The Round and Furry Song

Despite the fact that Christmas was more than 6 weeks ago, my youngest son, Ryan still insists that I sing “Silent Night” to him every night at bedtime. I don’t mind. It is my favorite Christmas carol. So, each night after reading stories and bestowing a kiss goodnight, Ryan usually makes his request for “The Christmas Song,” his name for “Silent Night.”

So I was surprised last night when he said, “Mommy will you sing the "Round and Furry" song?”

I had NO idea what he was talking about.

“Sorry, sweetie, I don’t know that song,” I explain.

“Yes, you do. You always sing it,” he scolds.

What on earth is the "Round and Furry" song???? I quickly go through a mental list of all the children songs I know. My mind is blank!

At this point Ryan starts to get aggravated. Why on earth doesn’t his mommy know the "Round and Furry" song?

But, luckily, instead of crying, he decides to sing the "Round and Furry" song for me so that I will understand.

It goes something like this:

“Silent night. Holy night. All is calm. All is bright. Round and furry mother and child.”

OH MY GOD! 

He means “Silent Night.”

I have to hide my face in his pillow to stifle the laughs. But that doesn’t work. Soon tears of laughter are streaming down my face. My other boys and Jeff come running into Ryan’s room to see what is so funny.

Oblivious to the reason for my laughter, Ryan is quite proud of himself, for making mommy laugh and drawing the attention of the entire family – and best yet – delaying bedtime.

As I fill in the rest of the family on the reason for my laughter, Jeff wisely replies, “That’s one for the baby book.”

He’s right.

And as soon as the kids are laughed out and asleep, I pull out Ryan’s baby book, happy to be adding something to the most forgotten baby book in the house. (sorry kiddo, but by the time you arrived, the house was already in chaos).

As I rifle through the pages, I find other words Ryan has mistaken in the past.

My favorite is “Last-erday” Ryan’s word for yesterday and one that I now use because I just like it better.

And then there is Water Lemon for watermelon. I think I like that one better too.

I start to think that maybe from now on, I’m going to speak solely in Kids-Speak, because  aren’t we always being told that the key to remaining young is to continue being a kid at heart?

So tonight, just like lasterday, I am going to sing Ryan the “Round and Furry” song at bedtime.

I feel younger already!!

Manic Mondays

Mondays are tough. I knew that long before the Bangles belted out their Manic Monday woes. 

As a high schooler, Monday’s were met with a mad rush to pack my back pack before the bus rolled up outside my house. As a college student, Mondays meant enduring hours of lectures before unwinding at 10 cent Buffalo Wing night. And as a young adult, Monday morning was usually the time when I realized that by sleeping until 2:00 p.m. all weekend, I had forgotten to pick up my clothes at the dry cleaners, buy something to pack for lunch, and get change for the metro.

But as my alarm clock buzzed I was accountable only to myself. Whatever I had forgotten or neglected only impacted me, and what I had thought of at the time as my crazy life.

Now as a wife and mother, the game has changed.

I am personally responsible for getting an entire house full of people out the door with matching shoes, winter coats, water bottles, school snacks, weekend homework assignments, pressed shirts (you’re welcome honey), all with as little screaming, yelling, and fighting as possible.

Ok, truth be told. The only one really yelling is usually me.

But, hey, I am the one with all the responsibility.

And to make matters worse, not one member of my family, myself included, is a morning person.

And yes, I am the one responsible for hitting the snooze button not one, not two, but three times, before realizing that we are all going to be extremely late.

And so Monday morning begins.

“Wake up, honey,” I say shaking Jeff’s sleeve.

“Grunt, grunt, grunt,” I hear in reply.

I then run through the kitchen, start my coffee, and head to the kid’s rooms.

“Wake up sweetie. Mommy loves you. Time for school.”

Next room.

Repeat.

Next room

Repeat.

Apparently, my kids enjoy sleeping as much as I do. So the cycle begins again. This time with less pleasantries.

“Wake up. You are going to get a tardy.”

Repeat.

Repeat.

WAKE UP!!!!!

WAKE UP!!!!

WAKE UP!!!!

As the boy’s precious, but groggy faces finally make their way downstairs, we start playing a fun Monday morning game which I like to call: “What did you forget you had to do/make/buy/build/create for school this morning?”

This morning was no different.

We played, “I Can’t Find My School Planner That I Must Have At All Times That I Took Out of My Bag to Look Up What the Super Bowl Roman Numerals Really Meant” Game.

Fun?

Not really.

And let me just add, that being late, or even close to late – DRIVES ME NUTS.

I am the type of person who likes to be EARLY. I enjoy having a cushion of time to spare.

I am realizing that with children, this is hardly an option.

Luckily, everyone got to school on time, albeit by the skin of their teeth, well feed, properly dressed, but without the aforementioned school planner.

That, I did not find until noon when I located it stacked in between the cookie sheets.

I’m not going to ask…..

at least not until Tuesday.

Where did your little voice go?

Stuck at home this past week with sick kids, I decided to go through the many video computer files I have taken of the children since 2003. These are all small files that I would occasionally take with my camera, of simple, every day events – back in the days before I could do so on my phone!

It has been so much fun.  In fact, it has been addicting.

I absolutely love taking photographs and as a result I must have one billion pictures of the kids. I never want to miss a moment. But it occurred to me as I looked at these “lost video files” that there is nothing like a video to best capture a moment in time.

All of the sudden, while sitting at my computer, the kids were babies again. And there is nothing in the world like hearing their baby sounds fill the house. Where did those little voices go? The change was so gradual, I had forgotten.

Instantaneously I forget all about sleepless nights, endless diapers, and regular feedings. Instead, I just wanted to hold my children in my arms as babies again – if only for a moment.

Watching these videos also provided a week’s worth of family entertainment. The boys got the greatest kick out of seeing themselves and each other miniaturized.

“Look at your big, chubby cheeks,” Brendan said to Colin.

“Ha, ha. Look at your huge diaper,” retorted Colin with a laugh.

I was perhaps most struck by the way in which they loved and enjoyed each other right from the start.

The looks on their little faces as their baby brothers were placed into their chubby little toddler arms is absolutely magical. The videos capture the moments in which they became brothers – and what I hope are lifetime best friends.

I also found it amazing how young Jeff and I look in these early videos and how easily we got excited by the smallest things.

Over and over again we took videos of Brendan pointing to his belly on command, Colin making funny baby faces, and Ryan rolling over.

This week’s video exploration inspired me to continue taking videos not only of the big events, but the little, every day moments such as those captured in these small video files, because I truly believe they paint the truest and most beautiful look into our lives as a family.