Kidding Around

My 3 year old niece came to visit me at work the other day. She ran to my desk, and after a giant hug, mimed blowing bubbles.

“Pease?” She blew her imaginary wand again, jumping up and down like a jackrabbit.

“You want to blow bubbles?” Like I didn’t know.

“Yeah-ya!” She sounds like rapper Lil’ John, when she slides over that word. You’d think she’s southern, but she’s actually from Michigan. I blame her older brothers and their hip-hop. “Blow bubbles!” She’s still miming.

So, I pull open my desk drawer and get out my mini bottle of bubbles and blow them while she happily chases them around my desk. This makes me immensely happy. Not just that she’s happy, but the bubbles part. Blowing bubbles makes me very happy. I claim to keep them in my desk for whenever a kid comes in, but really it’s an excuse to have them for me, cuz I have been known to blow them when no kids are around. In fact, my office mate hates it, because he says it leaves “bubble scum” on his desk top.

I used to carry the bubbles in my purse. It started the summer I had 9 weddings to attend. All of them had the little bubble bottles instead of rice. So, I had them all over the place. I’d blow them in the car to keep the kids entertained or whatever. But it was while stuck in traffic on a road trip that they served me best. We were following friends and just sitting among all the road construction. I was bored. I rolled down the window and started blowing bubbles out of the car. Cars ten deep on each end of us got to enjoy the little rainbows. I think my sister was a little embarrassed, but it was fun and definitely not expected. Who knows? Maybe I brightened another child like soul.
I realized after playing with my niece, that although bubbles are the beginning, they’re certainly not the end. I find there are some things that will always keep me young at heart and I’m not afraid to claim them. Here are the top 10 – after bubble blowing of course.

1. I love to color and have my own crayons and coloring books separate from the kids.
2. I love playdough, especially the home made kind. It’s fun to make and I like the smell.
3. I still love Barbies, although I have given up playing with them. I love to walk through the Barbie aisle at Wal-Mart and look at all the new dolls and accessories.
4. Fairytales are my favorite stories, I may read more grown up versions now, but I still dream of finding my Prince Charming or discovering I’m actually a princess lost in the mists of time. They’re the best kind of day-dream.
5. I love to play sardines in the dark. It’s the most fun game ever.
6. I still read Archie Comic books and I love cartoons. Especially the ones I grew up with, like the Flintstones, Jetsons and Scooby-Doo.
7. Sometimes I still pretend that I’m a Borrower and explore the world around me from that perspective. I like to think of all the strange things I would use in my home under the floorboards. Like CD’s for mirrored dance floors.8. I like to twirl. In fact, spinning until you’re dizzy is second only to playing sardines in the dark.
9. Dandelions are not weeds, they’re fairy wish makers, and I still blow the seed puffs allover the yard.
10. I like to make paper snowflakes. I love that each one is unique and there is no way to tell what it will look like until you open it up.


What makes you a kid at heart?

A.