that sanctuary in spite of your best efforts to teach them the value of privacy.  On a rare occasion, if you can get your husband to keep an eye on them, you can lock yourself in the bathroom for a long and relaxing bath.  Well, maybe not so long.  They usually can only make it about ten minutes.

It is pretty cool when they are all finally in school.  The first morning that you have alone, you don’t cry about it.  Personally, I put on my own music and danced!!!  Calvin insisted that he needed to come home at lunchtime.  He tried to convince his first grade teacher that I needed him.  Thankfully, she did not buy it! 

Then they all start heading off to college.  I got empty rooms as they moved out to their own places.  Rooms that I could do anything I wanted with.  Rooms that stayed clean for months!  I admit, that I did cry in their rooms when they left, but I managed to snap out of it!
And I have now come full circle.  They are coming back as adults.  They claim it is temporary….we will see.  I woke up this morning, shoved all the way to the edge of the bed.  Mini Me had dropped off Max and Stitch before work at 6:00 am and put them in bed with me, along with our jack Russell/Beagle, our Beagle, our Yorkie, her Yorkie, and her Dachsund, and my husband.  I got up, grabbed a blanket and curled up at the foot of the bed with one of the dogs.  I am pretty sure I will literally never walk alone….

Sorry for the absence - look for me once a week!