Today we went to the movies. Last night I promised the girls if they
got along and didn't fight for the entire evening we could go today, and
indeed, they managed to be civil for three whole hours until bedtime,
so we observed Memorial Day by celebrating our freedom to pay exorbitant
prices for inferior popcorn. We were waffling between "Rio" and "Kung
Fu Panda 2" but then fortunately I got the word from some of my friends
who are also parents that KFP2 would
not be a good choice for Mimi right now.
(Side note: Dear Hollywood, could we effing PLEASE have a kid's movie
not rife with abandonment/adoptee issues on some level? PLEASE? Because
they turned up in Rio, too, although not as central, and really, I am
tired of my kids asking what happened to various characters' parents
every time we watch a movie.)
In the car on the way to the movie, I try to prepare the girls for
the fact that there might be some sad bits about the birds being away
from the home and family. This leads, as many topics do in our family,
to a discussion of adoption in general, and the now-standard reiteration
from Mimi that "I was adopted, but [Boo] wasn't." (She likes to make
sure no one forgets this.) And then Mimi says, "because she grew in your
stomach!" And I remind them that babies don't grow in stomachs, but in a
place called the uterus which is *just* for growing babies. Then Mimi
remembers that sometimes people have TWO babies at the same time, which
is called twins, and sometimes even three, and what's that called again?
Oh yeah, triplets.
And then the conversation goes to an interesting place, because Mimi
tells us "sometimes people have one baby, and sometimes they have two or
three. And sometimes they have to give one away because they are only
allowed to have one or maybe two. And that's not fair, because it's not
their fault! They can't control it if the uterus makes more than one
baby! They can't even help it!"
And I'm sad, but also impressed at her logic and how she's processed
that, and also kind of laughing (although not so as Mimi would notice
because can't have her think I'm laughing AT her) because the image of
an out-of-control uterus is fairly amusing. Mimi and Boo are having a
conversation now they have completely shut me out of, about how
sometimes people are poor or there are too many of them and they can't
take care of their babies, and they are sad and they miss the babies and
the babies are sad and miss the mommies and daddies, and I'm pleased
that there seems to be some non-traumatic understanding of the things
we've talked about. I love to listen to them explain things to each
other; it's the only way I'm ever really sure they actually listen to
me.
The conversation moves on to how some people don't ever have babies,
which is also great because I am totally indoctrinating them in how some
people choose to get married and have children, some people have
children and don't get married, some people don't have children, all
choices are valid, etc. etc. Which is something my kids have embraced
whole-heartedly, so if I do nothing else right as a parent at least they
will always know they can marry or not marry whoever the hell they
want, and have kids or not have kids.
Anyway. Mimi caps this just as we get to the movie theater by
declaring, "and Mom still has a uterus, but she's not using it anymore
because two kids is ENOUGH." Pause. "Right, Mom?"
Right. Definitely right, for us.
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