In the past few days, Gordon and I have been treated to performances by our two charming, delightful and talented daughters. They are both quite fond of coming up with ideas, especially if one can outdo the other in originality and uniqueness, so it's not uncommon for us to be treated to the reading of stories written or explanations of masterpiece drawings.
I videotaped the first musical performance, but took no photos while on the second performance I took no video, but did snap the photo you see below during their encore. So cute that these girls color coordinated their outfits to the character they were in their acts. There were three acts with several songs per act.
Gordon and I were highly impressed and at one point I had to work hard not to snicker out loud because I got tickled as I watched them be so serious, but so cute, at the same time.
We were asked to come down to their craft | study | play room {aka Zach's former bedroom and until recently my office} and once we were outside the door, we saw Victoria sitting there, with her costume covered by her robe, as she greeted us and asked us for our tickets, which had been been provided to us earlier. They had been crafted so that there was a bit of a perforation for the stub to be removed. At that point, we could enter the theatre. All of this forethought and preparation, of course, made me smile.
Once we were seated in the correct seats, our tickets had seat numbers on them, we were greeted before the performance began. There had been a bit of rehearsal, so they were pretty well prepared but I sensed a bit of improvisation as well, which was just darling. I had been hearing the rehearsals all day from my Studio and as I walked by on my way to the laundry room, but this was Gordon's first run through. I glanced over at him every now and then because, knowing him as I so dearly do, I knew that he would be touched by their creativity and cuteness and how they worked so hard to do something that would could be proud of them for.
Not that Isabella and Victoria aren't creative and wacky most of the time anyway, but the reason behind these performances is partly due to the fact that I had recently taken away their privilege of watching television and using any type of electronics. As good as they are, and I know they are good girls, they have not been following the rules, paying attention or being respectful of cleaning up. It has been a nightly struggle as we do our bedtime routines for Gordon and I to find messes under beds, in closets, in their play room, in the bathroom which then delays bed time and causes me to lose my mind. Yes, I admit that I raise my voice and may have gotten hysterical a time or two. Or two thousand.
If Zach is reading this, he is probably shaking his head yes and thinking back to when I would stomp my foot on his bedroom floor so that he could hear me downstairs...his sign to come quick because Mommy was not pleased with the status of his room.
No electronics for the Wright Girls going on the 5th day now. Oh yes, they have asked when they will get their electronics privileges back and I remind them that they have to do their "jobs" and they will be rewarded. It's not that they get to watch a lot of TV anyway, but it was to the point that they woke up and wanted to play on their DS's right away rather than do something else. A happy Mommy that does not make.
The ironic thing is that in just five days, they have almost forgotten about TV and have been playing with Legos, Barbies, drawing, playing games, doing Mommy school without complaints and reading...all things they do anyway but now the sessions last longer and they are playing together and doing a much better job of working out their issues on their own without Mommy having to get involved.
They'll get their privileges back, I am sure, but if they don't mention it, I'm not going to rush it because I am enjoying seeing them use their hearts and minds to occupy themselves rather than letting TV and electronics keep their minds busy.
One never knows if what they are doing is right or wrong, makes a difference or not, has an impact on how their kids view life or warps them forever. But I try hard everyday to be a good Mom and hopefully one day when my kids are much, much older they'll think I was.