Owlhaven

Family Government

After picking up cereal off the floor for the 47 zillionth time, I decided that the presence of baby # 8 required something none of her predecessors had-- a baby latch on the cereal cupboard. While working away, trying to get a screw started in ridiculously hard oak of the cabinet door, I decided to take the door off and lay it on the floor to use my, um, physical mass to better advantage.

14 yo son walks in. ''Did you mean to do that?" (assuming I'd broken the door somehow.)

Already frustrated with the screw and now also with the chauvinistic slant of his question, I hissed, "Do I look like an idiot?" Then thinking better of giving a 14 yo such an opening, I added, "The only proper answer to that question is, 'no, mom!'"

"But usually you tell us to say, 'yes, mom'!" He laughed, then added, "I think the form of government in this house is a hypocracy!"

"No," I corrected him. "It's a monarchy-- rule by the king and queen."

The 11 year old pipes in, "No, actually it's a MOM-archy!"

posted by owlhaven @ 3:01 PM