Watch it

We made it through a rather yucky week spent mostly at home because of my lousy back. All things considered, Em and Soph have been very patient. But today marked day 5 of Operation Stay-At-Home, and by three o'clock I was facing mutiny from a pair of very bored little girls. I knew I needed to dig deep for some new entertainment, but what could I do that would keep them happy and yet require little physical interaction from me?

In desperation, I broke out the air mattress and gave the girls free reign to begin the "Mommy, watch!" game.

The girls were occupied and I was able to sit with an ice pack while they played, so overall the game was a success. The only downside to the "Mommy, watch!" game is that the girls actually expect me to keep my eyes on them the entire time. Whenever I'd try to sneak in a page or two of my book, they busted me. And I couldn't just gaze in their general direction while daydreaming of chocolate or Clive Owen or touching my toes without back spasms. No, I was required to comment on every one of their wonderful twists! and turns! and (in Sophie's case) walks! But hey - my back needed the break, and I figured one of us being bored instead of all three was an improvement. Plus, with practice I even mastered a trick of my own...dozing with my eyes open while continuing to murmur something resembling "good job!" under my breath. I got away with this for at least 10 minutes before Emma caught on and punished me by insisting that I add clapping and the occasional loud "Hooray!" to my appreciation repertoire.

Here is a brief snippet of the riveting action. This video is one minute long. Play it on repeat about 120 times and you've got a pretty good idea of our Friday afternoon.