Sick kids.  Sometimes I don't know if I feel worse for the child or the parents.  Especially when they are contagious but not feeling particularly ill.  Being cooped up for almost two weeks isn't much fun for anyone.  Luckily(or not) I have some creative kids with some blossoming communication and decision making skills.

Kiersten came running up to me (not sick enough to be content with a couch, a blanket, and (the bane of my existance and the manna of her's) the pacifier) proclaiming

"Meagan and me want to walk away."

I just looked perplexed.  Huh.  "What?"

"We want to walk away to the park.  We won't touch anything."

Still perplexed "Walk away."

"It's like run away. Meg saided to me that if we runned away we would be like this,"  huffing and puffing and bent over at the waist miming exhaustion, "and then we wouldn't have much fun at the park."

I think I was still looking perplexed.  And I was at a loss for words.

"We can walk and walk and walk and walk and not get tired.  We are good walkers. So we want to walk away to the park.  But you have to come so the police* don't come get us."

Meagan shows up about now.  "We won't touch anything so our friends won't get sick."

"What will  you do if you can't touch anythings?"

She sits there and thinks, and thinks some more.  Then she gives a disgusted sigh and walks out.  "Kiersten I guess we can't walk away.  Let's color."

*Meagan has experience with the police.  On some Saturday mornings I go to distrubute food to those in need.  One particular week I took Richard with me and we left the kids home,  Sariah was babysitting and cuddling with Kiersten while Meg played in the back yard.  A neighbor saw her leave the back yard, not the first time**,  and called the police, they waited until they came to do anything.  The police knocked on the door.  When the MP's called me it was clear they were more annoyed with the neighbor than with us.  Me too.  Sariah was much more traumatized than Meg, and Meg now believes that I am telling the truth when my reason for not doing something is because the police might come.  

** She is an escape artist, and has been able to scale a fence like this for two years now.  Luckily she doesn't like to leave her sister, who has no desire to try and scale a fence, behind.  Last year I was doing laundry and the girls wanted to play in the backyard.  I thought it was a good idea and let them out, set and alarm for five minutes, opened the blinds and positioned myself so I could watch them.  They were having a grand time.  I sprinted hither and yon putting laundry away and checked on them when the alarm went off , reset it and repeated.   About the third time the alarm went off there were no kids in sight.  Aaagh.  I called for them.  No response.  The three 50 pound bags of sand we had blocking the gate so it couldn't be opened by a three year old had been moved.  I called for them again and then went and looked up and down the street in the directions we went to go to friends and the pool.  No little girls.  My heart was doing somersaults.   I grabbed my bike and started around the block, up and down the street, checking back at the house.  No girls anywhere.

Finally I hear a squeaky little voice.  "Wait for me Meg."  I run behind the house and see two little partners in crime walking up the sidewalk behind the house carrying frogs.

Resin yard frogs.  I would have preferred the live version.  They were stealing 'friends' from some unknown location.  "Where did you get those I asked," pointing to the resin frogs, one clutched in Kiersten's grubby little hands and two others tucked into Meg's arms like innocent newborn babies.

"Over there," she says using some form of toddler body language that completely mystified me.  "That is Kiersten's friend, ____, and these are my friends ___ & _____.  I need two cause I am biggerest."   I don't know if the names were so unremarkable as to be forgettable or if I subconsciously decided they were unimportant in the grand scheme of things and  relegated them to obscurity.  Either way they were named and I didn't care.

"Where did you get them from?"  She started walking to where she found these little 'friends''

"Why did you go this way?" I asked.

"Cause we never go this way so I didn't think you would ever look for us.  You would look there, and there but not here."  At least she is honest.

You would think that once I found my little girls the worst of this incident would be over.  But no.  We were walking directly over to the generals' homes.  My little girls (sweet and innocent were not adjectives I was using) had stolen frogs from the house directly accross the street from the generals.  No doubt they would have stolen directly from the general if he only had cutesy little creatures in his yard.  And the MP's were driving by.  As nonchalantly as possible I replaced the creatures, and herded my little creatures back home.   All the while Meg is talking.

"I like climbing fences.  I didn't plan to go over, but once I got to the top I just did.  Kiersten would be sad if I didn't help her.  It's not so fun to play alone.  The bags were heavy.  I couldn't lift them.." grunting and exertions noises, " so I had to do this."  She pantomimes bracing her legs  and pulling and then pushing with her whole body.  "It was hard work. I fell and fell and fell.  I needed lots of my muscles.  I was scared I might need more muscles like Chris or Trev.  That would make Kiersten sad.  Then I opened the gate and Kiersten wasn't sad.  I forgetted the rules till then and  I didn't want you to be mad and sad so went that way where you wouldn't look. And the police didn't see me so you won't get in trouble."

I was still at a loss for words.  And actions.  I don't quite remember what happened.  I don't think she has ever climbed the fence back into the yard.  That would be easier.  Somehow the grass is only greener on the outside.  By the way that is the only time she has left the backyard after promising not to.  Before or since.  Somehow her   The rules are just there to keep her safe and my fingers are crossed that they do.  I worry a bit though as her ability to find adventure is more creative than the rules that limit her. As long as there are safe  I don't mind my heart doing flip flops.  And they learned a little lesson on stealing, something I hadn't really covered in depth with my 2 &3 year olds up to this point.

I wrote this several weeks ago, but wanted to add pictures before I published it.   For now it will have to do as is.