I really wonder about my kids. Much like the bit by Bill Cosby, sometimes the things they do are staggering in their stupidity. Don't get me wrong--I do love them dearly, but you just have to wonder sometimes what exactly let them to make the decision they've made.
When I was little there were a few things you just didn't do. One, was bother Mom and Dad during a perceived serious discussion. Another, don't go in Mom and Dad's bedroom, unless it was a bathroom emergency and there were no other bathrooms available. Still, at the top of the list, absolutely #1 on that list was don't wake Mom and Dad. No matter what. It didn't matter if you were really happy to see them, had a great joke, were bleeding out every oriface. Don't wake them up. In fact, I took this one so seriously, I woke my sister when I had a bad dream. I took myself to barf in the bathroom, knowing Mom would probably hear me wretch and eventually would come in the bathroom. But on Saturday mornings, the key was to slink downstairs, avoiding the creaky boards on the steps. Quietly, oh so quietly (rule #1) turn on the tv at the bottom volume, so you pretty much had to stop breathing in order to hear it. If you had to go to the bathroom, you went, but didn't flush until you heard someone else rustling around near Mom and Dad's room. That usually meant (rule #2) don't flush after 5 am until about 8 am. Do not, by any means, talk above a whisper (rule#3). If you're hungry, you have 2 options: wait, and just tough it out, or sneak in and get yourself some cereal. But that brings in another factor (rule #4)--don't make any noise in the kitchen, because why? Sound travels better on hard floors.
Now it seems my kids don't know any of these "rules of the house," and I'm not sure why. They've been threatened with every possible punishment. We've even carried some of these out. Either they're sheer geniouses, hell-bent in a very roundabout way, on my (and my husband's) loss of control or jump "over the edge of sanity," or they have no clue whatsoever.