In That Phase

We went out for dinner tonight - an unexpected treat in celebration of our busted air conditioner. Good thing we bought that warranty....
It was nice, though, to enjoy my family on a weeknight and not worry about homework and cooking for an hour or so. My son sat across the table from me and actually engaged in a bit of witty repartee. Verbal Sparring is pretty much my favorite game. I come from a long line of smart-asses. I knew I'd completed my training the day my dad actually called me a smart-ass, with a twinkle of pride in his eyes. It's nice to know that I'm raising the next generation. He hung in there like a champ with me for a while. It was fun!
So, we swung by my mom and dad's house to borrow whatever fans they had in their garage in a feeble attempt to keep cool here on this five-degrees-or-more-above-average October night. A little snippiness ensued between me and the DH. This is not the fun verbal sparring mentioned above. I think I've noticed it sneaking up on me - there's something in my gut that tells me something big is changing. I didn't fully realize it until my mother gave me a mom-ish look after the little exchange of jabs. I turned to her and I said, "We're just in that phase." She said she'd noticed.
Thaaaaat's what's going on here. We're entering a new phase of life. It's the one where the kids and their activities take up all your brain power and pull you and your spouse further and further apart. It really is the one where women change into Mom instead of Mommy. The girls start to wear sneakers, sweats and perpetual ponytails and the boys start to get hairier and belch a lot more. It's the phase in which your hairstyle gets stuck, so that 15 years later, you look horribly outdated, and you lose track of what music is good and current. I've never been "cool" per se, so I'm not afraid of losing that....but I suppose that when you're younger, you think you're invincible. You think that you will somehow figure out how to stay hip through the child-rearing process. It's definitely not by continuing the use of the word "hip" to mean cool. This much I do know. You snip and snap at each other in front of, well, anyone. It's all in good fun. For the most part. So, for better or for worse, here it is.
Mom reminded us to "flame the coals." My mom always mixes her metaphors. Chris grinned wickedly and proceeded to ask me if I wanted to flame the coals later tonight. So, it's not all bad. It isn't a marital crisis. It's just a new phase. One I'm entirely too young for. But I guess that's what everyone thinks.

DAILY BLISS: A new magazine in my mailbox, and time to sit on the porch and read it (while the A/C guy was working inside), and the invention of the fan.