Juel's Journal - Part 2

This Turtle Stool...

...caused a war over here yesterday. My goodness! I went with Mom and Lisa to the graveyard to decorate Dad's grave for Christmas. While we were gone, Nick stayed here with all the kids. Bon and Kelly were here with Joel, Sarah and Roy with the girls..Dips was roaming around here somewhere...

I really like this stool. I ordered it from a catalog, and when it came I just loved it, it's different, it's a turtle, but it's just a cute stool. When I got it, I showed it to the kids and told them they're not allowed to jump and play on it.. that it's not a toy, it's "Mammy's and off limits". I knew they would be apt to jump on it and break the legs. I caught them playing on it once or twice and made them sit down, sternly making sure they understood that they're not allowed to play on it. I thought they did understand, as it lasted a week without being damaged.

Yet.. when we got back from the cemetery yesterday evening... I walked through the den, (which looked like a hurricane had just demolished it) and there was my turtle stool, the legs loose and a button popped off. I guess maybe I was tired.. maybe a little embarrassed that Mom and Lisa came in and caught that den such a wreck, the kids were running in wild circles shrieking to the tops of their lungs, I just picked up my turtle stool, headed for my room crying like I was the child - snubbing.. I t.. t.. told them n.. n.. not to t..t..t...touch it! It's d..d...destroyed!

Mom slapped her leg, stomped her foot and pointed at the kids, told them to STOP that.. and they stopped to see what was up, and when they got quiet, Mom did some house cleaning in the way that only she can do. I don't know HOW on earth she manages it, but when she talks, like Myril Lynch, people listen.

She gave the kids 5 minutes to get the blankets and pillows up from the den, get the cookie bucket up, vacuum the crumbs up, get the tables cleaned back off, the toys up and boy did those kids scoot.

Then Mom went off on the grown ups for not policing their kids and the next thing I knew, Sarah was up and cleaning up her mess on the fly, I never saw her move so fast, and I have to say I never in my life saw her make her own bed before, but in 20 minutes she had that bed made and a mountain of her clothes picked up and put away... AND she cleared her breakfast mess (yes, it was still sitting there at dinner time.)

While all that cleaning was going on Lisa was busy repairing my turtle stool, and I sat there feeling sheepish for crying, but I really was loving how they were getting the house back to rights.

Mom sat at the table across from me and was explaining loudly that she was tired of my house being used as a 'flop house' and she wasn't gonna sit by and watch that anymore.. about that time she turned around to see Roy sitting on the couch with his feet up on it and I really do think that's when Mom popped a vessel.

She told him (in a voice that wasn't really hers anymore, I don't know where that one came from but it was truly terrifying) to get his feet off my couch, and then she told Joel get his off of it too.

Kelly and Bonnie had started to leave, but when Mom got onto Roy, Kelly said he just couldn't go, he had to see what was going to happen next so he went and found a chair in the den out of the way to watch. Bon too said she sat back down, transfixed and watched, and Roy just got up and left so fast he didn't even remember his cigarettes and lighter. They said he muttered something about not having to take that crap.

Anyway.. later, when it was over and everyone was gone, Bonnie called me. She said "Mom, I'm so sorry, we had that coming, we really did, I'm sorry." Then she said, "Granny scared me so bad, I came home and cleaned up my OWN house!

I lost it then. I laughed so hard I thought I was die! Only Bonnie!

Sarah didn't take responsibility for some of the mess though, she blamed everyone else.. Joel did it, the girls did it, etc.. But Mikyla looked her square in the eye and said "Nuh Mom, you're the one who brought those pillows and blankets in there and threw them down, and you're the one who got nail polish all over Mammy's tables, I told you Mammy was gonna kill us!"

What a time that was!

Anyway, your way works Mom.. they didn't tear it up today, I could actually walk through it and not trip on something! Wanna move in wif me?

*looks at you all hopeful-like*

Posted by juel at November 19, 2007 11:28 PM