Having a Wet Day
For the last two weeks I have bragged on Jake, my eight year old son. He gave me a thoughtful gift for Christmas. He honored me by bringing me breakfast in bed. He is a great kid. My other kids are great, too. They are wondering why his name keeps coming up in my posts. For some reason they think that if I ever say something nice about one and don’t say anything about another, then I am insulting them. Whatever!
So for the sake of fairness, let me tell you about the day I had. It began like any other day, but dentist appointments were looming in the afternoon. Nothing major, just a 6 month check up for all five children. After our family had Bible time, I asked Jake to go jump in the shower while I read to my two oldest children.
During the reading, Isaac, who is three, interrupted me. “Mommy, there is water.”
“Water? Oh, honey, that is just the sound of water. Jake is taking a shower.”
He looked confused. “No, water.” Isaac pointed into the kitchen, which sits directly under the upstairs bathroom. Water was pouring out of the light fixture that is set into the kitchen ceiling. I immediately sent Clayton, my oldest, upstairs to tell Jake to turn off the water. Then I began mopping up the water that had splattered all over the kitchen floor.
Clayton reported that Jake was not even in the bathroom. Jake had turned on the water to warm up. He did not shut the shower curtain completely. In doing so, water had streamed out. It stood about 1/4 inch thick on the floor. The water soaked through the floor/ceiling and leaked out of the receded lighting fixture.
In short, I was mad. I instructed Jake to clean up the mess and mop up the water. When Jake was done, I told him to take a shower in my bathroom. It has walls. What harm can he do? Ha! Teach me for asking.
One of my small boys opened the bathroom door while Jake was showering. All I heard was one word, “Water!”
Jake somehow had the shower head pointing directly at the shower door. It was not shut all the way and the water was pouring out the door. It took me two towels and one hand towel to mop up all the water. I was at my wits end with Jake.
Then lucky me, it began to pour outside. It was like the skies opened up and let loose. Of course, I was trying to load everyone into the car to go to the dentist. Our appointments were at 12:30. I got to drive an hour in the rain to the office. Living far away from “civilization” is one of the pros and cons of homesteading.
Taking five children to the dentist’s office by one’s self is no easy task, especially for the ages of my children. This was Andrew’s first appointment. Isaac is now old enough to take x-rays and get his teeth cleaned. He did great. Kyla and Clayton are old pros at the dentist. Unfortunately, Jake has a extremely bad gag reflex.
He could not get x-rays done. When the dentist stuck the little mirror and pick in his mouth for his examination, Jake gagged and threw up on his shirt. After we got Jake cleaned up, the dental hygienist somehow managed to clean his teeth. Needless to say I was glad to be finally return home.
We all have good days. We all have bad days. We are not perfect children or parents. We don’t always have it together. This was not a day that I want to repeat. It was not a good day for me. It was not a good day for Jake. But, the good thing about this day is that it makes me appreciate the good times even more.
