I recently had what I thought was a private conversation with my brother and SIL. They asked how I thought my kid who was starting hockey would do. My response was “Well, it should be interesting since he SUCKS at skating.” Now, not normally a big deal, right? That’s what I thought until his older sister admitted overhearing. She pulled me aside and expressed her disappointment at hearing me talk about her little brother like that. Ouch. I dug myself out of that hole with apologies and explanations around how the words were not meant for kids’ ears.
When we were looking to buy a bigger house two years ago, there were a few things that topped the “requirement” list—a big mudroom, green space behind the house, a court and an eating area that we could fit in. Many were surprised that “more bedrooms” did not make the list. The conversation came up again recently when I mentioned on Facebook that Cousin Matthew was staying in the spare room of our house for a few weeks. Spare room? Six kids and four bedrooms—how could there possibly be a spare room? Well, there is!
