When Mom's Away...

Two kids write a play!

A play?

Yes! A play!

Ben had two hours of karate training at the dojo tonight so we had a temporary role reversal at our house.  I sat at the dojo for two hours, with my attention alternating between the pages in my novel and the dojo floor where kicks, punches and grunts took center stage. Brian stayed home and cooked dinner. And not only was it edible, but it was quite delicious: Pan fried tilapia, brown rice, and steamed green beans.

While this reversal in the roles of the parents was taking place Gavin was given the task of keeping his sister occupied while Daddy's attention was on the cooking.

Sometimes when it's Gavin's job to occupy his sister he interprets that as meaning he should just do what HE wants and half heartedly include her even if she doesn't want to. Sometimes he takes it to mean he should sit her down somewhere, instruct her to "color this page" or some other menial task, and then go about his business, again, doing what HE wants. Occasionally though, his big brother instincts, his teaching tendency, and his creative side come out. That's what happened tonight.

When I came home this is what I found.

The puppet theater. The prince and princess puppets. Two stick-puppet frogs . And a play. A play dictated by Luci and written, in her words, by Gavin.

Luci's face lit up as she told me about her play and asked if she and Gavin could show me tomorrow. Absolutely princess! I'd love to see your play!

There are moments in parenthood that cause us to doubt ourselves. And there are moments in parenthood that remind us we are doing OK. Thankfully those good moments are enough to carry us through all the doubts and fears.