The Mom Things - posted 44 mins early because I like the date 1/11/11

You know it's never a good sign when you see this in the living room of your mother-in-law's house:

 

Because, that's pretty dang far from the bathroom...

You find it ironic how much fun toilets and their accessories are for your toddlers and how oh so un-fun they are for you, as their parent.

The toilet:  Where all the fun happens [apparently]

The more kids you have, the earlier you start them on household chores.  For instance, "Here, Sarah, refill that tea canister for me, will ya?"

After Christmas on the road at two grandparents' houses you figured that by the time you arrived home again, wrapping presents was optional.  Thus the cover-them-with-a-blanket trick was born.

(Yeah, they didn't care.)

It physically pains you to watch your excessively-passive seven year old son play basketball, as you flash back to the days when you yourself played competitive team sports with a surprising rabid aggression.  Deep within you there's a voice dying to be heard that says it's okay if he's not the best one on the team - he loves it.  And that really is what's important.  (Right?)

You notice that you've relaxed a lot from your early years of parenting when instead of standing at the bottom of the slide preparing to catch them where they inevitably crashed, you were taking a picture of the trip down...

With all of the random information and Did-you-know's that your kids barrage you with all day, you are 100% confident that, together, someday, they will be reigning trivia champs.

The best excuse you can come up with when your seven year old spies you having coke for breakfast and asks why you get to and he doesn't is, "Because I paid for it."  (That was totally weak.)

You love dressing your daughter up in her poofy winter coat because the entire time she's wearing it you randomly quip, "I can't put my arms down!".   Really - that's what it looks like.  (Bonus points if you know the movie reference.)

You realize you have a very long way to go when it comes to teaching your four year old how to act like a lady.

Well...it's almost Wednesday.  So here they are - Happy Midweek, everyone!