Today, while driving home from work and listening to K-Love, I heard listeners calling in with embarrassing things that children had said. It reminded me of at least a couple of incidents with my own little darlings....
When Paige was three, we had just moved from Columbia, Missouri to Shreveport, Louisiana. I took her and her infant sister, Morgan, to the utilities office to get our water turned on. The office was fairly small, and we were packed like sardines in a line that snaked back and forth before reaching the counter. We were the only Caucasians in the room. As is customary in situations when complete strangers are forced to be standing in very close proximity to each other, the room was very quiet. As I held Morgan, Paige looked around the room as much as she could from her diminutive perspective. Then, in a very loud voice, she remarked - very innocently and simply as a matter of fact observation - "There sure are a lot of black people in here." It is an understatement to say that the subsequent uproarious laughter, following the briefest of pauses, was music to my very red ears.
And then it was Morgan's turn.... She also happened to be three when her little mouth brought big embarrassment to her mom. We were waiting in line at Michael's craft store with a cartful of artsy items; I was unloading our purchases while Morgan sat in the handy child seat. Behind us in the line (what is it with my kids and LINES!?) was a rather large woman with very short hair and no makeup. My little tot looked up at her with a quizzical expression before asking her, "Are you a BOY or a GIRL?" Fortunately, this woman was also blessed with a sense of humor and laughed, while responding, "I'm a girl, like you." I, on the other hand, couldn't complete my transaction quickly enough. Morgan, I can't WAIT to hear how Lilah Jean pays you back...
