Sleepovers, Staycations, Sixteen Hours & Other Words Beginning With the Letter “S”

Emma’s having a sleepover!

Yesterday I wrote here about how Emma has been asking for several months to have a sleepover at my cousin’s house.  This began after they invited Nic to come stay with them.  It has become painfully clear that  Emma, though she said nothing at the time, wanted to go too.  However, arranging this is impossible.  They are a couple in their 70’s and while I adore them and am close to them, I cannot ask them to have her.   They do not know her well, Emma’s language is limited, her routines plentiful, I would need to accompany her, which would be awkward.  So no, that’s not going to happen.

After I wrote yesterday’s post, I received a wonderfully thoughtful email from Emma’s therapist, Joe, suggesting she come for a sleepover at his and his gorgeous wife’s house along with his wife’s god daughter, who came to Emma’s ninth birthday party, this weekend.  Nic will be at the beach with his friend.  Emma will be with Joe and Angelica.  Which means….  drum roll please… Richard and I will have about sixteen hours to be together, just the two of us.   Sixteen hours.

Woohoo!  Oh yeah, baby! (Insert little snoopy like dance of pure, unadulterated ecstasy, here.)  Other than our ‘Staycation‘ in February, also thanks to Joe, Richard and I do not get a great deal of “just the two of us” time.  Don’t misunderstand, I’m not complaining, it’s just a fact of our lives, making Emma’s impending sleepover all the more fabulous.  It must be noted that Joe is contributing to the continued well-being of my marriage, in addition to providing Emma with her desire for a sleepover.

So last night after confirming that this was indeed happening, I went to find Emma.  “Hey Em!  Guess what?”  Silence.  “Do you want to have a sleepover with Joe and Angelica this weekend?”

“YEAH!”

“Do you remember Madison?”  Emma nods her head yes.  “Madison will be there too!  Do you want to go?”

“YEAH!”

Later Emma came to me and put her hand on my shoulder.  “Go to Angelica’s house for sleepover?”

“Yes, this weekend.  Are you excited?”

“Yeah!  I’m excited.  Go to Angelica’s house with Madison, Oliver and Trovel.  Go sleep in Central Park.”

If you are as baffled as I am by this, then welcome to my confusion.  I have no idea who Oliver and Trovel are, why they are sleeping in Central Park, of all unlikely places or why Emma thinks it’s a good idea to join them.  How Angelica is involved in this is also a mystery.  As I sat looking at her and trying to figure out which question I should ask first I decided to tackle the name Trovel.  “Do you mean Trevor?”

“Trouble,”  Emma said, carefully articulating the word as one might to a very small child or a foreigner.   “Oliver and Trouble,” Emma added.  She waited staring meaningfully at me.

“Okay.  Who are Oliver and Trouble?”

The look on her face was the equivalent to Nic’s disgusted and embarrassed shrug and eye roll combo. “Have sleepover with Oliver and Trouble.  Going to sleep in Central Park.”

After a number of questions I came up empty.  Finally I said, “But Em, don’t you want to have a sleepover this weekend with Joe?”

“Yes!  Sleepover at Angelica’s house!  I’m so excited!”  Emma grinned at me and then turned on a YouTube video of some arbitrary family’s home movie of themselves riding the Central Park carousel.  It’s one of Emma’s favorite videos and whenever she watches it I wonder what this family would think if they knew they’ve provided hours of entertainment for my daughter by posting to the public their slightly weird video.  I say slightly weird because the man, I’m assuming the father, looks into the camera and discusses at great length which horse he plans to ride.  Emma loves it.

Sixteen, stupendous, spectacular hours, people!

I couldn’t find a photo of roses to go with the caption – Things are coming up roses.  This photo taken in Central Park of tulips will have to do.  Things are coming up tulips! 

My latest piece My Fear Toolkit published in the Huffington Post