We are very aware that our life is a little different from the “normal” family, and most times that suits us very well. Every now and then, I am reminded that our life is what our children perceive as normal, and I wonder, in the long run, if and how that will affect Hailey and Josh.
For example, the last time Josh and I stayed at a hotel, as we were crawling into bed, he says, “Mom, did you zip tie the door?” This is what we do when we stay in a hotel. Josh and Hailey walk in their sleep, and Ashley will just walk out of the room. Most hotel doors can be easily opened, and can’t be locked from the inside very effectively. Why is that??? So for our peace of mind, we put a zip tie on the door, thus nobody can leave without permission. We cut it off each time we leave the room. I understand that in case of fire, this is extremely dangerous; however, a fire is very rare, whereas our children walking out of the hotel room without our knowledge has happened – often. But Josh thinks that zip tying a door in a hotel is normal. I just have visions of an adult Josh getting married, going on his honeymoon, and completely freaking his bride out when he pulls out a zip tie.
Another example, the other day Hailey came to me, and said, “Mom, Ashley spilt the strawberry Nesquik all over the floor, but don’t worry I cleaned it up already.” I asked her what she did with it. And she said, “I picked it all up and put it back in the container, then I wrote on it saying – ‘Caution this has been on the floor’.” Now I know most of you are now disgusted, but let me tell you my first thought was – That’s my girl! Ashley spills A LOT of stuff; we live on a tight budget. I’m not throwing all that food away. If she spills something, and it can be salvaged, I pick it up and put it back in the container, and give a general warning to the rest of the family – eat this at your own risk! Often Jason will grab a bag of chips out of the pantry, I will say, “I wouldn’t eat that.” He just puts them back, and never even asks. To my readers, who are really horrified right now: I sweep and mop my floor almost daily (due to all the spills), nobody is forced to eat anything against their will, we warn guests, and my children put their mouths on EVERYTHING when they were little. Ashley still does put her mouth on everything.
Most days we are just trying to make it through the day, usually that means weird things are going to happen. I should probably make more of an effort to explain to my children, the times most people would find something odd. But at least nobody will ever accuse us of being a boring family. But just to make me feel better, please tell me the rest of you are doing odd things in your homes too.
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Originally posted January 2012
We are very aware that our life is a little different from the “normal” family, and most times that suits us very well. Every now and then, I am reminded that our life is what our children perceive as normal, and I wonder, in the long run, if and how that will affect Hailey and Josh.
For example, the last time Josh and I stayed at a hotel, as we were crawling into bed, he says, “Mom, did you zip tie the door?” This is what we do when we stay in a hotel. Josh and Hailey walk in their sleep, and Ashley will just walk out of the room. Most hotel doors can be easily opened, and can’t be locked from the inside very effectively. Why is that??? So for our peace of mind, we put a zip tie on the door, thus nobody can leave without permission. We cut it off each time we leave the room. I understand that in case of fire, this is extremely dangerous; however, a fire is very rare, whereas our children walking out of the hotel room without our knowledge has happened – often. But Josh thinks that zip tying a door in a hotel is normal. I just have visions of an adult Josh getting married, going on his honeymoon, and completely freaking his bride out when he pulls out a zip tie.
Another example, the other day Hailey came to me, and said, “Mom, Ashley spilt the strawberry Nesquik all over the floor, but don’t worry I cleaned it up already.” I asked her what she did with it. And she said, “I picked it all up and put it back in the container, then I wrote on it saying – ‘Caution this has been on the floor’.” Now I know most of you are now disgusted, but let me tell you my first thought was – That’s my girl! Ashley spills A LOT of stuff; we live on a tight budget. I’m not throwing all that food away. If she spills something, and it can be salvaged, I pick it up and put it back in the container, and give a general warning to the rest of the family – eat this at your own risk! Often Jason will grab a bag of chips out of the pantry, I will say, “I wouldn’t eat that.” He just puts them back, and never even asks. To my readers, who are really horrified right now: I sweep and mop my floor almost daily (due to all the spills), nobody is forced to eat anything against their will, we warn guests, and my children put their mouths on EVERYTHING when they were little. Ashley still does put her mouth on everything.
Most days we are just trying to make it through the day, usually that means weird things are going to happen. I should probably make more of an effort to explain to my children, the times most people would find something odd. But at least nobody will ever accuse us of being a boring family. But just to make me feel better, please tell me the rest of you are doing odd things in your homes too. Join us on facebook
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