Things Parents Do

As I was writing yesterday's post about the funny cartoons and pictures going around, of course I got sidetracked for a while looking at the web sites that contained said pictures. (Come on. You would have too. They're funny.) And as I was surfing, I came across this one:

Of course it completely made me laugh, because it's so very, very true. But I would also add to it that if a little girl hands you a baby doll, you will rock it/feed it/ burp it, or whatever else she tells you that you simply must do. If your kids hand you a piece of plastic food that they "made" for you, you will pretend to eat it. And if they hand you a toy tea cup, you will pretend to drink from it, and pronounce it the best tea you've ever had.

This is just the kind of power that kids have over us. We may be the adults, but sometimes that just doesn't make any difference. I can remember as a kid making my mom rock my baby doll on more than one occasion. Now I do the same for my daughter. And I'm fairly certain that if some day she has a daughter, she will do the exact same thing too.

And when you answer that toy phone, or rock that doll, or sip that tea, you may act like you're doing it just for the kids' sake, to keep them happy. But we all know the truth, and it's ok to admit it. We're never too old to use our imaginations, return to our childhoods for a moment, and indulge in a little creative play. It keeps us young, and it makes the world just a little more fun.