3 ring circus

it happens every evening.

i scramble to prepare a delicious meal for the fam (usually involving several options for the picky boys of mine), get it on the table, and bow our heads in thanks. and then, the table transforms to a big top circus. example:

in the center ring: the oldest. oh that maxer, love love love him. he, however, loves very few foods. we always insist that he try whatever brad and i are having, then feed him one of the comfort foods we know he will eat. like a hotdog. yum. at this particular meal, i had made some beautiful jello salad with cool whip on top. as maxer adores the cool whip portion, i served him up a lot of whip and a little salad. forced to try the orange jello, he brought it to his lips and instantly burst into fake tears/whines. "the jello just broke my heart" he cried. oh drama. mind you, he was gazing at his reflection in the slider door the entire time, which made the whole scene more comical. this fascination with his own reflection is something he inherited from me unfortunately, i had to change my spot at the table so i could hold actual conversations with brad instead of with myself.

allright, the sideshow: bear. the feistiest of meiste's, after bradley of course :) bear eats fast and furiously. sometimes before the prayer even gets said. then when we ask him to pray, he says, " i eating!" at the dinner i am describing, bear scarfed down his chicken and rice and proceeded to climb out of his highchair and leap to the ground. while brad and i gently asked him to thank us for preparing the meal and then ask for permission to be excused, bear repeatedly yelled "dont talk a me". imagine that little boy bod all angry and that face all scrunched with frustration. hilarious. and naughty.

the husband and i managed to consume our own meals in the midst of it all and were enjoying some conversation at the table until ayla began fussing. time to clear. the routine is that brad holds ayla while i clear. lucky baby girl gets serenaded by her dada while i take care of the table. these songs are not the normal nursery rhymes. no. they are original compositions by bradley. oh they are funny.

some of my faves:

the song in which brad describes to ayla why she is my favorite child (i really do not have a favorite, but he sings things to her just to get a rise out of me. and it works)

the song about stocks and investing. this one includes the chorus "buy on rumor, sell on news" i learned a thing or two during this song.

the frequent subject of ayla jo and her cute rolls of fat on her leggers and tum tum. presh.

so they are all basically inappropriate a little, but so funny as she cannot comprehend what daddy is saying, only that he is singing her praises. so so amusing.

thus concludes the entertainment at the table. already we are gearing up for tonights performance :)