While I was away…

Roger Leroy and Wizzy were at work and helping another family respectively when I called home to check on The Grunter and Scary Baby.

They are not a good combo alone together. Mostly because he is usually asleep when she is awake. I was worried when Scary Baby didn’t answer the house phone.

When he answered his cell phone using his barely-awake voice, I was concerned. I asked him to give his phone to Scary Baby so I could get the real scoop on who was doing what.

She has affectionately inherited his old moniker, “Officer Humphreys” as he could always be counted on to report any violations or crimes committed by his siblings. She has really stepped up and takes her job very seriously.

Side note: Some people call it tattling, we call it reporting and we always thank Officer Humphreys for the report.

The Grunter barely talked to me as he went downstairs with his phone, other than to ask me, “Where are the girls?” Not a good sign that he didn’t know they weren’t home but I was in Phoenix and did know.

The favorite line overheard by my friends on this magical call to my almost 19 year-old pumpkin grunter was when he uttered these words:

“There is a slight chance she may not be here.”

It was funny to everyone in the car except me. Three phone calls later, she was located…

…in our basement washing the dogs.

Which PhilBillPaul thought was a fine thing for her to be doing because he thought I said she was WATCHING the dogs.

I had to use the Hoosier Grandma pronunciation because he was in a noisy environment.

“I said she is WARSHING the dogs.”

Let’s not even discuss a 9 year-old giving two wild wiener dogs a bath without supervision.

Re-entry after being gone from home for two weeks can be rough.

While I was away, they were all very busy. They had a garage sale, two break-ups and very sadly, a teenager who just graduated from high school and worked with my older daughters, committed suicide.

To say that we had some catching up to do is an understatement.

This weekend was spent with PhilBillPaul and the kids. Family time and individual time.

Scary Baby got some uninterrupted “mom time” on Friday and Saturday with some hair braiding and a little back-to-school shopping to try to get her excited for 4th grade. She has said every day since I’ve been back,
“I want you to homeschool me this year.” No comment at this time.

I took the *big* girls to their first funeral on Saturday. Followed by lunch and some deep discussion on what to do if life ever gets so bad you don’t think you want to go on.

Sunday church with The Grunter and his girlfriend was a rare treat as he’s been going to her church for months.

A parenting challenge I believe we all struggle with (especially if you have more than one child) is spending time with them individually. Family time is obviously more efficient and I love efficiency.

But with our loud crowd of six, I treasure one-on-one time with my kids. I speak only for myself when I say this becomes even more important as they get older.

I could open a debate on quality vs. quantity time but I’d rather not. I’d rather just say that I think our family needs both and it is a constant struggle.

Today I’m golfing with the girls. Because I can.

Because making the time for these kids of mine who drive me crazy is more important than anything else on my “to do” list.

Life Lesson (LL): Quality time is my primary love language and this weekend I was reminded of that to my core.

Share a Life Lesson (SALL): How do you make time for your kids individually? Any special rituals or traditions you share are sure to help another mother!