Can We Talk 2

Children Visiting

         I had two children visit me this weekend. They are 6 months apart in age. One is as horrible as the other. It's always amazing when they can play together without fighting. Whoever gets in the chair first or has the toy first gets challenged by the other. Both scream bloody murder. The girl slams the door open in the boy's face on purpose; he cries. The boy snaps the girl pretty hard with his towel. (I don't get the new thing with the towel obsession.)

         Yet they came together when they were outside playing. One had a hand shovel and a pan we use to scoop water out of the rain barrel. The other one wanted it. So I got another pan with no handle and a second shovel, all on the deck. Happiness. They went down into the yard to dig up my dad's big pots with his elephant ears and into the garden which fortunately isn't planted yet. Their fathers didn't stop them. I tried to get them out of the second rain barrel and finally gave up.

         They came into the house with muddy feet and hands. I got one of them into the bathroom to scrub which was okay because he likes playing in water. His father came in and watched from the hallway, unknown to me. When we dried and looked up, he was grinning at me. He explained that he had a good time watching them make mud pies together.

         The secret is to keep them separated or engaged in something equally, especially if it's messy and you don't want them to do it.