Our friends Jeff and Erin came to stay with us for Memorial Day weekend. We had a blast! We went on a light hike, saw some scenery, went to a *fine* dining establishment, and almost hit two cow elk as they galloped across the highway at 11 in the morning. Highly unusual.
Jeff and Erin have no kids (yet), so all things kid are fun and exciting to them. I've never seen anyone so thrilled to change a diaper (a pee-pee one!) or feed peas to a crabby baby. Erin is so feeling the ovarian twitches of impending motherhood! She's gonna do great! I tipped her off to some of the advanced level mommy secret tricks and she navigated the toddler negotiations like a pro. Jeff, in his own right, is a tireless playground warrior, content to journey down the twisty slide time after time and still have the energy to run around after my fruit snack-powered 2 year old.
I said to another friend before the visit that hanging out with MY crazy children would either solidify their need and want for kids or would assure them that they were NOT ready. I think they've had a good glimpse into the craziness that is "having children" and they still seem ready to take that journey! I'm glad it wasn't MY kids that scared them into sterilization!
It was very sweet to see Elizabeth take to people so quickly. By the end of the visit, she was hopping in and out of their laps and passing out smooches and hugs.
Dylan, though smaller and less aware, was also happy to be held, cuddled and kissed by people other than his mommy and daddy. (Though, here he is with his daddy)
Another fun thing about the weekend was that our family secrets were revealed! We typically only have overnight visits from my mom and she already knows the dark underbelly of the family...
Jeff and Erin though, got to experience the inner workings of the family and learn these fun facts:
1. Elizabeth eats whatever she wants, whenever she wants. Fruit snacks for breakfast? Sure! Raspberries for dinner? Why not!
2. Instead of struggling with a tantrum, we will let Elizabeth sleep in our bed. I know, I know. But dammit! I need to SLEEP!
3. The only person who really REALLY wants and needs to take a nap (aka: ME) will never, ever, ever get to take one.
4. Coffee, not motherly love, is what keeps the family in working order.
5. Though I am a good cook, I sometimes cook out of order, leaving sauce and meat simmering on the stove while we wait for noodle water to boil. Sad.
6. Barbecue night is every other night.
7. Daddy works a lot. I think last week Bob worked almost 60 hours, including overtime and weekend hours.
8. Cartoons are on 24/7. Books are off the bookshelves 24/7. Toys are on the floor 24/7.
9. Mommy hates to clean up after dinner and prefers to wash dishes in the morning, thus, leaving food on plates and platters overnight. Ick yuck. I know.
10. A toddler that sees a swingset will go on that swingset or there will be hell to pay. Hell. To. Pay.
7 comments:
Fun! And Erin's hair is getting crazy poofy! LOVE it. Wish I could've been there with you guys, but unfortunately there are no direct flights from Syria to Show Low. Hmmm...business opportunity?
In Erin's defense, it was very, very windy that day. This picture in no way reflects the actual degree of poof her hair exhibits.
Doesn't Erin's hair look lovely longer? I think the wind-induced poof is cute. Oh Eleeza, be warned: your hair will poof but good from the East Coast humidity. Rethinking London yet?
-Ali
OMG... your house is my house. Oh, but we knew that already...
We are trying to make a conscious effort to wash dishes after dinner, but it only half works. (Like, we load the dishwasher, but don't actually wash the pots and pans and stuff that has to be done by hand).
I've been doing great for the last two days with the washing of the dinner dishes after dinner and not before breakfast...
The trick is to have an empty dishwasher when you start cooking dinner so the dirties can get rinsed and put in immediately.
Thank you Jessey for the defense. It was very windy that day and I was horrified to see the picture of me looking like a muppet. I did just get my hair cut and highlighted and under normal circumstances, it is very cute.
Oh, and so are Jessey's kids. Elizabeth even told us so. "I am cute."
A) you do not look like a muppet
B) I will vouch that Erin's hair looks fabulous
and C) yes, my daughter's ego is a bit out of control.
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