Never Ever Dull
With every conversation, I always seem to end with "Never a dull moment"....our lives are rich, complex, and beautiful stories. Join me in laughing about everyday things and appreciating life-bumpy roads and all.
As my daughters approached the Dating Years, I realized I had to set high standards for those who would be allowed to date them. I don't have that "father figure" to stare down the boys as they come to our door. So I had to invent or create something that would measure if these potential guys were truly worthy of dating my sweet girls. I came up with the perfect test:
Prior to the actual date, all guys have to come have dinner with us. Sounds so simple, right?! Let me give you a snapshot of what that looks like. Upon entering our home, our furry giraffe (Banks the puppy) gallops over to the Potential Guy. As much as Banks wants to place his paws on the Potential Guy's shoulders and bathe him with licks, he maintains self-control, trembling all over with his "whacka whacka" tail. After being greeted by Banks, the Potential Guy tries to get through our house with the entire family pretty much velcroed to him. I have never understood it, but we travel like this everywhere in our home- like a big herd that's all stuck together. The Potential Guy settles on our one big L-shaped sectional and everyone surrounds him as we pepper him with questions. All seems good and normal and the Potential Guy relaxes some. Multiple conversations start happening, stories being shared, loads of laughter, lots of volume. We shove upholstered chairs from other rooms to give everyone a comfy seat. It appears to be pretty calm until one kid announces he's headed outside to play football...in the street (our yard slopes and has random holes so I encourage the "go-play-in-the-street-with-the-moving-cars"!). The others join in along with more kids from the neighborhood. When that gets boring or there's too much competitiveness, there's the -throw-the-tennis-balls-over-the house game that pretty much drives the puppy crazy as balls are flinging back and forth over the roof. Tennis balls are all over the place, making my lawn look like it has chicken pox. But that's not all. One kid realizes that Banks has discovered "items" in our laundry baskets and has decorated the back yard with his new found treasures while we weren't looking. Yes, indeed. (One day, Daughter #2 opened the door to find colorful socks, boxers, and undies scattered all over-ugh. This was just a few weeks ago when the trees were barren and neighbors could have such a lovely view!) Supper (I'm a southern girl) is ready and I call them in. The neighborhood kids join in too-they know the routine. We always eat buffet style and the Potential Guy finds his place in line. All of us pile into my 10 x 10 1960's kitchen. You would think some would wait in another room but remember we travel in herds. The Potential Guy quickly realizes that if he wants something more to drink to fetch it himself. It's a do-it-yourself family style. Chatting about all the stories behind the photos hanging in our dining room, questions about why Banks is gnawing on a water buffalo horn (long story!), adding Crazy Helium App to the phones and creating videos, pondering deep questions like what the stuffing is made out of in Oreo cookies...and then comes dessert. The blonde daughter loves to bake which is great. But she never reads the directions or measures....anything!!! Sometimes, the cookies are Martha Stewart perfection. Other times, she simply might forget an ingredient which leads to disaster (like her lemon tartlettes without the lemon!). We survive dessert. For our final round of entertainment, we turn to Banks and show off his marshmallow skills. We've trained him to catch marshmallows at an incredible speed. We toss him those white puffs of sugar at a machine-gun rate and marvel as he opens and snaps his mouth shut. What could be more exciting?! Of course, both boys attempt this and Banks tries to intercept his marshmallows. The Oldest slaps her hand to her forehead and admits: We are not normal. If Potential Guy can make it through the noise level of our family, hanging with the dozens of conversations happening at the precise same moment, and the zaniness of activity, he has my permission to date my daughter. See? A pretty simple test. Kind of like that Survivor show- if he leaves with a smile and is willing to come back, Potential Guy is a Survivor and can date my daughter.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorFun-loving mom to 4 kids and 1 big puppy. Fifth grade teacher of amazing little people who have never ending things to share with me. Love to discuss Jesus, diy projects, and life. Trying to keep it simple: Love Jesus, love people. Archives
December 2021
Categories |