take out menu wrapping...

It is the 19th snow day, I'm only mentioning it because it has to do with the story-and it is a rant free one. Staying snowed in, iced in and subzero temperatures in, I have learned a few things. Some have been inspiring, some have been insightful and some I will not be shamed for. In all honesty, we would have not survived the last abundant amount of days off without the Internet. There would have been some sort of Donner Party/Fortnite/Red Dead Redemption equivalent mass homicide if our venerated cyberspace connection dropped. While we have limits to gaming systems, if screen time means there is no "mean time" then I am game for anything. Not sorry.

I was at a dinner party with my husband a few weeks ago. I grateful to be out on a "date night," grateful to be wearing actual clothes and grateful to be having conversation with adults. We sat next to this lovely young couple, they were funny, engaging and they too were parents. As we sat getting to know each other, we discussed children and the perils of parenting. They said they both came from large families and really wanted to have a large one themselves. I immediately wondered, how large? Having been cooped up with four kids for an interminable amount of time, I reached for my glass of wine, took a sip and tried to disguise my look of horror. I thought to myself, these are intelligent, young, fresh-faced people, why the hell would you do that to yourself? Instead I muttered, "They are the gift that keeps on giving...,"and changed the subject.

A couple of days later, we dropped off Atticus to a friend's birthday party, with the soul intent to use that time to buy Attiucs' birthday presents. This kid is really difficult to shop for, as he is sort of in between being 7 and 27. I was racking my brain to remember some of the things he had commented on in the last few weeks, other than a mini-motor-cycle and a harmonica. Sometimes this act has been a little treacherous in past years, his siblings would expect me to buy gifts that really THEY wanted. Why would a 6 year old need a zippo lighter I ask you? This year was different, they were actually using THEIR money and seriously taking their time to find him the best gift. My husband even commented to me, "I've never seen them do that before, have you?" I was astonished. But, the pessimist in me still thought, where is the catch? 

So, this morning as I was giving the well known proclamation of a snow day, Nora greeted me at the top of the steps dressed and handing me a small, creatively wrapped present for her brother. Atticus was ecstatic there was no school, jumping around as if he had snuck a cup of my coffee. I figured the Talls would have stayed in bed, wanting to sleep off their puberty...but NO, they were up and downstairs almost as fast as Atticus. 

As Atticus has gotten older, his expressions are priceless. One thing he has mastered faster than any of his siblings is the shock and awe excitement of opening gifts. He shakes them, holds it to his head and guesses what is inside and is always appreciative. Nora's gift was first, Oscar commented about her creative wrapping (it was a take-out-menu and some black ribbon). Atticus' eyes widen and Nora grinned as she had given him her old harmonica. I'm not describing my mental expression, but I digress. With each gift opened, I could see a side of the other kids, that parents always hope to see before they die. It was excitement, fondness, love and appreciation for their sibling. It wasn't manufactured, it was genuine and heartfelt. 

It was not something I could take any credit for, it was the love of siblings that could only be cultivated by having a lot of them. It was something I seriously needed to see to believe, and I swear it was the best gift my kids could ever have given me. I thank God for my kids daily, but always figure one of them would screw each other over in the will. As long as there is a harmonica played at my funeral, I'm good.