Plans Well Laid

I don't know if it's some kind of genetic coincidence (a double dose of their uncle Enoch?) or the proximity in which they sleep--in the same room, beds perpendicular to each other--but my boys have one thing very much in common.

They tirelessly wear you down with their requests. You finally give in. It's the only route to peace.

Every Christmas and birthday I know exactly what they want...in great detail. (I never know what Emma wants. Even when I ask her she sort of shrugs. She's undemanding that one.)

Braeden wants Wii games but more than that he wants a guitar. Well, he decided, get Wii games for "the kids" and then I can play with them too and then get me a guitar. That's my boy.

Mark wants Lego Star Wars sets. He pores over the Lego magazine and presents me with his desires. I respond that we'll have to see how much it costs. "We'll see" is the popular mother phrase that doesn't work with Mark. When it's his turn to get on the computer he logs onto the Lego website, or more recently, Amazon.com. He looks up Lego sets. There is a scatter of papers on the desk with neatly scrawled four digit Lego codes written in his hand. He tells me authoritatively which set costs $39.99 which one is only $19.99 and which one is $120. My head is swirling with trying to keep straight whether he's finally settled on a V wing or a V-19 or Jedi Starfighter...or a Y wing. It's dizzying (and will result in a visit to the Lego store with him shortly before his birthday so he can point to the one he wants and have it over with ...except it won't be the $120 set...I can promise you that).

Last night Braeden was at a mutual activity and Adam and Emma and Mark and I were eating dinner and talking about fantastic trips we would like to take. I was quizzing everyone: which continent would you most like to visit? least like to visit, which state? which land-locked state you've never been to already? (I've got to keep them on their toes.) Mark, his head still full of Lego intentions, changed the subject and told us of his idea of working with his dad someday at Amazon.com. He said that he'd work really hard and sell lots of Lego sets and then he'd ask his boss if he could please have one Lego set for free. Adam presented the idea that if he worked he could earn money and buy his own Lego set.

It was almost too much for Mark to comprehend.

We started talking about our children's futures. I promised Mark that if he lived close I would invite him over for dinner all the time (I believe in bribing my children not to move away when they grow up). Emma started talking about her future plans. She said she'd have four children and be a writer. I asked her if she thought she'd home school her children.

She looked at me, startled by the idea and said, "If I did that, when would I have time to write?"

I couldn't help it. I laughed out loud.

She said, "Well maybe I could still have time for it...maybe during silent reading time I could write..."

Mark said, "I know. You could have your children watch TV every half hour and then you could write then." (Why six year old boys wouldn't make good mothers.)





Or you could write a silly blog in bits and snatches between everything else.

It works for me.