Mother's Mistakes: our favorite stories!

 "Tell us the story about when you ordered socks you thought were all the same, but they had different colored stripes!"

The boys were matching socks and making conversation.

It's a Very Boring Story, really, and their request pretty much tells everything there is to tell.

So instead of retelling the story they had already told, I said, "You want that one, or the one about when I ordered tiny shoes?"

They LAUGHED and said, "We like them both!"

I didn't actually tell it, because they remember better than I do, that in a Mom Moment of "I'll save some time and quick order these online," I failed to realize I was ordering infant sizes instead of youth.

It was a rough equivalent of some of the shortcuts I suggested on road trips, that I DON'T recommend you ask my mom or brother about.

In other words, it saved no time.

Instead of telling the story, I just told my boys, "You just like hearing about my mistakes!"

"Yes! We LOVE hearing about other people's mistakes!"

Me too.

I prefer to live the good, uneventful days (now I'm sounding like my mom!), but generally speaking, good days make really boring stories.

It somehow gives me courage to hear how others navigate unexpected, self-created obstacles.

There's something life-giving about someone being honest enough to own up to their own mistakes and make a good story out of it. My dad was like that. He could laugh at his own mistakes.

I want to pass that Life Skill on to my children.

Meanwhile, I'm off to other adventures, in which I hope to have a Really Good Day Worth Telling About!