First of all, who is Meme? The name Meme is what my first Grandson gave me when he was little. When he would ask me for something, it would come out as “Me. Me.”
Since I always answered that by giving him something, my name to him became Meme. So from then on all of my Grandchildren and Great Grandchildren have called me, Meme, at least to my face. Lord knows what else they might call me when I’m not around, but then the possibilities are far too many to imagine.
My Youngest Great Grandson turned one on May 1, 2019, and a birthday party was held for him April 28, 2019. He has a big brother who is eight years old and a big sister who is nearly three years old. His parents decided to rent a humongous Bouncy House which had a slide, so big or little people could enjoy the festivities. It was even big enough for adults to go into then take a plunge down the slide.
Of course, as a Meme, I decided to do a little something extra for big brother and big sister. While walking through the Dollar Store, I noticed that they had Silly String. Having been a child back in the Dinosaur Ages, I thought that purchasing six cans of that stuff in six different colors would be delightful fun for my eight-year-old Great Grandson. I was sure that this would undoubtedly increase his love and affection for me, and make me shine in his eyes.
Being cautious, I did text his Mom and asked her if it would be okay before buying it, and received a text back saying, “I don’t care. I’m driving the car.” Of course, I caught her at a vulnerable time, since she was trying to drive her car probably with three kiddos, but all I needed was the smallest of okays. Thinking to myself that this was going to be epic, I bought six cans of Silly String which were in all different colors.
Finally, April 28th arrived, and it was time for the Birthday Party. Once my car was parked, my first objective was to find my oldest Great Grandson because I was sure he desperately needed those cans of Silly String as soon as possible. While traveling through the kitchen, I told some adults about the surprise gift of the cans of Silly String for my oldest Great Grandson.
Well, that didn’t go over very well with some bah-humbug adults, as I heard things like,
“Tell him not to spray it in people’s hair because it will bleach it out.”
“If it gets on clothes it can stain or bleach out certain kinds of fabric.”
Wow, somehow I didn’t get that new memo on Silly String rules, but I would carefully explain to my Great Grandson in words he would understand and I knew he could abide by. I just used a simple one sentence rule for him, “Best keep this stuff away from all of the adults.” While looking in his eyes, I saw a complete understanding of that one sentence rule. So off he ran with all six cans of Silly String in a bag.
Meanwhile, I went back inside to fix myself a plate of food thinking mission accomplished. When returning outside, I noticed my oldest Great Grandson across the road spraying Silly String with not just one girl his age, but four. They were having a fantastic time in a field between some homes and very distant from adults. Pride filled my heart as I realized that I had this Silly String situation totally in control.
There is a saying stating, “Pride goeth before the fall,” not sure who said that, but I am sure that it is true. It only seemed like a minute until I heard my oldest Great Grandson’s name screamed very loudly. When I looked in the direction of the Bouncy House, there stood his Mom with hands on her hips. I have taken a stance like that when dealing with my son and knew without a doubt that the boy was in deep trouble.
Suddenly, the Bouncy House had kiddos jumping out of it, and all of them were covered in Silly String as they ran tossing those empty cans that held the Silly String then scattered to find a place to hide. Oldest Great Grandson had nowhere to go because he had jumped out of the Bouncy House then got trapped in front of Mom. Knowing that my mind did not want to believe, what my eyes were going to see, I walked over to the Bouncy House. Sure enough, that thang was full of Silly String! The walls, the ceiling, the floor, and the slide, were all laced with Strings of Silly. I felt like crawling into a hole and hiding too but as a “supposed-to-be” adult that would have been a bad choice, and a “bock, bock” chicken move. Guessing, I could have used one of the “Senior Citizen Cards,” but I am trying to save those.
Anyway, I volunteered to go into the Bouncy House to clean it up with a broom and a dustpan. Have you ever tried to stand on a wavey air floor that moves every time you walk? It made this “Ole” woman dizzy. Regardless, I had to try to correct my errors. Oldest Great Grandson had no choice but to help, and his Mom came into the waving air floor to help out too. After a while, we had that stringy mess out of the Bouncy House, and the party continued.
After most had left, I went to leave then saw Mom and Oldest Great Grandson setting up a shop vacuum to go inside the Bouncy House for a final go over. I helped stretch another long extension cord across the drive then bid my farewells and left the scene. A few hours later, I received a message from Granddaughter, it seems the shop vacuum had blown the breaker that ran the power to it and the Bouncy House, but they had escaped quickly. Well, that didn’t make me feel any better about my Silly String Surprise. Pretty sure in my Grandson and Granddaughter’s eyes that I am not the coolest Meme ever. Definitely gonna use one of those “Senior Citizen Cards” next time I see them, praying that God gave me enough of those cards.
Wow! I didn’t know you could get Silly String with a gun to shoot it!
I wonder if they sell them cheaper by the dozen?
Who’s Birthday is next? Maybe I could buy it for my Birthday and tell everyone to wear white shirts and shower caps or rain slickers!
Gotta go now and Google that Blaster Pack!
God, I need more of those “Senior Citizen Cards” and lots of forgiveness. Life is too short, so live it!
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Talk about intentions backfiring! Sounds like quite the mess. But I bet the kids had fun while it lasted. By the way, that saying about pride, that’s a quote from Solomon in the Book of Proverbs. Not sure of the exact address without looking it up. Great post Nancy.
Diane, they had so much fun with that silly string. I should probably have learned something from all of that but, of course, I didn’t. Lol!
God Bless You and Thank You for your comment.
Love,
Nancy
Never too old to learn lessons! Such a fun memory for you all! ❤️
Absolutely! Never to old, I am still learning them. Lol
Never too old to learn lessons! Such a fun memory for you all! ❤️
Thank uou so much Vicki