And then I turned into my mom...

When my sister and I were kids, I remember spending hours upon hours down in the basement listening to our "Wham!" record, or even better, the "Annie" Soundtrack. We listened to it about as loud as it would go, and would just sing and sing. Every once in a while - out of no where, my mom would appear, not say a word, and walk up to the record player and turn it off. She would then just turn around and walk away. My sister and I always looked at each other like, "Geesh, what's HER problem?" Yesterday I found out.....

Christmas Day 2007. Connor let us sleep in until 7:15, since he was up so late on Christmas Eve. I still didn't sleep with the cold I have, but it was nice to be "allowed" to stay in bed. So - leap out of bed at 7:15, that means just about 2 hours to get myself ready, cook corn casserole, put presents in car, get kids ready, fed...typical drill. I decide along the way the scrap the corn casserole and just bring the ingredients to my mom's house and make it there. Somehow we make it into the car by about 9:15. A new record.

We stop at the gas station. 2 large coffees, 2 packages of Pop Tarts, water. Looks like we're cramming for finals. We get on the road and enjoy counting the number of cars still in the ditch from the storm the other day, and Connor amazingly falls asleep. Then Tyler starts...

Tyler: "Mommy...Mommy....Mommy..."

Me: "What Tyler?"

Tyler: "A Big John Deere!"

(30 seconds pass)

Tyler: "Mommy....Mommy....Mommy...."

Me: "Yes, Tyler"

Tyler: "I have an ooowwwwiiieeee!"

Me (taking of seatbelt and turning around): "Where?"

Tyler (showing me a fictitious owie on his finger): "Right Here."

Me: "I think you'll be okay." (Turn around, put seatbelt back on)

(30 seconds pass)

Tyler: "Mommy....Mommy..."

Me: "What?"

Tyler: "I need gum."

Me: "Tyler, I don't have any gum"

I won't bore you with the rest, but this went on for the remainder of the trip. At one point me taking off my seatbelt and turned around to put Tyler back in his seat with the seatbelt on correctly. He knows if he climbs out completely that the cops will take him to jail. (That actually works by the way!)

Oh, how could I forgot to mention Kyle's new stereo. He bought a new stereo for his truck and his brother helped him put it in the night before. WAY too much bass for me, and how could I also forget the CD with 200 songs on it that Kurtis burned. Not sure if I would call these songs, but if you remember "2 Live Crew" and "The Beastie Boys", they were among the compilation.

I'm sitting there listening to Tyler, Kyle listening to his music, the sun beating in my eyes, and then I remember Kyle looking at me like I had lobsters coming out of my ears. I must've looked like I was going to blow. I didn't turn the radio off, but almost ripped it out of his dash. I think Kyle got the hint, and turned the radio way down, and then luckily enough we hit the Mississippi river so Tyler was distracted and looked at that for a while. It was then that I remembered those moments when my mom would walk in and turn something off, and we looked at her like she had lobsters coming out of her ears as well.

It all turned out okay, we made it in one piece, no one cried, no one went stark-raving mad, and no one got yelled at. SUCCESS! And now that I look back at it, my mom didn't have any problem at all except she knew what she needed to do to retain any sanity she had left with my sister and I!