Ahhhhh Father's Day. Breakfast in bed...children lovingly filled with adoration for their wonderful dad, a beautiful day of pampering and affection for the "Man of the House."
I asked Adam what he wanted this year and his answer surprised me. "A day without screaming." "What?" "I just want one day without screaming. Our house is constantly full of wild screaming...Ethan screams at Preston over a toy, Preston screams at Lauren over a game, Lauren just screams for no reason and then Christian yells for all of them to be quiet so he can watch a tv show. It always ends up the same way...we start to scream to get them all to stop screaming. I just want one day with peace and quiet....no screaming."
It's true. The volume control in our house is off the charts. I once dreamed of having four beautifully behaved children that sat and played boardgames, while sharing a healthy snack. They would kindly take turns with one another and congratulate each other on a job well done. There would be hugs all around and then they would scamper off to do their homework. It was a good dream.
I decided to try my best this morning to give Adam his "Father's Day wish." The kids woke up early so I hurried downstairs to "shoosh" them and tell them to be as quiet as possible. "Daddy's sleeping and we want be QUIET okay?!" With heads nodded in agreement, the kids took turns helping to make pancakes and Father's Day cards. They did a surprisingly good job at keeping quiet and focused. They were excited to surprise Adam and knew that we had to work quickly before he woke up. As luck would have it, about the same time the last pancake was flipped, Adam instead surprised us by walking into the kitchen. I didn't know if the smile on his face was because he saw a kitchen full of busy fun with everyone working together, or because he actually got to sleep in a little due to the quiet house. Feeling happy that we gave him his one and only request, the kids turned to look up and saw him standing there. With excitement and shock they all screamed, "HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!!!" At least it was good while it lasted.
Happy Father's Day to all of you Wonderful Dads.
I asked Adam what he wanted this year and his answer surprised me. "A day without screaming." "What?" "I just want one day without screaming. Our house is constantly full of wild screaming...Ethan screams at Preston over a toy, Preston screams at Lauren over a game, Lauren just screams for no reason and then Christian yells for all of them to be quiet so he can watch a tv show. It always ends up the same way...we start to scream to get them all to stop screaming. I just want one day with peace and quiet....no screaming."
It's true. The volume control in our house is off the charts. I once dreamed of having four beautifully behaved children that sat and played boardgames, while sharing a healthy snack. They would kindly take turns with one another and congratulate each other on a job well done. There would be hugs all around and then they would scamper off to do their homework. It was a good dream.
I decided to try my best this morning to give Adam his "Father's Day wish." The kids woke up early so I hurried downstairs to "shoosh" them and tell them to be as quiet as possible. "Daddy's sleeping and we want be QUIET okay?!" With heads nodded in agreement, the kids took turns helping to make pancakes and Father's Day cards. They did a surprisingly good job at keeping quiet and focused. They were excited to surprise Adam and knew that we had to work quickly before he woke up. As luck would have it, about the same time the last pancake was flipped, Adam instead surprised us by walking into the kitchen. I didn't know if the smile on his face was because he saw a kitchen full of busy fun with everyone working together, or because he actually got to sleep in a little due to the quiet house. Feeling happy that we gave him his one and only request, the kids turned to look up and saw him standing there. With excitement and shock they all screamed, "HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!!!" At least it was good while it lasted.
Happy Father's Day to all of you Wonderful Dads.
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