In 2020, my spouse, our 1- and 3-year-old sons, and I left the California Bay Area and bought a 94-year-old Tudor (house) in New York. By 2021, COVID and the more intense renovations: lead pipes, window, and roof replacements were about finished, so we were very excited to move out of our relatives’ spare rooms to our new (very old) house.
And if your favorite conversations also consist of potty words, you too can appreciate why living in a “tooter” would be a dream come true!
The Demolition Brothers:
Our ever inquisitive, 8-year-old, is known as the How Come? Kid, while his endlessly curious and upbeat, 6-year-old brother, goes by Why? Guy. Together they fit multiple mishaps into very few hours.
The How Come? Kid disassembles anything he can get his hands on, but thankfully the Why? Guy revels in reassembly, so they are at least a complementary pair. At parties before the Why? Guy was born, I would look forward to crawling under a refreshment filled dining table on the brink of collapse to replace the hardware that, the How Come? Kid unscrewed and happily presented to me. Now, years later, if we attend a function and the How Come? Kid unnecessarily takes something apart, the Why? Guy is just about old enough to step in before complete disaster strikes (most of the time.)
Kid and Guy form a strong team able to battle any logical agenda or schedule that Mom, Dad, or the universe imposes. They are smart, super fast on foot, and never ever tire. The only time their incessant sound effects cease is when they are asleep. It is hard to stay one step ahead when it is impossible to guess what they will think up next.
Do your kids align forces against you, too? Do they refuse to go to bed, lock themselves in the neighbors house, cry because macaroni is delicious? Have a safety tip to share? Hit reply—I’d love to hear it.