“Out of the Mouths of Babes” or “Making Lemons Into Lemonade”

It was a particularly glorious Indian summer morning in 1983. Breakfast had been made, eaten and dishes done. Beds were made and towels hung up. The laundry was done, and everyone was dressed for the day.

For the kids, it was another day to play. For me, it was one of the two days a week that I got to go into the office for four hours or so and be with adults. Lipstick on, and briefcase waiting by the front door, I patiently awaited the arrival of Mary, the latest in a long line of child care professionals who were qualified (and brave) enough to care for children whose ages at the time were 6, 4, 2 and 1. It was challenging to be a working mother of four small children. It was even more of a challenge to be at the mercy of childcare providers in order to BE that working mother!

Instead of the much anticipated doorbell, the Princess wall phone rang. It was Mary. Car trouble. Blah, blah, blah. What was car trouble compared to my inability to have a few hours of sanity for the day, I mean, go to work and participate meaningfully in very important corporate matters?

I got off the phone practically in tears to find my 4 year old daughter, Adrienne, sitting at the kitchen table behind me. Adrienne had a concerned look on her face and asked me why I was so upset. I explained that Mary wasn’t coming to baby sit and I couldn’t go to work. She wondered what was wrong with that and I tried to put it in terms that she would understand, after all, she was only 4 years old.

I said, “Well, Adrienne, it would be like if we’d planned to go to the beach. What if we’d packed the car with lunch and toys and beach towels, and everyone was in their swimsuits and buckled up in the car, and when I went to start it, it wouldn’t start and we couldn’t go to the beach after all.”

After thinking about it for a few seconds, Adrienne said, “Well, Mommy, I think we’d just get out the blue pool from the side yard and fill it up with water and have a picnic on the driveway.” And at that moment, I realized that my four year old daughter was teaching ME to make the best of the ‘stuff’ Life deals us!