Today’s blog
Lynn Murphy Mark
Busy boys
Hello from New Jersey. Right now the house is quiet because I am the only human in here at the moment. Dad has rounded up two bundles of energy, managed to get some cereal in at least one of them, gotten coats on two little people, made sure their backpacks are ready to go, and run back in the house to get his own coat. It’s 26 degrees outside. Off the three of them go to their respective schools and plus one Trader Joe’s run.
Saturday, Jackie and I went to their new sparkling Shoprite grocery store with a list of essentials and some “birthday surprise” items. Jackie is an organized shopper, ticking items off the list as we cruised the aisles. At checkout she efficiently packs the Trader Joe’s bags (no plastic, please), and I remember that one of her first jobs was as a bagger/checker at Dierberg’s. She knows all the codes for fruits and vegetables. Packing grocery bags efficiently is a sign of good spatial abilities and she is very good at that.
Meanwhile, back at the house, intense work was being done by Cameron and Nana to assemble a jigsaw puzzle of a lion. The only edges are the actual outline of the lion – no straight edges to be found anywhere. And the lion is multicolored. Its pieces are small and their shapes are odd compared to a regular puzzle. But Cameron is determined to put all the colors together and make his lion, an animal he has always admired. I am amazed at how long he can stay focused on the task in front of him.
This weekend I have loved watching Mr. “I’m going to be five very soon”. The birthday boy knows that tomorrow is his big day and Xander is very excited at the prospect of turning a year older. He and Cameron are only 16 months apart – Irish Twins, almost. They play well together until they don’t. Xander usually defers to his barely older brother until he doesn’t. There is a lot of wrestling and ninja fighting going on – a trend that is likely to continue through their teenage years. I can’t imagine the noise level when the two of them are much bigger and stronger.
Jackie exhibits a level of patience that is commendable. She is managing to juggle the additional presence of three aging parents and two excitable little people. She accommodates any requests that the elders make of her. And this weekend she did it without Ibrahim’s help. He is at their lake lot, working on the A frame home they have been mostly building themselves for the last two years. These people are busy.
Each birthday, the boy gets to pick a theme. Xander started with the Hulk, and changed his mind mid-stream to an animated animal show called the Wild Kratts. Both boys are dedicated to learning about animals of the world, and this show teaches them many bits of zoological information that they cite with regularity. Back to the theme concept. So each birthday, a boy wakes up to the great reveal downstairs – a dining room decorated with items created and built by their talented mom. Jackie has manifested a mini expo of items that look just like they are from the requested theme set. Last year Cameron wanted his theme to be about “Forkie”, the woggle-eyed fork from Toy Story. He came down to an exact 4 foot replica of Forkie hanging on the wall. Xander’s last birthday featured a very large Iron Man mask on the wall. I personally think she should give up being an Assistant Principal and go work for Sesame Street.
Whenever I leave the New Jersey home of my beloved ones I am exhausted. Not because I’m doing that much, but because I absorb the energy in the house as though I’m running the marathon. Somehow that translates into me being tired. I have the utmost respect for Jackie and Ibrahim. And, I remember why one has children when one is young.