Happily Ever After...

Last week was a little crazy but a lot wonderful. I had the pleasure of having Jen, Seth and the grandkids staying at our house. This was the perfect stopping place on their way to Arizona. Oh, how I love being a grandma. It is both exhausting and exhilarating at the same time. I had this great idea to let Jen and Seth get a break. They got to sleep in the garage aka guest room, and the kids were in the house with us. It was the best of both worlds. They got some rest and I got to make French Toast for the kids, give them baths, get them dressed and read book after book after book. I think I have mentioned before that there are some pretty lame children's books out there but I have to say, the Grimm Fairy Tales are really that, grim... For instance, I was reading a spin off on "Little Red Riding Hood" and found myself telling the kids that the Mama goat left to go to the store and told the her "kids" not to let anyone in the house while she was gone. They tried to be careful but the wolf disguised his voice so he sounded just like their mother. Thinking it was their mother, they opened the door and the wolf ate them all, that is all except one...The smallest kid hid where the wolf couldn't find him. When the mother goat came home and found all her children gone but one she was so sad (ya' think??) But it was her lucky day. She saw the wolf big and fat and asleep under the tree so she cut him open and her babies were all inside and perfectly okay. At that point, she decided to fill the wolf with rocks and sew him back together. Of course this all happened while he was still sleeping. Imagine not waking up when someone cuts you open, takes out the contents of your stomach, fills you with rocks, and sews you back together. Now that is a heavy sleeper. When the wolf woke up, he was so thirsty he wandered to the lake for a drink, where he fell in and sunk to the bottom. What about this story is made for children? I, a grown adult, was a little disturbed by the whole thing. Even though the wolf was the bad guy...I still didn't feel all that great that he sunk to his death at the bottom of the lake. That, to me, is not a "lived happily ever after" ending. I decided to read something much more pleasant so I chose Rapunzel. Now there's a happy story. Some witch kidnaps a baby from her parents, makes her live in a tower, climbs up on her hair, never lets her out of the tower and tries to kill the prince who tries to rescue her. Wow! I guess the lame children's books that don't really have a message and don't really make any sense aren't so bad after all. Maybe I should write children's books. I am good at telling stories that ramble on without a clear point but in the end, everyone is smiling. And that is what's important..a happy ending.