Therapy Session

They're mind blowing little geniuses.  They're little Picassos that color on your walls.  They're interrogators for my scattered brain.  Kids are a little bit of everything rolled up in pint size clothes, untied shoes and most of the time covered in dirt.  (Usually happiest this last way)  Stress Inducers and Stress Relievers.  They can make you feel like you've butchered your marbles and are in need of an immediate psych evaluation.  Then, completely do a 360 and help you reach that place of Zen.  Spurred by an old episode of Everybody Loves Raymond ( I love this show) when the family ended up in therapy,  I came up with this.   

1.  They often make me want to sit down and talk about it.  (the good, the bad and the ugly)

2.  They ask me questions I don't know the answers to or not quite understand. ( Why aren't dinosaurs in the Bible? AND Ma, where is that thing that makes the yellow thing turn?)

3.  They tend to make me face my fears.  (Ma, there's a spider by the door!)

4.  They provide some form of relief, usually comical. ( This doesn't look like invisible tape.  I can still see it)

5.  They usually make me evaluate every decision I've ever made.  (a toddler with a sucker, Chuck-E-Cheese and a play dough)

6.  When we part, I'm usually thinking about our time together.  ( I wonder what those little monkeys are doing.)

7.  They have made me skilled at the art of practicing anger management.  (  Just breathe and count to 10)

8. They often cause me to improve and evaluate my communication skills ( When I count to 3, those books better be off that floor.  OR  Don't want to clean up.  I'll just set this bag of toys in a trash bag by the door.  That should get the message across.)

9.  They encourage me to set new goals, some unattainable.  (  I will make those 2 dozen cupcakes for the bake sale, show up exactly on time and look completely fabulous.)

10.  They often strengthen my relationships with God. ( Lord, have mercy,  I know children are a blessing but please give me the strength to get through this day.)

Touching the Afro

Well, I've finally resurfaced.  My back has been a mess to deal with and then my husband came home with a toothache yesterday.  He couldn't find an emergency dentist on the road and had to suffer.  We were both quite a pitiful pair!  But through it all, I managed to laugh.  You have to sometimes... to keep from crying. 

But AJ was the source of my laughter yesterday and I couldn't stop.  I hope this doesn't offend anyone. 

As you've read before, AJ has been growing his hair out.  He wants to look like the karate kid.   He recently had his hair braided but now he is wearing his hair in a little afro.  Well, yesterday when I picked him up from karate class, he had this perplexed look on his face.  Before I could ask him what was wrong, he told me.  "Mama,  why does everyone want to touch my hair?"

I burst out laughing because I knew where it was going.  His karate class and just about the whole building is predominately white.  There are about 5 total black families in the whole school that I've seen. I said,. "I bet it's the white people isn't it?"  He was like YYYYEEEAAAHHH!

 HAHA!

I couldn't stop laughing.  He said they just keep wanting to touch it and feel it and they just stare at, especially when I combed it out one time.  This reminded me of Cate.  When Cate is wearing afro puffs, I have seen one pat her on the head like a dog to feel her hair.

I told him that they were just curious and probably not used to seeing black hair like that, especially in its natural state.  He said, "Oh."  I could see his mind working and then he said, "Why don't we go around touching their hair?"  I'm still laughing.

I said maybe we just don't care to.  We're used to it. Even though, we are all pretty much obsessed with hair, one way or the other.  Just ask before you touch.