The events described in this blog were experienced, relived, and written about with a great deal of hand flapping and use of the phrase OOOOOOMMMMMGGGGG.
Please consider this your fair warning that should you continue reading this entry, you, too, may start hand flapping and saying OOOOOOMMMMMMGGGGGG.
Still reading?
Are you sure?
Cause here we go. Seriously, turn away.
OK.
Conor walked in on Dave and me.
(((Hand flapping)))
NO, we didn't have the door locked but in our defense it was only 10:00 at night and everyone had theoretically been asleep for a while.
(((Hand flapping)))
So, do you remember that episode of Modern Family when something similar happened? Do you remember the debate between Claire and Phil about whether they should talk about it or just ignore it? Well, I'd suggest that is based on real life.
Pretty soon after our initial PARENTING FAIL, I checked on Conor to make sure he was not actively gouging his eyes out. He was ok and not obviously traumatized, so we went to bed.
I had a restless night of nightmares in which I'm pretty sure I flapped my hands. Yes, I know it's not completely unusual for something like that to happen in other families. But NO ONE recounts their own personal episode to their friends as young adults in college without some horror and psychic wounds.
So the next day, I had to work and Dave stayed home with the kids. (Have I shared how the twins are out of daycare this summer and we are cobbling together nannies and camps to make it until our new daycare opens? No? Well, let that be one excuse for why I haven't posted this summer)
So when I got home, I asked Dave if he had talked to Conor. "NO!" he replied, his Midwestern preference for denying any issues showing through. (Maybe it's a dude thing--or just my dude's thing--instead of the Midwest, but I'm going to attribute it to an entire regional culture and annoy everyone else instead)
So, I waited until Dave took the twins up to bed and Conor and I were watching some movie on Family TV. For some reason, that feels more wholesome, whereas not much of this story does.
"So, Conor, how are you doing? Are you ok?"
"Yeah."
"Last night, I was really embarrassed. That was awkward!"
"Yeah!"
"Are you ok? Do you want to talk about it?"
Pause.
"Are you going to have more babies?"
(((HAND FLAPPING. Although I am proud that he knows where babies come from. Nonetheless, HAND FLAPPING!!!)))
"No. It's just that Mommies and Daddies do that sometimes."
"Ugh! I'm not ever going to do that!"
"Oh, you will Conor, when you get older."
"Are you going to do that again tonight?"
(((HAND FLAPPING!)))
"No. But next time, we're going to shut the door and lock it. We forgot to do that. And it was embarrassing. We're going to lock the door next time."
"Yeah, good."
(((Slight hand fluttering)))
"Ok, honey."
And then we watched the rest of the Family movie and snuggled because (I think) he was reassured we were not complete freaks and I was reassured he wasn't going to be irretrievably scarred by the whole event.
So there. Now you, too, have events, images, and conversations seared into your own brains. I know we didn't HAVE to talk about it afterwards, but I think we should have, pretty much exactly as we did.
Still. LOCK YOUR DOORS, PEOPLE! That is the lesson we should all take away here. Prevention is the best cure!!
6 comments:
Yeah, we should shut and lock our door but we don't and one day I'll have a blog post that is just as horrifying because I never learn.
So glad to hear we're not the only ones!!!
I wouldn't have said a word. Rock on Dave
Yikes!!! I can't believe he knows how babies are made. I wan't to know more about THAT!!! My son doesn't have a clue about that stuff. And I'm in no hurry to say so.
Awesome. I don't have this issue (I just let the cat watch) but I LOVE his questions about it.
My children have been known to claim that they were scarred-for-life by just watching us chastely kiss. I walked in on my own parents once, and I think I survived it. None of us brought it up and I largely forgot about it pretty quickly. I frankly think that this is only a big deal if someone (kid or parent) makes it such, though it is good sitcom material. You sound like you handled it with a lot of natural wisdom.
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