Offkey still sounds good

Two nights ago, I was holding Audrey, praying she'd nod off in the magic chair as I selfishly watched tv.   I don't know why I've been doing this lately, other than that she's getting bigger and I still like to hold her, and so I'm just stretching it a little longer than I probably should.  Ahem, well, all of them, they still come sit with Mom from time to time.   Okay, all the time.  I may as well spill it, sometimes I feel like I have an ample lap just to accomodate all the kids that sit in it.  Or maybe it's a just a good excuse to justify an extra cookie.  At any rate, they sit with me, on me, quite a bit.  A little extra love never hurt anyone, whether you're 4, 5, or 45.

There was Audrey, tossing and turning, trying to not fall asleep.  I'm getting a little aggravated, as I just took an elbow to the chin that made my eyes water, and am about to reprimand her when I hear what it is she's doing.

She's singing, under her breath, and she hit me because she's doing some hand motions.

Ooooohh, I get it now.  She is singing her preschool songs.  Practicing.  Her last day is today, and we have a little program.  LOVE to watch this, all those little ones on the stage, trying their best and so cute with their little voices not quite always singing together but trying real hard. 

I know the songs.  Hey, I learned my ABC's and the preschool song, I know it too, as she is the last in our line to be there.  I've picked it up over the years, and I can even do some of the hand motions too (they do the song in American Sign Language as they sing it--for all I know, I'm cursing in ASL when I'm doing the sign for "apple", but I play along anyway).

She turned to me and would sing a few words:  "...here we are..." and look at me to prompt me to sing the next part:  "with our smiles" and she'd nod and sing some more.  "Now I know my"  <prompt> I sing "ABC's"  "next time won't you"  "sing with me."  It was adorable.  We went through the entire preschool reportoire.

It brought to mind all the times I heard the boys doing it.  Nolan, always under his breath, never out loud, and never if I asked him too.  At his programs, he never even sang, he just looked out at the audience, mouthing a word here and there.

Ben, who sang in the car, and in the house.  His teachers loved it that he was so animated, they said they put him in the middle row, right in front, because of it.   And he sang so loudly! I remember at his first program,  I looked at Mr W, and he looked at me, and we giggled, "He's YOUR kid" as we sort of sank down in our chairs just for a second.  We heard him loud and clear in the back row, and you couldn't help but grin, as Ben apparently thought he was at the Met or something, and had to reach the roof.   I still hear him, singing along to the radio, in the car now.

Ryan would sing in the car, never for us, and do the hand motions.  I'd watch him in the rear view mirror, and he was never the wiser....until we would turn down the radio to hear him, and he'd stop right away.  "It's okay, baby,"  I'd tell him, "go ahead."  He'd shake his head no and I'd turn the radio up....and hear him go for it again.  He would sing at his program, and wave at us in the back row, even when he wasn't supposed to be.

Audrey does the same.  She sings, she looks for us, she hams it up when we take her picture.

I can't wait to watch her today.

I'll try not to sing along.