Life's Little Funnies

Motherhood is no easy job. There are babies to diaper, toddlers who "tantrum", preschoolers to educate and kindergartners to rein in when the peer pressure strikes. But I have found that there are little moments throughout each day when my kids bless me with little funnies that get me through the day.

Yesterday, in fact, Jay and I were watching one of the Disney Channel shows and she looks over at me with a face I have grown to recognize.

"What's up?"I ask her. Her face said she had something to say that baffled her.

"Well, today Lisa used her lip gloss then she let Jenna use it," Jay said with that same look of confusion. She apparently wanted my opinion but I didn't budge.

"So what'd you think about that?" I inquired.

"I thought it was SICK!" Jay said, and my heart smiled.

Unfortunately for her, Jay is her mother's child and is all about her hands being washed and keeping some things, like lip gloss, to herself. This little funny allows my mind to rest easy, at least regarding cleanliness, when she's away from me.

Then there was the Mother's Day "poster" Jay made with her kindergarten class that had a picture of her from the beginning of the school year, her hand and foot prints, and a poem that will choke up any mom. When she gave it to me I went beyond choked up into full-force "my BAY-BE" cry. So on Monday when she was getting on the bus I told her not to tell Mrs. H I had cried over the poster. What did she tell me when she got home from school?

"Mommy, guess what? Mrs. H asked whose mom cried when they got their poster..." Jay started.
"And what did you say?" I asked.
"I raised my hand," she said. I felt a kick to the stomach.
"You TOLD her? Who else cried?" I asked.
"Michael's mommy cried..." great, she told.

About a week ago Nas heard me talking.

"That is absolutely ridiculous!" I said.
"Ooh mommy, you not say those 'woads' (words)," he admonished.
"That's not a bad word baby, 'ridiculous' isn't a bad word," I told him.

He seemed to accept it and go about his business. Later that week he was talking on his toy cell phone and seemed quite agitated with whomever he was speaking to.

"No, that's not gonna work, this is ri-DIC-aluss!" And ever since, ri-DIC-aluss has become part of his regular vocabulary. Lucky for me he hasn't picked up "other" words I use that don't belong in day-to-day conversation. At least not lately.

Now that we are in full-swing of potty training, lots of interesting things have come up. From the unsuccessful trips to the potty, to how he comes into our room in the morning wanting to be changed.

I try to get the kid to the potty on a regular schedule, sometimes we even get a good stream of pee. But it doesn't always work. When his bladder has obviously been previously emptied into his Pull-Up, he let's you know right away.

"Oh NO mommy, it's not wo-kin (working)!"
He'll look down at his "dingle-berry" wondering why it had failed him. He'll hold it and look at it strangely as if it has one job, and that's to pee, why wasn't it wo-kin?

And in the morning he'll cruise on over to my side of the bed and greet me....ever so lovingly.

"Get up mommy! Mommy, I'm up, I'm up!" He says as though I'll be thrilled to see him full of energy at 6:13 a.m.

"Mommy, I want my undie-wears! I want my Spida-man undie-wears!" He continues as he waves his Spiderman Pull-Up in my face. After wearing a diaper to bed he knows undie-wears cometh in the morning. Hey, at least the kid's excited about some part of potty-training, right?

The one thing I hope to never forget is how Nas responds when asked if he needs to sit on the potty. It's when fresh warmth of the Pull-Up lets him know, there will be no pee to put in the potty.

"Do you need to go potty?" I ask hoping this will be the day he excitedly says, "YES!"
"Oh no mommy, I pee-pee in my undie-wears, I missed it, I missed it," he says as though everything will be fine. "Better luck next time" is the tone I'm given. What's funny is my attitude after he says this....'he's right, we'll catch it next time'.

I am so thankful to have the little funnies Jay and Nas give me. Motherhood is the toughest job I'll ever have, but their funnies are like tiny jewels that decorate my heart along the way.