Please Don't Take Me Seriously

     Want to know what one of the most wearying parts of my job is as a mother of six girls ages 2 to 15? All their questions! Yikes!  I actually try to give intelligent, thoughtful, educational, and appropriate answers to each one of them, mostly out of habit. Sometimes I find myself muttering, "I don't know....Huh? What was that you said?"       My youngest child says, "WHY?!" to everything.      "Julia, please come here for your bath."      "!Why?!"      "Because it's time for your bath. You need a bath tonight."      "!Why?!"      And then I have another daughter who notices EVERYTHING and feels the need to comment on my decisions in question form.      "I thought you said we would go to the mall today. Aren't we going like you said?" and      "So and So and So and So took the last of the M&M's and you t...

     I am really bad at goodbyes. I'd rather just not say goodbye and leave while the "leavers" don't notice. I don't mean to be rude, although this certainly can be viewed as quite rude. I just hate goodbyes. I'm still trying to figure out why. Last week presented an opportunity at getting better at goodbyes. My neighbors from across the street were relocating to their retirement home in Arizona after having sold their home.      Only a few short weeks ago (almost unbelievable in this real estate market - and yet, their home is fabulous and showed extremely well), I first noticed the "For Sale" sign appear in the front yard. Tim hadn't told me he had a conversation with Tom weeks prior in which Tom had mentioned that they were going to be selling their home.      I saw the sign. I started crying.      Needless to say, I chatted with them throughout...