For Once, I Hope They Were Really Listening

We've lived here six months. We couldn't keep the wool over the eyes of the entire neighborhood forever. At some point, they would figure out we were not normal. We actually lean towards the crazy side of things. Truth is, though, we did better than I ever would have imagined.

I like to tell myself that anyway.

I think in an effort to save face, I never shared with you all about the time I lost my kids for nearly an hour. And had half the neighborhood looking for them. Including the UPS man. Fortunately, everyone chalked that one up to the kids just being enamored of their new living environment.

A large portion of our privacy fence is in shambles, due to the enormous amounts of English Ivy that was positively overtaking our back yard when we bought the house. As we chopped away at the ivy, we realized the fence under it was pretty rotten. But not before we tore up the part facing the road. Thereby effectively reducing the property values of the entire neighborhood with our half chomped up fence.

They love us around here. I just know it.

No, I think what sealed our insanity in everyone's eyes is the amount of bickering my children choose to do out of doors. Loudly and out of doors. Because obviously, if your outside and there are no walls to contain your shrilling, you must do it FIVE TIMES AS LOUDLY in order to get your peevish point across the yard to your sibling.

It's a neighborhood chock full of homeschooling families. You'd think that the noise levels would naturally be higher. Maybe they are. I dunno. All's I know is that my kids can drown out the entire rest of the neighborhood. People peek out windows when my children play outside.

One of those recent outings of theirs led to screams over some something or the other. I took a deep breath and walked outside to referee. One of our neighbors was blatantly standing on her front porch watching the goings on. Once we had things under control, I moseyed around the yard and wandered in and out of the house. At some point, I was in the garage when I heard it.

'My Savior loves, my Savior lives,
My Savior's always there for me!
My God He was, my God He is,
My God He is always gonna be!'

All four kids were sing-screaming this song at the very top of their lungs. I smiled and my heart jumped for joy listening to the sweet, off-key chorus of my children.

And, for once, I hoped that the neighbors were listening very closely as they pulled their curtain's aside to find out what the ruckus was all about.