Interrogations and Negotiations

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I'm pretty sure every mother loves it when people ask their children random questions. I know I can generally depend on my children to answer in unusual and usually unflattering ways. Recently my 5 year old was peppered with questions.

"So, what grade are you in?"

"I don't go to school."

"Oh", surprised look because my 5 year old is so tall he looks almost 7,"well then,do you like to play outside??"

"I like to just watch T.V. And play video games all day."

Perfect, an answer to make any parent proud. He doesn't GO to school because we home school... We don't even get television because we don't have cable. We also don't have any video game gizmos- no Wii, X-box, or whatever the latest video-flavor is current.

My son was answering not what he does but what he would do if the governing of the universe were in his control. Thank goodness it is not.

I was treated with a condemnatory look that made me want to giggle and add in a whiney voice that my son wears Velcro sneakers because tying shoes is just too hard and that he eats cheeseo's with Spam and Sprite for breakfast because he, "Just won't eat anything else".

If my mothering is going to be condemned because of my son's imagination, I might as well take a flight of fancy too. In for a penny in for a pound...

No t.v. But my kids do watch movies. I figure the negotiation skills my children are learning through the arduous process of choosing a movie that the majority can agree on is priceless.

Yesterday after 50 minutes of non-stop bargaining between the three youngest my 3 year old ran into the kitchen holding up a movie. "I agree, I agree, we can watch this movie now!"

As he was unaccompanied and I could still hear the sounds of shuffling in the movie cupboard from the next room I asked, "Who agrees with you on this movie?"

He looked at me as if it were obvious, which I guess it was, "I agree with me. Can you put it in for us now?"



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