Any new object in the house is a cause of excitement for the
kids too, just that they cannot silently admire it and feel happy, they have to
touch it, feel it, taste it and even sometimes destroy it in the process to
fully enjoy it. Also, greater the need of the parent to keep it away from
children, the greater is their need to have it too. Unless it is something
small, which can be hidden away, it is at the mercy of the kids.
Even before buying the new two-seater sofa I knew it. I knew
that the kids would surely jump on it, they would be attracted to it like moths
to fire. We purposely choose a dark purple instead of my usual choice of beige
or another light green that looked gorgeous at the store, keeping this in mind.
As expected, they were happy to see it in the house. On the
first day, the kids and I sat on it and enjoyed reading a story. I even
imagined it being our new ‘story sofa’, where the kids and I would escape into
the world of stories every afternoon. Now, I can only laugh at myself for being
so hopeful.
On the second day, I found them racing toy cars on the sofa.
Cars climbing over the arm rests to reach the top of the back rest and then
coming down the other way. Soon, followed by car crashes and what not. I shook
my head and ignored it. This is what you
expected, didn’t you? Yes, I did.
After a week, they were both gleefully jumping on the sofa.
“Why are you jumping on the sofa? Is it a bouncy?” I asked.
“Yes, it is a bouncy! Yay! Bouncy….bouncy!” replied my little
one while continuing to jump.
Another day, just as I emerged from my room after a shower,
the maid called out urgently, ‘Didi, idhar aao’. Our two-and-half-year-old had happily poured water on the new
sofa! He looked at me with a guilty look on his face, before running away. I
tried to blot out the excess water with newspaper, but the sponge in the sofa
had already done a better job. I was surely feeling bad. The sofa was not even
two weeks old.
“Sorry Mumma” a
small voice said.
“Don’t do it again. Okay? Promise?” I said calmly. A little
head nodded in response.
While drying out the seats and part of the back with a hair
dryer, I marvelled at the capability of our kids to make us think on our feet,
solutions to problems we may never even have to think about without kids around.
With the sofa dry and no visibly lasting damage, I felt content, not so much
for the sofa but for staying calm throughout and not scolding my kid for this.
Maybe I was finally getting better at ‘patience’, the greatest virtue for
parenting.
Last Saturday morning, I discovered something scribbled on
the arm of sofa with dark blue ink! First water and now pen marks! How? When? Why? Which one of the two did
it? I don’t even give them sketch pens to colour with. Later, my five year
old admitted that he had found a marker somewhere and wrote on the sofa. I let
him go after a ‘calm conversation’ and a promise.
The cushions are still played with, they are more exciting
than the blocks, cars and toys and are found strewn across the floor more often
than they are seen adorning the sofa.
When it came home, it was a two-seater sofa for watching TV,
just a piece of furniture, but the kids have claimed it as their own, attached
many memories to it. Hopefully, the excitement will soon be over and the sofa
will be spared all the love and attention (read, water and ink) it has been
getting over the past weeks. Fingers crossed! Anything can happen with the kids
around.
