Shakin our booties… in the kitchen.

Yes, I sing to Madilyn. I dance too. Brian and I have this routine where we turn up the stereo after dinner and have a dance party. We have boogied down to Justin Timberlake’s I’m Bringing Sexy Back as well as Pink Floyd’s Money. She doesn’t have a preference yet. We let the dishes go. They can be washed after she goes to bed. She thinks we are cool. Brian holds our dog Charli and makes her dance. Madilyn thinks it is the funniest thing ever. I’ll enjoy it now before she is a teenager. Someday soon, she will think I am a weirdo if I dance in front of her. Believe me, my sisters and I say my mom dances like Elaine from Seinfeld. You know what I’m talking about.
When Madilyn was a little peanut, I could plop her in her little swing and she would coo away as I cooked. These days, she is right behind me pulling on my leg, yelling “Mum-Mum!” as I try to get a decent meal on the table. I need to get creative if I am going to get anything done in the kitchen.
We still have the good ole Pack ‘n Play in the kitchen where Madilyn will “cook” like Mum-Mum with her own set of pots and pans. We sing The Wheels on the Bus and The Itsy Bitsy Spider as I slice and dice and make green smoothies. The other day, these songs weren’t cutting it so I busted out singing KC and the Sunshine Band’s Shake Your Booty and she thought I was hysterical.
In between slicing strawberries and washing dishes, I was shaking my booty. No one prepares you for this stuff. I read all the baby books out there. I read What to Expect the Toddler Years. Shaking my bum in the kitchen while cooking wasn’t in there.
Making most meals at home is a priority for me. I let other things go. My house needs painted. My car needs washed. My office needs organized. I have listened to my body and I now know that it runs better on home cooked meals. I have more energy. I get more work done. I have more patience. This is a big one as a mama to a toddler.
Not only did singing and dancing entertain my crazy busy toddler, it made me feel good. Sure, I have zero singing and dancing ability. I was voted best dancer in 8th grade but that was a million years ago. Believe me my friends, it is not my talent.
Sometimes it is healthy to be a goof. Laugh at yourself. Sing and dance like no one is watching. Your kids may be but who cares. It it gets dinner on the table than you won mama.
When is the last time you laughed at yourself?