Earning Their Keep

I like to be entertained. My kids know this. They like to make me laugh. Which of course is in their job description. There are certain stock answers to questions or statements in our house. For instance, if someone is upset and you say, "What's the matter?" It is always followed by "Mad hatter." Or when they are leaving in the morning (Jami, Kathy, Michele and Jen you will enjoy this) our standard line is, each and every morning, "Get your book bag, get your pledge class and get the hell outta my house." They like it. Chase especially likes it when he gets to say the last line. Or when they wake up or come home from school or really anywhere I ask, "Did you miss me?" They of course say, "Yes." (Whether they did or not.) Then that is always followed by, "Did you cry?" They say, "Kind of." Always, without fail. They know it amuses me. So anyway, back to music in the morning, which if you follow along, I have mentioned before is an integral part of our day. What I pick can make the morning completely turn around if someone has woken up on the wrong side of the bed. I like to start the day out good. I never want someone leaving irritable, I just don't think it makes for a nice start so I try to choose wisely. So there is one song I can always get Saige with, no matter what kind of mood she has woken up in or Chase has put her in. This song by A Tribe Called Quest called Can I kick it? Most of the song is the guy asking, "Can I kick it?" and then the other singers answer, "Yes you can." Well, if this song comes on as soon as we hear the music starts she perks up, she knows her part is coming. No matter where I am I have to get to her and ask her, "Saige, can I kick it?" What does she say? "Yes, you can." And it makes us laugh.