Sign of the times.

(I thought this picture might get your attention. No it isn't me!)

As I go about my day, rapping in the car with the kids "Shorty got LOW LOW LOW" feeding them junk food and non-organics, driving my not so green vehicle, yelling at them, teasing them, not always being the safest Mom, not always being the most exciting Mom, sometimes being too exciting of a Mom, and so fourth I cannot help but wonder what I am doing now that will seem just CRAZY in 10 or 20 years.

Picture me, Brooke, and Zak cruising around in the back of our old Chevy Citation puffing on a candy cigarette. Brooke is laying on the floor on a bed of pillows, little Zak napping on the back seat unbuckled and unfamiliar with the word car seat, and me sunbathing in the back window. Dad is driving swigging his beer, puffing his real cig, singing to some ZZ Top, and Mom is trying to get us to sing, or at least not fight. After all it was a long drive to DisneyLand. ROAD TRIP!

Certainly not your typical Utah MO-MO family cruising around in the wood paneled station wagon singing I am a Child of God. Glad about that!

Back the day it all seemed so normal (I think. HA HA HA) but now I look back and think, "WOW, what was that?" But here we are. Three kids all alive and well. Pretty well. Sure there is some minor brain damage, but we all made it.

Again, picture this. Brandi and Brooke under the age of 16 taking the car out for a spin. We went everywhere. We got caught lots of times. Lots of times we got away with it. Me, brought home by the cops once, Brooke caught because she and a friend almost dropped the transmission out of the car. I guess they thought you should hurry and put the car in reverse while driving it. Sometimes we would even pass Dad in the old truck driving underage and during school hours. Woops! Meanwhile Zak is lighting the church dumpster on fire. At night Brandi flees the window, threatening Brooke to keep quiet on her way out. Brooke pimps Vegas, Zak puffs the magic dragon and on and on.

My point? I am not even sure. Right now I am just trying to figure out where we found the time for all of this trouble!?! And how our parents didn't kill us.

Oh, that's right my point is this. I think our world is becoming a little too overprotective, it was good to live a little. We all made it. We lived and learned. We look back and laugh at all of the dumb things we did, but who knew better? Who cares? It is kind of funny if you think about it. Soon my kids will be making fun of the things I let them do and wondering how they survived. I just hope that rules and regulations will not stop us from LIVING and experiencing crazy things. I also hope my kids will never do the things we did. I hope my Grandkids do not live in a bubble.

Many people are reading this thinking, "Wow, this explains a lot about Brandi. It is all getting clear to me now." Just wait until Sunday when I pass some candy cigarettes around Bro. Pearson's class. No we will not be puffing the magic dragon. Sorry, maybe next week.

Awww, life. Good times, good times!