My nine year old daughter loves to send and receive e-mail. It doesn’t even matter if that e-mail comes from someone in her own household. Someone who, instead of typing a few paragraphs, could say the same thing from across the room. I envision her as a teenager, sending text messages to friends seated right next to her.

For the fun of it, she sent my five year old son a message last night, and knowing she would be happy to get a reply, I got on the computer to help him.

I told my son, “We’re going to send your sister an e-mail.”

As he climbed up on a stool I asked, “What do you want it to say?”

And, there should be no doubt that he is his father’s son, because he replied, “Tell her to get a job.”

Though, I don’t think she would earn much of a paycheck, because I can’t even get her to pick up her socks.

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One of my sisters had the family over for Easter dinner yesterday. Two more of my sisters came in town for the get-together.

I only get to see them once or twice a year, so I brought plenty of toys for my five year old son to play with. I wanted him to stay busy so I would have a chance to visit. But, I made the mistake of thinking my nine year old daughter could keep herself entertained.

Shortly after dinner, she told me she was bored. So, I was relieved when my nephew asked her if she wanted to go to the basement to play Guitar Hero.

Of course, I was quickly interrupted when she wanted me to come watch her. She used the technique of half begging, half guilt-trip. “Please Mom? Please come watch me. Just one song.”

Then I started begging and said, “I really just want to visit with my sisters.”

“Please Mom!”

I caved. “Okay. One song.”

My only request was that she make it quick.

But, that request was swiftly denied when I asked her, “What song are you going to play?”

And she replied, “I think it’s called Free Bird.”

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The other day, I was booking flights on-line when I looked at my five year old son and said, “Pretty soon, you’ll be going on your first ride in an airplane!”

When I got off the computer, I picked up my boy and asked, “Aren’t you SO excited?”

He smiled and exclaimed, “Yes!”

Then he paused and asked, “What am I so excited about?”

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Often, after fighting the kids to take a bath, put on their pajamas, brush their teeth, say their prayers and finally get in bed, I will come downstairs and plop onto the couch exhausted. I inevitably will declare something along the lines of, “I don’t know if I have enough patience for this motherhood stuff”.

Never mind that I’ve been at bat in the game of parenthood for over nine years. Never mind that I’ve uttered a sentence like that hundreds (if not thousands) of times. I always wake up the next day…or if I’m lucky, at 3:00 AM by a kid who needs to vomit…and do it all over again.

My son has a preschool project due tomorrow. He, along with my help, was to collect information about his favorite zoo animal. Tomorrow he will share his folder full of animal facts with his class. He chose a giraffe.

Being the good mother that I am, I first felt it necessary to teach him the art of procrastination, which would be why we didn’t start his project until tonight. Some kids may have gone to the library, but we went to Google.

First we printed a picture. Then we researched where giraffes live, what they eat, how tall they grow, even the color of their tongue. We also created a visual aid. Then we went over, and over, and over the things he was going to say to the class. (Note to self: Don’t procrastinate anything involving public speaking with your speech delayed kid.)

When we were finished, I put the folder away with a relieved sigh, and said, “There! Now you’re ready to share all those facts about your favorite animal, the giraffe.”

And after the 30 minute evening battle, as I tucked him into bed, my boy looked up at me and said, “Mom. My favorite animal is an elephant.”

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