Friday, April 25, 2008

The Battle of the Phone.

I have decided that babies must be born with some kind of sixth sense that tells them when their mom picks up the phone. My four sons, all of varying ages, seem to wait until they see me move towards the phone to ask me any random question that comes to their mind or to start crying, in a coordinated effort to keep me off the phone. Of course, there are times when I have to make a call and it cannot wait. I eventually get past all of their initial attempts to stop me and mistakenly believe that they have given up and will behave and play quietly while I am on the phone. But, that is just another trick they use and I fall for it every time.
I think that most moms have witnessed this phenomenon on many different occasions. Your kids can be playing outside, but the minute that you pick up the phone to make an important call, your kids suddenly appear in front of you. Of course, in a perfect world your kids would see that you are busy and realize that their sudden urge for a Popsicle (you can substitute band-aid, snack, drink, toy repair,or any other very important, need it right now, absolutely can't wait critcal item or question they might come up with) is not a national emergency that requires your immediate attention. But that is in a perfect world, in the real world they will talk to you progressively louder, cry-if they are young enough, or any other crazy and annoying tactic they can think to get you off the phone. Please note, that the more serious and important the phone call is, the more obnoxious and loud your children will be. Eventually you are forced to either put duct tape on your children's mouths or get off the phone. And since the duct tape would be just a little harsh-you hang up the phone and hope that the person you were talking to has kids too.