Presenting My Kids

Well its true that most 25 year old women do not have the responsibility of guiding three kids through life. In fact most 25 years old women in this day and age don't even have children. The ones that do have children, have children under the age of 6. So what makes me so darn special in that I have 3 kids to worry over, that would be that two of them are my step kids ages 10 and 12. They are will be known for all intensive purposes as The boy(10) and The girl(12), my son will be labeled as my son.
I have just spent the nearly three months staying at home every day with all three children. I'll be honest this was no cake walk and its far beyond easy. Yet I tried to make it work. I think they tried as well and the results were somewhat surprising. We started the summer as a mountain family. The boy and girl were afforded freedom with riding their bikes into the small quaint mountain town down down from our house. They completed the summer reading program at the local library in a matter of weeks instead of months. During this time in the mountains we went camping, hiking, bike riding, swimming, and they also went skating, the boy went to work one day with his dad, the girl spent much of her time on the Internet at night.
Then SMACK dab in the middle of the summer when the heat couldn't be any more unbearable, when things were just great enough to go off on a long summer vacation in the cool of the NC mountains we MOVED!!! I give my step kids a lot of credit they helped us move an entire house across the state. They helped me find boxes, pack boxes and most importantly pack the moving van. As if packing the house wasn't enough, less than 6 hours after finally loading the truck it was time to unpack it. It was a Huge undertaking for our family of 5. The boy and girl hadn't ever moved before. In the past they were with their mother when their father and I decided to move. Aside from us moving around their mother has always stayed put. I can understand their frustration and their desire to stop working. I was 11 when my mother moved us out our family's home. Yet I had the luxury of about 5 adults and teen age boys to do most of the moving. I was merely a side line cheerleader. My step kids on the other hand pulled as much as weight as we needed them too and the job was done in time for us to all collapse in our beds.
The next week was me unpacking as quickly as I could while the kids found all the best hiding places in the house. There's still one secret hiding place that my step son has yet to reveal. The next week was spent in agony as we waited for our Direct TV to be installed and if we were going to get a phone so we could get Internet. Did I mention our new home is so far out of the way that Embark doesn't offer Broad band. So after 5 years of sacrifice and hard work we are using dial up. Off my tangent and on to reality. So I tried to get the kids out side with little result, quiet frankly it was much to hot and humid outside. Then there was the day I got stung by a yellow jacket. Trust me no one wants that to happen. The good news there is, I am not deathly allergic to Yellow jackets. Also that week Direct TV showed up here and told me I couldn't get satellite services. Imagine the disappointment, for nearly 2 weeks we hadn't watched any of our favorite shows and now we couldn't get them at all. This is when the kids started getting creative!!!
On a night when the boredom was unbearable the kids did something for their dad and I that I will always cherish. They put on a play!!!
Though I don't know the name of the play it was written by the boy and girl and stared all three of them. It started with nearly two hours of waiting while the kids sorted out their sudden inspiration. Now this was great for their dad and I, as we needed to some catching up for the day. Then they finally allowed us in the living room. The stage was set, the girl sitting at her convenience store counter as she says her lines in comes the boy stating there's a monster outside. In the blink of an eye they both agree to hide as the monster covered in red paint, appears. The monster was my son. Now this was more funny than scary he hit every mark so perfectly. He liked eating his brothers and sisters. The boy and girl had planned every moment of the skit with decor, make up ,costumes and lighting.
Then there was the week in which every thing was about "picking a card" or "watch this". Previous to us leaving the mountains I had taken the kids to see a Magician. The boy and girl were so inspire by the performance they both checked out books from the library on Card tricks and magic tricks. I was never into Magic tricks. I was always too slow with my hands. The fact my step kids were interested I thought was great. Over several weeks they each mastered several card tricks and the boy even mastered a few simple magic tricks. Now I will admit there was a time when I simply got tired of picking card and watching the next trick. Yet from their experimentation I am sure they will impress many of their friends this up coming school year.
The boy and girl's desire to perform and act is something I think should be encouraged. My partner told me when they were kids they liked putting on puppet shows and plays. I truly think that they both have potential in this area. The girl really wants to go to school to be an actress. In some ways I think her talents lay in stage acting, but who would want to give up the glamour and fame of Hollywood if you have what it takes. I see the boy as more of an entertainer such as a comedian or comical magician.
Yet if the stage or big screen isn't what they are destine for it has to be athletes. One day a few years back the girl and I played Volleyball and ever since had showed an interest. This year she will be going out for the school team. By all means I hope she makes the team and proves a worthy athlete. The boy this summer has been very interested in Ice Hockey. Its no wonder either we are now members of a local Ice Skating facility which also hosts several Ice Hockey leagues. He took the time this summer to read a book about Ice Hockey and really showed himself off on the Ice. For kid who doesn't go ice skating very often I would say he has the potential to do great things in hockey.
Now their final week here was also the first week of the Olympic games. Now i have a slight obsession with the Olympics. I really enjoy obscure Olympic sports and the stories that are often told about the athletes and places. So every evening we watched everything from Syncronized diving, to beach volley ball, and gymnastic. They summer Olympics were great we all were really cheering for Micheal Phelps by the time he won his Fifth Olympic gold. All of the kids shown a genuine interest in Gymnastics. The boy and girl have both been involved in gymnastics. I find that fantastic and would really like to put my son in gymnastics as well. As a kid I always wanted to take gymnastics but never got a chance. So every night I found myself yelling..STOP DOING gymnastics in the living room. In some ways I couldn't blame them, the yard is hot and has yellow jackets flying about. Their bedrooms aren't big enough, and the hard wood wide open spaces of the living room is just too tempting. I have a black mark across one wall where the children were practicing their hand stands. At first I was going to clean it with a magic eraser but might just leave it as a reminder of the summer games. After all was said and done my step daughter said she'd like to do gymnastics one more time.
Less than a week ago the boy and girl was returned to their mother's home. I can only hope that the few weeks of no TV, no Internet, and plain "nothing to do" inspires a deeper level of creativity. I hope the girl does make the school volley ball team and that the boy acquires some new magic tricks, perhaps one or two that his dad doesn't know. :)