No Foolin'

 Being a teacher on holidays is a LOT of fun.  I love the excitement they feel and how things that seem small to me can bring such joy to children.  One celebration however, that I am always THRILLED to miss is April Fool’s Day.  I mean, I hate to be a “fun sucker” but there are only so many times I can handle being told my slip-on shoes are untied, there is a spider in my hair, or that something is on my shirt.  Every time I look ahead to the calendar and see the first of April falling on a weekend or Spring Break (like this year) I let out a little sigh of relief.  I promise I really do have a sense of humor and enjoy a good joke as much as anyone.  I think the reality is- the humor in our life is funnier to me than anything I could make up.

This guy's sound effects on life are funnier than anything we could make up!

 

On St. Patrick’s Day, (a) had a desperate, I mean tearfully desperate, need to dress like a leprechaun.  (b) thinks stealing your food is the funniest joke on the planet.  The sound effects (b) uses to live out his day to day activities keep us in stitches and his desire to be the funniest guy in the room is quite evident- even at less than 2 years old.  (a) isn’t always trying to be funny, but usually manages to pull it off anyway through his bold, often grown-up, announcements and plans (or by suggesting his mother might be as old as John the Baptist’s mom for having a baby at the “old” age of 37).  Sometimes I even have to try not to laugh at their tears, such as the ones we had this morning when we wouldn’t allow (b) to carry around a BBQ sauce packet as a prized possession.  There’s no foolin’, the laughter in our house is the purely natural, unplanned kind. 

 

I’m also not foolin’ when I say parenting has been the hardest, most beautiful adventure I have ever been on.  In one day’s time, I can experience the entire range of emotions from excitement, to frustration, exhaustion, exhilaration, pride, defeat, embarrassment, and humor.  Most days I marvel at how quickly they are growing, how much they are learning, and how much joy they bring us.  Other days I want to hide and cry at how daunting the job is.  And I realize that while the stages change, those feelings as a parent will be with me until the day I meet my Maker.

 

There’s no foolin’ when I admit I often feel inadequate and unprepared to love and lead them in the ways we need to, and no foolin’ when I realize they are giving me “on the job” training day by day.  No, I don’t need any April Fool’s jokes to keep me on my toes or laughing… I’m a mom- I have some of both every day.  

 

“Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy.  Then it was said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.” Psalms 126:2