We headed over and I explained to my kids what our itinerary was going to be and what they should do when we got to Nana's. "Nana won't be there and we won't be running off to the playroom today. We are not going to wander off to the bookshelf and get lost in a book. We are definitely not going to immerse ourselves in Calvin and Hobbes for the morning. You can play with the kitty for a few minutes, but then we have work to do-- it's a school day! Kimball, you'll start with Math Lesson x; Henry, you'll work in your spelling book, and Ian and I will read together. Then we'll take a look in the Japanese box that Nana pulled out for us and read more about the shoguns. If we can get our work done, maybe we'll have time to go to the library before lunch!" I love giving them a view of the morning as I'd like to see it go, with a reward of some kind for using our time wisely.
Just then, we pulled up in front of the house, and Ian said very matter-of-factly, "Mom, I didn't listen to a word you just said."
He was baffled when I couldn't stop laughing.
