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What I Did on Christmas Break
Libbie O’Connell/Outlook Columnist
elizabeth_oconnell@pipeline.owens.edu
It’s a good thing school has started back up. I knew the holiday
break would be a bit rough at home with four kids, but holy cow, I didn’t
think I’d be this glad to get back to classes. Of course I made
all sorts of plans for us to keep from boredom, but two and a half weeks
is a long time.
This was evident today, when the kids decided to take all of my dishtowels
out of the drawer and lay them out into a dance floor. My husband and
I shook our heads in doubt about how much we should have spent on toys
for Christmas. This thought probably should have come to mind earlier
in the day when they were chasing each other around with underwear on
their heads.
I also know let the kids watch a little too much television during the
break. I think was subjected to every episode of “Fairly Oddparents”
and “SpongeBob Squarepants” there ever was. Anyone who knows
me will tell you I don’t particularly like TV. I hardly like to
sit down unless I am reading a book or writing something. But in the interest
of spending time with my kids doing what they wanted to do, I sat with
them in the big armchair and let my brain get sucked into Cartoon Network
and Nickelodeon. It amazes me just what kind of useless junk is on TV
for kids to watch. What’s embarrassing is I found myself following
the plot and even laughing at them. One particular episode shows the little
kid sticking his tongue to a frozen fishbowl and hurling it through a
hole in the ice, which stretches his tongue out like a frog and slingshots
him out. After I finished laughing I startled into reality and decided
I should be useful and make dinner. Mental note: don’t look at the
TV when cartoons are on.
Aside from watching television, they had the days when they bundled up
and bound outside to play in the snow. For five minutes. Then they return
inside, demanding hot chocolate. I tell them they need to stay outside
for longer than that to get hot chocolate. They charge back outside. Besides,
I need time to relax in silence on the couch while pretending to read
a magazine. I turn a deaf ear to the door opening and closing each time
they come in to change wet socks and gloves. I pretend not to hear when
someone who does not want to take their boots off shouts from the door,
“MAAAAAHHHM! They’re eating icicles that have BIRD POOP in
them!” “She put snow down my shirt!”, “ITS SO
GROSS they’re touching YELLOW SNOW!” or “My boot went
over the neighbor’s fence!”. They finally come in, leaving
a trail of snow pants, hats, gloves and socks all over the back porch.
I have hot chocolate ready, but they are more interested in tearing all
their clothes off and getting into the bathtub to get warm, after which
they each use a towel and put on new clothes. I have come to the conclusion
that in order to get those few moments alone it is inevitable I will have
to face a pile of laundry.
Another fun activity, which did not involve any Christmas toys, was jumping
on the couch. Which, by the way, is not allowed at my house. I have no
idea what possessed them to throw all the cushions to the floor and commence
to ruin the couch springs. So I chase them all out of the living room
to their rooms, where I assume they will be playing with toys. Until I
realize it is too quiet, because they have shut the door so they can jump
on the bed.
I hope they will remember Christmas break as a fun time. We had sleepovers
and parties, saw the Lights Before Christmas and Children’s Wonderland,
went sledding, opened lots of presents, baked cookies and saw Santa four
times. I enjoyed Christmas morning the most, but I sure felt a sigh of
relief when the school bus came on Monday morning.