Good Medicine

As of today, my mom is 4 weeks post-op for back surgery and she's doing great!  Way to go, Nana!  Of course, she has experienced the expected and typical bumps and bruises in her road to recovery, but to quote the wise Bob Wiley, she's making lots of baby steps toward being pain-free.  And toward normalcy ... whatever that is.  It was a treat to be with my mom and sis this weekend and to see first-hand the great strides she is making ... even if she feels like she's shuffling along.

In light of her diminished pain, better sleep habits, returning appetite (we're still excited for when she can get thrilled about more than popcorn, creamed spinach and brown rice!) and returning sense of humor, we are looking forward to seeing her soon as a family.  The kids are especially anxious to see Nana ... here's to hoping we can all get together soon.

And if it's true that laughter is truly the best medicine, then we will have her ship-shape in no time!  Here's a little snapshot of the kids antics just yesterday morning ... oh, how I wish she'd been here!  It would have been even more fun to laugh with someone else.

We started off with Lydia lining up all five (five!) stuffed and robotic doggies on the desk in the girls room and "feeding" them.  Shoes.  Yes, the food of choice for our poochies is a buffet of flip-flops, tennis shoes and dress flats.  Yum!  Of course, Cousin Matthew would probably agree that flip-flops are a favorite of our four-legged friends ... first hand experience there, I believe. :)

This "meal" was quickly followed by all four kids sharing with me several interpretive dances set to Bobby McFerrin's album "Bang!Zoom" ... and their interpretations were ... interesting.  To say the very least.

Our musical geniuses re-titled the first song, "Cry Babies".  As you might have guessed, their movements resembled four little kids throwing tantrums on the floor.  In synch.  If they hadn't been giggling uproariously, I might have been annoyed.  As it was, their smiley, rhythmic fits of faux-frustration were actually quite entertaining.

The next song they chose was a ballad that featured Norah and Ashley and a dueling hula dance.  There was a bit of a tiff regarding which direction they were supposed to wiggle towards first.  The rest of the song involved them holding hands and swaying a lot with Aaron crawling around on his belly and weaving between their legs and under their "London Bridge is Falling Down" arms.  He also had to watch out for Lydia who was running back and forth between the hungry puppies and their endless supply of "fresh from the oven" foot-ware.  I think that there was one full-body collision, but they didn't miss a step in the music.

The kids entitled the grand finale, "HoboTown".  I don't know why.  According to Norah, she thought the song sounded a little bit like the music from the opening credits of the Cosby Show.  Again ... I'm completely lost on that title.  The Crosby Show is the least Hobo-ish thing I can think of!

As the music started, both the girls struck a pose.  And Aaron hid behind the clothes in the closet.  Ashley and Norah started dancing/marching/flailing/waltzing around the room (and around Lydia) for the first portion of the song.  Then suddenly Norah said, "Get ready Aaron ... here it comes!"  I perked up in my seat, ready for something new.  As the song transformed into a new melody, Aaron began peeking out of between the clothes - in rhythm with the music.  Norah then squealed, "It's the hobo peeking through the fence!"

What?!  I couldn't help but bust up.  Where do they get this stuff?!

Our crazy dancers antics went on like this for some time, finally crescendoing into a Hobo-parade in which the girls retrieved their suitcases and marched around the bedroom giggling.  Aaron, on the other hand, lost interest and flopped down on the nearest bed and re-enacted the most recent battle between Captain Rex and the Clone War troopers.  And Lydia fed the doggies their dessert course.

As you can see, there is no lack of inane silliness in our house.  The hilarity that ensues on a regular basis is always good for what ails you!

We can't wait to see you, Nana!   We've got some good medicine all bottled up for you!