The Katie Chronicles, Food Bus Edition

Parenthood is a mixed bag of highs and lows, of "You're my best friend, Mommy" sweetness and "crayons on the wall...AGAIN!" moments.  One of the lessons parenthood has taught me is to recognize the sweet and funny moments and really savor them, to use them as fuel for the times when I have to put myself in time out to keep from losing it. Sunday was one of those days that gave me a chance to savor. 

Katie and I went to Kroger to get groceries during a good but very busy weekend and I hadn't  had any time to really rest or gather myself for the week. It was 3 pm on Sunday and I had a list of things to do that would consume the rest of the day, so I was having one of those pouty moments when you think being a grown up is really overrated. As Katie and I were making our way through the aisles putting things in the basket, I noticed that Katie was talking to the food. For each item, she was saying, "Welcome to Katie's Food Bus. I think you'll like it here. Let's put you over here." When we stopped for me to look at something, she talked to the items still on the shelf. "This isn't the right food bus for you to get on, so you'll just have to stay here until it's your turn." This little bit of sweet silliness didn't take anything off my to-do list but it did make me smile. This one is definitely going in storage for later. 

The Katie Chronicles: Song Lessons Edition

 One of Katie's friends listens to a lot of country music and I've noticed one song in particular seems to have made an impression. Lately, I've been hearing her play "Before He Cheats" and singing along passionately. In case you're not familiar, it goes something like this:
"I dug my key into the side
Of his pretty little souped-up four-wheel drive
Carved my name into his leather seats
I took a Louisville slugger to both head lights
I slashed a hole in all four tires
Maybe next time he'll think before he cheats."

Another favorite pop song is called "No." It's about a young woman in a club and says:
"My name is no
My sign is no
My number is no
You need to let it go
You need to let it go"

After she hears the first one she says, "I think she's over-reacting a little bit," but future bad-boy boyfriends, you've been warned. Carrie Underwood and Meghan Trainor are teaching my girl how to respond to your game and your nonsense.

The Ethan Update: Official Teenager Edition

Ethan turned 13 in February and, despite all I have read about tweens and teens, I haven't noticed any changes, other than the need for daily application of deoderent, which began a couple of years ago.  Despite the delay, I think Ethan officially became a teenager this weekend.  By way of background, let me tell you that Ethan has always been an early riser, frequently getting up at about 5 or 5.30 am.  (Those toddler and pre-school years were bleary-eyed for Rome and me.  Caffeine, have I mentioned how much I love you?).  One time when he was about 5 or 6, he actually slept until 9 am and, in all seriousness, I went into his room about 7.30 and checked that he was still breathing.  Fast forward to this Saturday: Ethan was actually the last one up, rising about 8.30 am.  This is the equivalent of sleeping until noon in Ethanland. Then on Sunday he had to be asked to turn down his music while in his bedroom.  So, yep...here we are.  The teen years have arrived.  I will note that he complied immediately with the request to lower the volume and did it without attitude, so I think we're still in "Teen Years: The Prelude" mode.  Or maybe Ethan will only give us Teen Years Lite (tastes great, less door slamming).  #FingersCrossed

The Katie Chronicles, Me Time Edition

Ethan is 13 so when he is with us, we will occasionally leave him in charge of Katie as we go to the grocery store or run a similar errand. (Who knew child-free grocery shopping was such a wonderful experience?) Ethan is with his mom this weekend, but that didn't stop Katie from asking if we could leave her home alone while we ran to the store for something. I asked her why she wanted to be home alone and she said, "Mommy, I just need some Katie time. You and Daddy have your time at night after I go to bed and sometimes I just need some me time to be alone." I suspect "me time" means eating candy and/or Girl Scout cookies and watching shows we won't let her watch. But come to think of it, this is very close to what my own "me time" looks like.

The Katie Chronicles, Lifesavers, Er, Bedsavers Edition.

Parenthood is pretty amusing, if you pay attention to the things that come out of your mouth on a regular basis.  Earlier today, Katie was on all fours on our bed, repeatedly pushing down so hard on her hands that she was bouncing up and down. 

Jerome:  Katie, what are you doing?

Katie: Giving the bed CPR.

Jerome:  Please stop.  The bed doesn’t need CPR. 

Katie: OK.  I’ll give the pillow CPR. 

Jerome:  You’re doing it wrong.  Here, hold your hands like this.  If you hold your hands like that, you might break their ribs [the ribs of the pillow?].

So, if anyone’s heart stops in third grade at school this week or if any beds stop breathing, Katie’s on the case. 

The Katie Chronicles, CSI (Christmas Scene Investigation) Edition

A few years ago, we got Katie a play kitchen set for Christmas. We were in Florida for the holiday and it was too big to haul down there, so we had to stage a whole scene where it was set up in the house for Katie to find when she returned, with a note from Santa explaining why he couldn't bring it to Florida. Fast forward to a recent morning at the breakfast table.  We were talking about the elves and Santa's magical powers. Katie began talking about how Santa got her kitchen set down the chimney that one year and she remembered the note. She said, "Mommy, Santa is a miracle worker! I compared his handwriting to yours and Daddy's and it looks just like yours! He can imitate people's handwriting perfectly!" Her investigative skills are growing, apparently (darn you, Nancy Drew!). How long until she figures it all out? 

The Katie Chronicles, Julia Sugarbaker, Jr. Edition

We remodeled our house about four years ago and we did a good bit of research on the various updates beforehand. Even though we "cut the cord" last year, we have kept up an HGTV habit that formed during that reno year and we like to ooo and ahh (and eeww) over the various remodeling projects they feature. So Katie and I were watching House Hunters Renovation Collection and a couple asked their real estate agent to find them a house to buy that was even older than the 1970s-era house they had already toured. I talk to the TV as if the people can hear me so I said something to the effect of, "I'd think twice about wanting to go a lot older." Katie said, "Why, Mommy?" and I said, "Older homes have character but also lots of problems like wiring and plumbing that has to be replaced. It gets expensive to renovate at the level." Katie, right year old, my third grade child, said, "Yes, I agree. You want a place that looks older but is actually newer. It should just have that rustic *look*."