You can’t drop clues all over the place and not expect a thinking person to not pick up on them. Eee, gad. Now all three kids are mad at me for “ruining their Christmas present” but I plead no contest. They gave it away with these statements leading up to today:
- Mom, do I have any clean dress shirts?
- Does navy blue go with red and green?
- Are we doing anything on Saturday?
- Do you know what time Sears opens on Saturday?
- Can we borrow the car on Saturday morning?
- Do you put a down payment on photos right when you take them or do you pay when you get them?
- Do you miss not having the annual Christmas photos of us like we did when we were kids?
- Can you iron my shirt by this weekend?
- Various inaudible whispers and smirks at me when looking in their direction.
Come on! I am not brain dead. So as they are leaving they challenge me by saying, “I bet you don’t know what we’re up to.” I simply said, “I will treasure your Christmas photos this year. What a charming idea!”
Well, the air came out of that balloon with a big squeal. My husband was mad at me for popping their question. He said I should have pretended not to know and that I ruined their surprise. Probably right and I will try to learn. It’s never to late to take a hint.
Hubby says I need to be more mature. (He’s right but they were acting smug). I will ask Santa for some of that.
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“The rate at which a person can mature is directly proportional to the embarrassment he can tolerate.†~ Douglas Englebart
8 responses so far ↓
1 daddyfantastic » Get a Clue, Sherlock // Dec 1, 2007 at 11:38 am
[...] Check it out! While looking through the blogosphere we stumbled on an interesting post today.Here’s a quick excerptGet a Clue, Sherlock Posted by Mary on 01 Dec 2007 | Tagged as: Kids, Pet Peeves, Moms You can’t drop clues all over the place and not expect a thinking person to not pick up on them. Eee, gad. Now all three kids are mad at me for “ruining their Christmas present†but I plead no contest. They gave it away with these statements leading up to today: Mom, do I have any clean dress shirts? Does navy blue go with red and green? Are we doing anything on Saturday? Do you know what time Sears opens [...]
2 Karen Vogel // Dec 1, 2007 at 2:16 pm
Your husband’s right, but how can you resist showing them how smart you are after all these years of them acting as though you are the dumbest person on the planet? Assuming they act like most teenagers….
But that was a really sweet idea on their parts…
3 susiej // Dec 1, 2007 at 5:49 pm
Yes, you beat them at their own game. But they are sweet.
4 Renae // Dec 2, 2007 at 12:18 am
How funny. Next time they will learn to be more discreet! Don’t worry, they will laugh and tell this story for years to come!
I have a five year old who will tell everyone every present he knows they are getting. No secret is safe with him! So, we have to lie to him about what the present is. “Mommy, is that a shirt for Daddy in that box?” “No, honey, it is a book.” (Lies. Lies. I know I will pay for that someway, somehow.
Nice blog.
5 Rebecca // Dec 3, 2007 at 1:17 am
So I’m thinking they might have had a chance if they had called Sears and talked to your hubby instead – unless it was a ‘surprise’ for you both. My sister and I along with my little uncles surprised my grandma with a santa photo of the four of us last year. We didn’t get to color coordinate, it was enough getting our schedules to coordinate but she & the rest of the family appreciated it. We had talked about doing it for years ‘just like when we were kids’ and last year was the last that we’d all be in the same state. What a sweet idea & I’m sure the photos will look great!
6 Joe // Dec 3, 2007 at 1:46 am
LOL! They are so clever. How’d you ever guess?
7 Cindy // Dec 6, 2007 at 9:44 am
We mothers can never win.
What a sweet story. It sounds like you and your husband have raised great kids!
8 Keli // Dec 7, 2007 at 1:15 pm
I disagree with your hubby. Sometimes, it feels pretty darn good to one up your kids. That high lasts for quite awhile, and they do need reminders as to just how smart moms really are.