Mommy, are you jokin' me?

We laugh A LOT at our house! Ask Big "B" what her favorite holiday is and she'll tell you it's April Fool's Day. She gets this from me. There's not much I take seriously. I love to joke around and I do it often with my girls. So much, in fact, Big "B" is constantly questioning whether or not I'm "for real". Yes, these jokes have gotten me in trouble before and it probably isn't the best parenting tool but my number one rule is to have fun! Big "B" is pretty good at following rules so we have a lot of fun.

Recently, when it started pouring down rain Big "B" ran to the door and was staring at the dark sky. I said, "You can go out there if you want." She turned around with a confused look on her face. I repeated myself. She then said something I hear quite often, "Mommy, are you jokin' me?" "No," I responded. Now, we do love spontaneity and I let the girls do things I probably shouldn't sometimes, but I am not a fan of letting them get dirty or of allowing them to ruin their clothes that I've spent waaay too much on. So Big "B" gave me another, "Mommy, are you SURE you're not joking me?" I said, "Go ahead. Dance in the rain. It will be fun!"

She finally realized I wasn't 'joking' her and she asked me where her rain boots and rain coat were. I told her to just go out in her clothes. She got really excited and yelled to her daddy, "Mommy said we could go out in the rain! This is gonna be sooo much fun!" She ran out the door and Little "B" followed. They were apprehensive at first. They still thought they were doing something they shouldn't be. It was so much fun for us to watch. It didn't take long before they were spinning around. They splashed in the puddles. As their hair started to straighten their lips began to curl. Those smiles were some of the biggest I'd ever seen. Their laughter and mine started to rival the thunder. I grabbed the camera! It was a moment when I wished time could have stood still.

I love jokin' my girls, but this time I was so glad that I was for real. It is one of those things Big "B" is still talking about. And by the way, I learned a little rain - even a little mud isn't going to ruin clothes and if it does who cares!?! We'll never remember those clothes anyway -- we will remember....forever....dancing in the rain!