Hickory Dickory Dock

Yesterday I found a dead mouse right in the middle of our backyard patio. One can only assume s/he kicked the bucket from pure heat exhaustion while trying to cross our patio in 90+ degree weather in October (YIKES!). I decided to wait 6 hours for DH to get home from work instead of disposing of the carcase myself.


After eating dinner last night, DH went outside with heavy duty gloves on with DS following closely in his footsteps (as he often does from the moment Daddy gets home from work until he goes to bed). DH picked up the dead mouse by the tail. DS asked DH, "what's the mouse doing Daddy?". DH replied, "he is dead.". Just. like. that. "He is dead.". Now, I have to tell you first, DS has been lucky enough in his 2.9 years of life to have not had to experience death of anyone close. I wasn't even sure he would know what that word really meant. So I held my breath and wondered to myself what would his response be to DH's answer. Were we about to have a deep discussion on death, life, heaven, God ... ok, I know, I know, I am getting ahead of myself now but ... a mother's mind can wander fast.


DS paused for a few moments. He got a somber look, looked directly at the mouse and lowered his head as if he was saying a prayer. I smiled becaue I was proud of my sweet sympathetic boy. I looked at DH and we shared a moment (the kind of moment that only a husband and wife share when watching their own kids). DS then turned around, looked straight at a plant sitting on the patio table that Mommy has neglected since before we left for Germany and said, "that plant is dying too Mommy.". DH and I quickly smiled and laughed. Just like his Daddy, he knows when to lighten a somber moment. The dead mouse was disposed of quickly but the plant still sits there.


Yep, he didn't miss an opportunity to point out Mommy's missing green thumb either (picture above of said plant). **crossing arms over head to hide my red face from embarrassment**