A night with the boys...

Every so often Shannon likes to go out with one of her friends to do...whatever to moms do whenever they are away from their kids (which, if I am not mistaken, amounts to talking about the kids). When those times come, I tend to volunteer to watch the kids so that Shannon's friend does not have to pay for a baby sitter.

So, here I was the other night with four kids, three of them boys and then Alexa. Amy, Shannon's friend (well, she is mine, too) has twin boys. James and Patrick showed up and immediately James started gravitating toward Alexa. While she was eating, he was hugging her, trying to lift her out of her seat, feeding her...

"James, you and I need to have a talk," said Dad in a deep, rumbling voice as he cleaned and oiled his shotgun.

What was most disconcerting is that Alexa was not refusing his advances. But, it was truly funny to see Alexa playing this up for all it was worth. As the song goes, "And everywhere Alexa went, James was sure to follow." It was as if she knew he would do just about whatever she wanted him to.

Breathe Dad...just breathe.

Well, eventually the balance of testosterone in the room won out because after a while of James fawning all over Alexa, Timothy, the rowdiest of the group, got the guys to chase, jump, wrestle, climb, tackle, tumble, and rumble all over the house.

One would give chase and the others would run, then another would pursue, and this would end in a cataclysmic thunderous crashing of heads and elbows. So long as I laughed or said, "Jump up, you're OK!" they would be fine (I made sure they really were fine, of course). Had I given a gasp at any moment then all would be lost and the tears would start rolling.

I have noticed that boys tend to realize early on that crying takes away from their playtime, so they suck it up and go for broke. Yes, it is that "Y" chromosome that places such magnificent healing powers into the mind of the boy. And, yes, sometimes it is only in the mind of the boy that they are ok.

To be sure, I was careful not to make them think that they were ok when I could easily tell they were not. Sometimes I would have to call halftime and inspect the troops (he said as he mixed his metaphors).

Now, what was most fun about this is that "the boys" wanted to get rough and tumble with me, so one played football, another jumped and tackled me, and another played catch with a splash ball. Such times!

Poor Alexa by this point was moving here and there trying to avoid getting squished. I think she is learning that walking and running has its advantages (she can walk, she just hasn't really decided she wants to, yet.)

So, Daddy and Alexa would play in between rough-housing with the others.

Alexa has a completely different manner of dealing with trauma. See, with Timothy, a thermonuclear blast can be detonated an inch from his ears and he will look up as if to say, "Huh? You call me?" Any stern speaking to him requires a bit more "umph" than with Alexa. With Alexa, Shannon can say in a calm, but stern voice, and say something such as, "Alexa, don't drop your food on the floor" and within seconds the water works fall.

She seems to be very sensitive. Of course, Shannon's dad tells me that he never really had to discipline Shannon. He would look at her in a particular way and she would know she had done something wrong and sometimes even break out in tears.

Hmm...I am sure if our respective parents were to compare notes we would find a very lopsided, if not unanimous opinion as to whom which child takes after on the behavior front.

Well, back to the night in...

What really seemed to be the pinnacle of the evening was when Timothy, instinctively knowing what time it was, started shouting with typical Timmy Excitement (TR) "Read!" Yes, after Alexa (wiped out by this time) was put to bed, Tim knew it was time for Story Time with Dad.

I figured the Patrick and James, unaware of this tradition, would have kept right on playing, but they seemed especially infected by Timothy's enthusiasm (it really is contagious, even for Shannon and me).

So, all balls were dropped and the TV turned off (smooth except for a moment where Patrick tried to turn it back on). And, soon, all eyes were on the book Tim picked out, which was not the Chronicles of Narnia at first. It was a book Shannon had bought him for Christmas ($1.50--what a fabulous investment!). In a short time, I had all three kids roaring like lions, barking like dogs, quacking like ducks, and two of them telling me colors.

Suddenly, they wanted more books, so Patrick got one, James got one, Timothy got one...they could not get enough! Finally, I started to read The Chronicles of Narnia and they started to settle down and drift off.

Sometime late in the night, Shannon and Amy came home from doing...whatever.

Yeah, a night in with the boys (and girl) was quite an experience.

One note about Alexa:

She may have been outnumbered and dodging feet and limbs for her life, but she held her own. We had quite the fun time just looking at books and pictures for half the night while the other kids were playing. She is getting used to being the only girl in our circles.