I am telling you!
I am at Alexis' gymnastics class. My mother and I are sitting in the waiting area that is in this little room behind these wall-to-wall windows where you can see the kids in the gym. The chairs are all lined up in rows about 10 chairs to a row, about 6-7 rows deep. We are sitting, our legs crossed, just watching Alexis in the gym.
Then the CRAZINESS begins.
These two boys (whose mother is MIA) begin to chase each other all around this very crowded room. They run, they race, they yell loudly. They squeeze in front of my mother and I, and run on down the isle. My mother grunts.
Then ... they did it AGAIN! Even louder, even faster ... right over our feet and purses. My mother grunts and huffs.
And ... AGAIN! They run past us, squealing loudly, arms flapping, spit flying, squeezing through and trampling our feet. My mother wants to say something - badly - (I want my mother to say something) but ... she just mumbles and then huffs and then grunts.
I just move my legs.
I do look around the room - wait patiently for the mother of these unruly children to save us - wait for some mom voice to say, "Get. Over. Here. Now!" It never comes - no voice.
So, I get up and go to another room, near the front desk and front door (leaving my mother behind). I find a seat and get out my laptop.
Now ... there are 4 boys - screaming, sliding on their knees in the lobby, racing their small cars on the floor and banging them loudly into the walls, climbing on the chairs and jumping off. Four, loud boys ... about ages 8 down to 3 years old. All cute ... but very loud. The littlest one kept screaming, I mean SCREAMING, "Ethan. ETHAN. ETHAN, I NEED YOU TO LISTEN TO ME!" While Ethan - totally ignored him and just kept running his Hot Wheels car across the window next to me (SKREEEEETTTCCHHHH!!!)
I gaze on this MADNESS, laptop on my lap ... and watch ... and wait ... in complete astonishment. In my head I am thinking (WHERE. IS. YOUR. MOTHER?). I stay quiet.
Finally ... the girl (about 18 years old) behind the front desk, says, "Boys, BOYS, BOYS, BOYS - You are going to have to keep it down," and then turns and goes back behind her desk.
Two of the boys sat down and the older of the two got this very fearful look on his face. The little one sat next to him and followed what his brother was doing - nothing, but sitting, at this point. Ethan and his loud little brother, remained rowdy even after the 18 year old reprimanded them once again.
Mind you, I am sitting ... with my laptop on my lap and only looking up at this CRAZY MADNESS every so often - hoping soon it will all disappear. I am minding my own business.
Suddenly ... she appears.
The mother.
A mother.
She sees her two boys sitting quietly in the chairs close to me and she says, "Why are you sitting down (I swear!) - Did they make you sit down?" and she looks at me. She means me ... I know she means me ... but I do not look up - I am minding my own business!
Her son just grunts something inaudible - he is embarrassed that he had been reprimanded by the 18 year old girl. The mother begins to pace a bit and ... I fully expect her to address me at any moment. I am fully prepared to ... raise my hand and point at the 18 year old girl ... but I never have too.
The CRAZY mother - gathered up her CRAZY kids - and left. I could hear her drilling her boy as they walked out the door, "Did they tell you to sit down? Did they?" and her annoyingly LOUD voice then faded ... into the darkness of the night. Along with her CRAZY boys!
Shortly after she left ... MIA mother #2 showed up and casually rounded up her hooligans, Ethan and baby brother ... and slipped into the darkness as well.
The 18 year old girl, stood up, leaned over the desk, looked at me and rolled her eyes and smiled. I just shook my head.
On the upside ... It's a good thing my mother bit her tongue - she would have never won that fight (these were two really BIG women)!!