Stories from the Stringam Family Ranches of Southern Alberta

From the 50s and 60s to today . . .



Monday, August 4, 2014

Toddler Timing

Me. And six of thirteen.
I know what I'm talking about . . .
For any of you who have children, are around children, or have heard of children, you know that their timing is the one thing about them that remains totally impeccable. Always.
Theirs is the voice you hear chanting, “I gotta go potty!” immediately after you’ve pulled onto the freeway.
The disembodied face that appears at your bedside just as you’ve dozed off.
The crash and the “Oh-oh. Mom!”, when you’ve got both hands kneading sticky bread.
When split-second timing is needed, the children in the immediate area are on it.
I have two examples:
My Eldest Son was sitting watching TV, his youngest daughter, aged nine months, perched on his lap. The two of them, with the rest of the family had been happily engrossed in ‘Arthur Christmas’. The credits were rolling and the sound of Justin Bieber singing a Christmas song filled the home. There was a pause in the music and Mr. Bieber could be heard, talking in the background. “It’s that time of year again! Time to let all of your problems go!”
At which point, said daughter, with accurate and impressive sound effect, let those pesky little problems go. Directly into her diaper.
Remember when I said, ‘engrossed’? I used that word deliberately.
My second example involves the same son, before he was married. Or a father.
But still involves children.
And timing . . .
Eldest Son was sitting in Sunday School class, discussing, with the other members of the group, the life of Paul. This man, an apostle of Jesus Christ, suffered many indignities and horrors to his person during his life. On occasion, he was dragged before local, and at times, high authorities.
At one point in his life, his captors hauled him up before King Agrippa.
The teacher introduced this significant ruler’s name in stentorian (real word!) tones.
His pronouncement was immediately followed by the loud scream of an infant seated with its parent in the back.
See? Timing.
The class broke up. Some 30 seconds later, order restored, the teacher grinned. “And that was Paul’s exact reaction!”
I don’t know how they do it.
The timing thing, I mean.
It’s a talent they are obviously born with.
Some of them maintain it throughout their lives . . .
No matter what time it’s set for, I always, always walk into my daughter’s room ten minutes before her alarm is due to go off.
And I know as soon as I sink into a steaming hot bath, or start doing something sticky in the kitchen, that my other daughter is going to telephone.
Timing. You know what I’m talking about . . .

18 comments:

  1. Gotta love those kids. Wonderful glimpse into your world. Nice to meet you.
    Suzanne
    chapter-two.net

    ReplyDelete
  2. I always thought of it as BAD timing...I guess it depends on how you look at it.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Little comedians, all of them. :-)

    Pearl

    ReplyDelete
  4. Ah yes, another of the joys of children (young or old). Love the picture of you with the grandkids.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Lana! I was babysitting. We do a lot of reading when Gramma is babysitting. She wears out too quickly at games . . .

      Delete
  5. The joys of childhood! You're going to need a much larger couch!

    ReplyDelete
  6. OMG! I can so relate to this one. Yes, timing is everything. I am finding this was true with children and now with grandchildren. I loved this one. Blessings for the smiles today~

    ReplyDelete
  7. Great post - and I LOVE the photo! The kids all look so focused on the story - you must read a story aloud as well as you tell one in print, Diane!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Heehee! Thank you, Susan! Yeah, Gramma pretty much acts out the stories . . . ;)

      Delete

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