I Just Don't Understand

Just this afternoon a dear friend and I were briefly discussing some of the strange things boys say and do and how we, as females, do not understand their ways.  When she dropped Isaac off from school he and his buddy were deep in serious conversation about stomachs exploding and heads falling off (or something of the sort).  This is what originally spawned the conversation.

And as the adage goes, boys will be boys.

But it doesn't mean that their actions aren't totally foreign to us females.

Tonight Caleb was done with his evening chores before his brothers.  He was on dish duty and his brothers were on playroom duty and Caleb was diligent to go fast.  He asked to play.  I, of course, obliged him.  He came to me a few minutes later with three real screwdrivers and this was his desperate plea.  "Mom, can you please find me something to poke holes in!!"  My first reaction was, "No crazy boy!  Go find something else."  But then I took a step back, tried to relate to his need to attack something, and went out to the recycle bin to find him some sort of cardboard box.

It's not that he needed to be violent.  He just needed to poke holes.  And he was perfectly happy doing so.   He even proudly showed me his handiwork at the end, to which all I could respond was, "Wow!  Such great holes!!"  Evidently, that sort of praise was exactly what he was looking for because he walked off brimming with pride.

Totally strange to my female mind.

Totally awesome and perfectly normal to him.

The other day Caleb and Joshua were playing so nicely together outside.  I knew something was up.  They usually fight constantly (so unlike my older two).  I went out and found them building a fire in the back of their Dad's truck.  They were carting wagons full of wood out from the back to the front, actually working together to load it, and then building a "fire" just like their Dad has taught them to (little sticks and paper on the bottom, small logs, then big logs).  The only thing missing was the actual fire.  But why in the back of the truck?

And then there sat Miss Elle.  She was in on the whole thing too.  Except her role was to just sit in the wagon, catch a ride and look adorable.  No one told her to do it.  She just did.
 
It was as if she was totally unaware of the absolute exertion they were putting into carting her and all of that wood around...up and down the cement steps leading to the back and everything.  As they grunted and pushed to get her and their precious load around all sorts of obstacles, she just smiled.  I half expected her to ask one of them to fetch her a nice cold drink.  "Baba please!  Baba!!"  And they would have because they love her.  Now that was a typical scenario right there.  Beloved woman gets doted on by two adoring fans and it should be that way :)!

Being a woman, I totally get THAT.  Ha ha!  But all of the stomachs exploding talk, poking holes in boxes with a screwdriver, and the building of a manly fire in the back of a pick-up...

I just don't understand at all.

But I do adore it just the same.