Today, when kiddos come home from school - mom and dad are really not much of a big thrill. Oh, kids love 'em, but it's same ole same ole every day. First thing kiddo wants to do is go play with whatever today's version of Chatty Cathy is... (Maybe "app'y Abby?"). There's a breeze as the child runs by. That's all good, dinner to cook, house to clean, clothes to wash, bills to pay, yada yada.
Granny, and or grandpa come to the door - holy havoc breaks loose. The grands that can talk and run, run and talk to the grands. The ones that ain't learned to walk yet, bounce down the stairs on their butt with the delight of "what's next granny?" Amazing they don't hurt their buns, but, I reckon that's why God gave us a little extra padding.
I am an OK grandparent. My ex is the Bomb. She takes the grands darn near every weekend, takes 'em wherever they wanna go, whenever they wanna go. She learned that from her own mom who with certainty coulda won twenty or so Grandmother of the Year awards.
Grandparents neatly plan nifty things to do with grandkids. Things like, going down the 'Fan Aisle" in WallyWorld and, with grands, virtually scream kinda-sorta into each fan as they pass. It's Goofy, Goofy starts with a G and that's Grand. Skippin' a rock in a pond. Hopscotch. Pick an animal, any animal, and pretend you're it and hop, walk, skip around. You know, stupid, but really important stuff. And it HAS to be done with a smile, for grandkids are as stupidly in love with their grandparents as grandparents are in love with grandkids.
From their many years of being a parent themselves, Grandparents have kinda figured out how they're gonna pay the mortgage (if they stlll got one), there's leftovers enough in the freezer for a nice long week of 'we ain't gotta cook'... Work? HA. We took that job and shoved it long ago. Inotherwords - ALL EYEBALLS, ATTENTION GOES TO THE GRANDS.
You can kinda tell... when kiddos are riding with parents, like from a study conducted by some handsome blogger from Missouri, says, that on average a kid will say "Mom".. or "Dad", an average of 4.7 times before they're ever acknowledged. (to be continued)
"You know what it's like having five kids? Imagine you are drowning and someone hands you a kid." Jim Gaffigan
On the other hand, a kid says "Granny" one time and it's "YES my little precious one?" shot back in a millisecond. Parents got all this other crap going on - grandparents, they are stuck on grandkids, 'cause grandkids are stuck on them.
Somehow, thanks to maybe somea them pills in the SMTWTFS pill box, or through good genes, or maybe thanks simply to extra effort, grandparents won't wear out until grandkids wear out. When the evening, or afternoon, or weekend eventually ends, then and only then, do both 'teams' collapse into their respective beds.
With granny and grandpa, the rules, without getting granny and grandpa in trouble, can be bent a tad. Grandparents too have these neat tricks that actually take off ice cream from carseats. A spill really ain't a big deal. This is Act 4 in life, why get all hot and bothered by that?
Pictures. Holy crap, pictures. Well, ya gotta take a lotta pictures 'cause they grow up too gosh awful soon, and so in a year or so you can look back and say "awwwww... I remember you when you were that age."
I won't keep you and I'll get off here, but basically, what I think I am trying to say is, it's been a long time since a grandparent has been able to 'act like a child.' What, maybe 11 or 12 Presidents ago? Ever since Color TV happened? So....... OF COURSE grandparents are giddy as heck to get to be kids again. Event planner. Snot wiper offer. Bandaids in the billfold, purse. Quarters for games. Gas to go wherever, price be damned. Even 'almost running' when ya didn't think that was even possible.
Kids wanna be kids. Homework, boo hiss. Clean the room, be for real. Turn the TV down. Stop being mean to your baby sister. Let go of her ear please. GRANDMA (AND GRANDPA) ARE HERE! YIPPPPPPEEEEEEEEEEE! Anywhere, anything, whenever, wherever we want!
Kids will be kids. Say and do the darndest things. No matter if they're even too young to walk down the stairs, or too old to run up 'em. We go from SCHOOL (being a kid) to Parenting to FINALLY, back to being able to be a kid again. Act 1 and Act 4. The bomb.
"Oh it's ok honey. That chocolate shake will wash out, mommy and daddy are real good with laundry. And I think daddy can use ice and scissors to get that dab of bubble gum outta your hair, you prolly won't even be able to tell."
WE'RE HOME! SEEYA NEXT WEEKEND!
"You're dead if you aim only for kids... Adults are only kids grown up anyway." Walt Disney
So... a few hot baths... several days of naps, good long naps... making sure to take the SMTWTF pills.. perhaps some Bengay.... ibuprofen... kiddo wipes to get the chocolate shake off the carseat.. coupled with 5 or so days of school..........
And we'll do it all over again next week, the Good Lord willin'.......
By Henry Gibson......... Forward by the Grandma Moses and Grandpa Walton
Love, Victurd
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