I can see clearly now

Wow.  You're actually still here?!  And you're still awake?! I'm stunned that I have any non-comatose readers left after the last 3 uber-wordy posts!  Lemme just say that you ROCK and I'm officially your Best Friend Forever.   As your reward, here's a pic from yesterday of the birthday boy in his Official Birthday Crown.  It might be goofy, but Mama Cas requires a Crown picture of every birthday celebrant.  (Even if it calls for some bribing with a cupcake.)
 

 

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You've figured out by now that things are never boring around here at House of Cas, right?

Well, yesterday morning started off like any other.  I had a cold recently, which means I get to spend about an hour of every morning in a coughing fit.  These coughing fits result in me horking up bits of my lungs while the kids sit around and go, "EWW!  That's GROSS!"

(Don'cha wish your girlfriend was hot. like. me?)

So yesterday, as I neared the end of Lung Evacuation:  Day 10, Ben's curiosity finally got the best of him.

Ben:  Mom, what's that stuff you're spitting out?

(In the past, I just used the scientific name "yuckies.")

Me:  Mucous.

Nicholas:  GAH!  That's so GROSS!!

Ben:  !.........!

Me:  (Never one to miss a teaching experience...)  I had a cold and now my lungs are trying to clean themselves out so they can be healthy again.  BUT...people who smoke do this every. single. morning. because their lungs are unhealthy and dirty.  (As Nick walked by, I pounced on him.)  Right, Daddy?!  When YOU were a smoker, you coughed up stuff every morning, RIGHT?!

Ben:  !......!

Nick:  Yes, I did.  Every morning.

Nicholas:  I heard that when you smoke, your lungs turn black.

Me:  Yep.  They're supposed to be pink and clean and healthy.

Up to this point, Rachel and Alexa were listening with fascination, but not commenting.  Alexa finally spoke up.

Alexa:  Are MY lungs pink and clean?  (And she opened her mouth as wide as she could, thinking that I could see her lungs through her throat.)

Me:  (Trying to stop laughing...)  WOW!  Your lungs are SUPER clean and pink!  They look GREAT!

Nicholas raised an eyebrow and looked at me.  He laughed, but said nothing.  He knows how fun it can be to play along with their innocent questions.

Rachel:  What about MY lungs?  (And she opened her mouth wide.)

Me:  WOW!  Yours are so CLEAN!

Rachel:  Are they pink?

Me:  Of course!  They look great!

Ben:  (Always my skeptic....he kept looking at me and Nicholas, trying to figure out if we were joking.)  What about me?  Can you see mine?

Me:  Yes, Ben.  And they look beautiful!  So clean and pink!  Hey, Nicholas....let's take a look at yours.

He stopped snickering long enough to open his mouth wide.

Me:  Holy cow!  Those are SUPER pink and healthy!  Daddy!  Show us your lungs.  (As he opened wide, I gasped for extra drama.)  SEE!  Look at how clean Daddy's lungs are since he doesn't smoke anymore!

They all gathered around to ooh and aah over Daddy's stellar lungs.  And then they checked out mine, which we concluded were pink, but not very clean and healthy right now because I had a cold.

And the best part of this story?  Later in the day, Alexa fell in the driveway and was a bit upset about it.  She walked over to me with her head down.  So, without missing a beat, I said, "Aw.  That hurt a bit, right?  Let me see....okay...good...you're not bleeding.  I have to check your lungs, though."  She opened her mouth as wide as she could.  "Cool!  You're lungs are fine."

And she went off to play.