Out of the mouth of Babes

This is my 19 year old, just one day before his deployment to Iraq and my 3 year old, playing in the park. These two have a bond that goes beyond the regular sibling bond. One might ask what a three year old and a teenager have in common? The answer: a lot more then what one might think.

Example: they are both exploring the English language. The 19 year old is busy using all the words not permitted in his parents home with little regards to who is listening. The 3 year old has mastered the English language and repeats everything like a mina bird. This is definitely a recipe for catastrophe of epic proportion.

Today, I was running late picking the children up from daycare. We had approximately 10 minutes to get out of daycare, home, changed for swimming lessons, and to the swimming pool. I do believe at times as parents we are superpeople. I am not even sure that superwomen could have completed this task in a timely manner with out jumping a single building, or flying in the batmobile. I was doing my best, at rushing my daughter with out losing my temper.

She had said good bye to each of her friends not once but twice. She thanked her daycare provider for the cupcake, and sealed the thank you with a hug and a kiss. She made sure she had every piece of paper she had colored on that day. She stopped in the middle of putting on her shoes to tell me just one more story that had happened earlier that day.

I was loosing my patience, and I finally said. "If you do not get your shoes on, we will not go to swimming lessons" She looked at me wide eyed, with her hands on her hips, and with out any warning she said "Jesus Cwist Mom, do you thwink the pool is going somewhere?"

A little shocked, slightly red in the cheeks, and speechless I looked around to see who had heard her. I was safe, not a sole in the room but my children and me. I helped her get her shoes on, and out the door I went reminding her that it is not appropriate to talk like that.