Mama's Day

1. What is something Mama always says to you?

G: It’s obviously “I love you” – she always says that.  She also says, “Gwennie!”
L: Go get your shoes on!
C: I love you, my little boy.
M: “Go to bed.” “Go get me some boxes, please.” “Getta, can you please get me some pictures?” “Getta, can you please play BusyTown?”

2. What makes Mama happy?

G: Sleep, a clean house, and when we do something nice for her – like make her a present.
L: When we clean out the car, because she likes a clean car.
C: A clean house . . . and presents!
M: Daddy. Children. Boxes.

3. What makes Mama sad?

G: When the house is a wreck, she didn’t get any sleep, and we’re all asking to do different things at once (and not listening to her).
L: When something bad happens – like when Grannie and Grandad got in a car accident.
C: A super messy house.  And when one of us gets really hurt, or gets sick.
M: Aaah! Things that are scary make Mama sad.  Scary fire bear!

4. How does Mama make you laugh?

G: She always makes up very funny jokes (not as funny as yours, though).
L: She tells us funny stories. Like the story she told us when Sophia and Phoebe’s trampoline got picked up by the wind. It was funny when we found out it had gotten totally smashed.
C: By telling jokes – when people say stuff, she makes the words into jokes. It’s funny.
M: “Getta, laugh!” “Ha, ha.” “Getta, please give me a funny picture.”

5. What was Mama like when she was your age?

G: She liked books, and friends, and her cat Nappy.
L: She liked reading, like mysteries.
C: She liked to go outside and play games, like soccer.
M: This [pulling her hands through her hair and making it seem short].  She liked to climb bars, the black bars on the front that you touch the roof with. Put tape on doors and on fire bears and everything. Plays with boxes, plays with toys, plays with everything.

6. How old is Mama?

G: 40.
L: Was it 50 . . . 51?
C: 40.
M: 3.

7. How tall is Mama?

G: 5 ½ feet.
L: 4 feet, 5 inches.
C: 5 feet something inches.
M: 4.

8. What is her favorite thing to watch on TV?

G: Call the Midwife.
L: Call the Midwife.
C: The news.
M: Baby shows like Peg + Cat, doo dee doo dee doo doo.

9. What does Mama do when you're not around?

G: Grown-up stuff, like work (paperwork and bills, sometimes taxes) and things on her computer – things for her book, but not very much. And eats chocolate and candy and watches shows.
L: Goes to the grocery store.
C: Watches tv sometimes, or lies on the couch.
M: Um, nothing. She plays with the other kids? And she watches scary, super-scary movies that I don’t like.

10. If Mama becomes famous, what will it be for?

G: Her book, which is about this girl whose parents disappear and she has to go into fairyland to save them.
L: For Anise Press.
C: Amazing printing!
M: Babies. Daddies. Mama Day (Mother Day!)

11. What is Mama really good at?

G: Coming up with good answers to my questions, which are pretty complicated sometimes.
L: That class that she taught, where we did papermaking and printing and marbling paper.
C: Telling us to do chores. And amazing printing!
M: Getting kids. Doing everything!

12. What is Mama not so good at?

G: Being wrong.
L: Playing basketball. [when informed that Mama used to play basketball in high school, he says, Really?]
C: Bending down. Her back is old.
M: Watching kids. She’s not so good at putting baby chappie on babies, and closing their mouth, and making them sleep. And these little letters [type] – she’s not so good at those.

13. What does Mama do for her job?

G: She’s our Mama for her job: drives us around, makes us work, makes us not fight, talks to us, helps us feel better. Makes lunch.
L: Works on Anise Press, and takes care of us. Gets us food, gets us clothes, plays with us.
C: She is our Mama, and she prints. She watches us, and drives us to places, and tells us to do chores.
M: Exercise. Everything.

14. What is Mama’s favorite food?

G: Salad – she likes salad because there are so many different types.
L: Stir fry, this new stir fry.  (It’s a lot yummier than the old stir fry.)
C: Stir fry – with carrots.
M: Three things that she likes: kids, babies, houses. And tummies. [But what does she like to eat?] Burgers. Bacon. Bacon!

15. What makes you proud of Mama? 

G: Because she’s awesome – there’s nothing else I could say. That sums it up.
L: Her working so hard every day.
C: She put the bink in Simon’s mouth and he just fell right asleep.
M: Candy bars – she gives them to kids.

16. If Mama were a fictional character, who would she be? 

G: She would be Frostfur from Warriors – because Frostfur is one of the Warriors, but she’s also a mom of some kittens and she’s brave and strong.
L: Solovet, from Gregor the Overlander. It’s just that the description sounded a lot like Mama. [“It says here that she is ‘ruthless, dangerous, and manipulative’ – is that it?” “Yup!”]
C: She’d be Maid Marian, from Robin Hood.
M: Chimney – she’s like a chimney that Santa climbs down!

17. What do you and Mama do together?

G: We talk, and do crafts, and make lunch.
L: Play board games, like the board game I made up, Run of Fire.
C: Play games, board games. I like the one I made up.
M: Walk down the street, walk down the sidewalk, drive in cars!

18. How are you and Mama the same? 

G: We share a lot of the same ideas and thoughts.  And we have the same eyes.
L: We both like red hair.
C: We both have blue eyes.
M: I like toys! Me and Mama play with toys together. I like birds, and Mama likes birds – birds what have wings.

19. How are you and Mama different? 

G: She doesn’t like her hair to be long, but I like mine to be long. And we disagree on some things.
L: I like playing video games, and she doesn’t.
C: I’ve got blond hair and she’s got brown hair.
M: Mama doesn’t like chicken wings to eat, and I like chicken to eat.

20. How do you know Mama loves you? 

G: She does all these awesome things for us, like gives us gifts and helps us when we’re hurt or sad. And she always says she loves us.  All the time.
L: Because she tells me every day. [“Does that get a little old?” “Yep, sometimes.”]
C: She says it.  Pretty often.
M: She cuddles with me.

21. What does Mama like most about Daddy?  

G: That would be too long of an answer. ‘Cause you’re kind and you’re smart and you’re funny and you’re awesome.
L: That you work on Anise Press with her.
C: That he’s her husband.  And Daddy helps the family so much, by going to work and getting money.
M: Mama likes something about Daddy – watching everything that’s Daddy’s shows. Everything that you talk about, every picture, every book – everything!

22. Where is Mama’s favorite place to go? 

G: To sleep. Or Boston.
L: Poland – she told me she wants to go.
C: China!  (I just assume that Mama might like China.)
M: Museum, Library, Torres’s house.

23. What is Mama’s favorite song?

G: She likes “Furr” by Blitzen Trapper a lot.
L: I know her favorite Muppets Most Wanted song – it’s the one Constantine sings to Miss Piggy (“I’ll Get You What You Want”).
C: I have no idea.  “Lampshades on Fire” is the only one I can think of.
M: “Everything Is Awesome!”

24. What is Mama’s favorite book?

G: She likes Goody O’Grumpity.
L: The book that’s she’s writing. That’s easy.
C:  Ferocious Wild Beasts.
M: Ferocious Wild Beasts!

25. What is Mama’s favorite show?

G: Some kind of theatre thing . . . something she saw before I was born. Didn’t she go to a show when she was in New York? She said she really liked it.
L: The Avengers.
C: The LEGO Movie.  I think she likes the characters.
M: Babies.

26. What would Mama do with a million dollars?

G: She would get us to a new house, a bigger house, which has more bedrooms and a bigger yard. More bathrooms – she always wanted a half bath. And a bigger kitchen.  Then she would retire you, and we’d go on a big trip across the U. S.
L: Get a bigger house, with orange – lots of orange.  More bedrooms, more bathrooms, and two stories.
C: Buy a ton of type.
M: Put it in a piggy bank!