Those "Quiet Moments"

"I got you Momma!"

     Those quiet moments, so beautiful, so fleeting, when no one is screaming or grabbing at me or each other. No one is yelling from the bathroom or singing songs/nonsense at the top of their lungs. No one needs a drink of water, someone to play with, or a toy from the top shelf. No one is begging to be picked up so that they can climb down you in mere moments, and cry when they reach the floor. The kids are out of sight, and a potentially deadly, but alluring, silence fills the home. These are the moments where I, often with my cup of coffee, huddle in a corner of the couch, half in awe, half in fear, as the precious seconds tick by, wondering which type of "Quiet Moment" I am experiencing and how it will end.

Here is a small sample of my Moments:

     Sometimes these moments occur because the kids are having fun together, the "Happy Family" moment, as I like to call it, and any second there will be much wailing and gnashing of teeth over some wrong, real or imagined. Baby Girl cries, and I have to spend several minutes interrogating Brother to find out what really happened, or Brother comes running in because the baby is in the process of eating his favorite drawing, and my moment will end with a bang but it was so sweet while it lasted.

We can go from this...

... to this in a matter of seconds

   

Dirt and a stick, what
more could you ask for?

     Sometimes, they are just occupied in their own pursuits, playing with sidewalk chalk, digging through the toy basket, or, my favorite, looking at books. The "Everyone is Busy" moment.  Usually the kids wander in and out, one by one, never making eye contact, just doing their own thing. As gradually as the moment was achieved it is lost, usually by someone realizing that you are not occupied and are available for accousting.

  This one is rare and I never realize it's happened until it's over. If you make the mistake of checking on them during one of these moments, and they see you, it will be instantly over.

They are so cute when they are
asleep.

  The best, and most secure, moment is the "Everyone is Asleep" moment. Since my sweet boy has out grown a constant nap time, this one is becoming even more unlikely than the "Everyone is Busy" moment.

"Mom! I put gel in my hair!
All by my self!"

     And then there is the "We Are Up To No Good" moments. These are the ones that make me jumpy during all the other, more benign, moments. These are the moments when they come in covered in permanent marker, or Vaseline, or something less identifiable and far more sinister, or you find your favorite thing dismembered in some corner somewhere hours later, or you realize they have been eating chalk when they throw up something very oddly colored on a friend later that night, or... the list of personal anecdotes goes on much longer than it should.
     The quote, "Silence is golden, unless you have a toddler, then it is just suspicious." is quite appropriate for these moments.

     So you have to decide, carefully weighing your options, how much do I need this moment, and what is it worth losing? Some days, days when I expect company, I am constantly checking up on them, making sure that there are no impending disasters. Other days I am cautiously optimistic but try to keep my finger on the pulse of the moment by listening for warning signs and sneaking around to see what is going on without being spotted. And then there are those days where you lock yourself in the bathroom just to have a moment, any moment, or as I call it, an "As Long As They Don't Burn Down the House" moment.

     Sometimes silence is just golden, no matter how suspicious.