My parents used to mention grandkids a lot. It started a little after we had gotten married until my parents realized that they didn’t want to feel old and be called “grandma” or “grandpa.” The baby mumblings quieted down significantly until about a year ago. Suddenly, every other conversation ended up being steered towards children in some way. Not that they were pressuring me to have kids, of course. They just wanted to tell me the funny/cute/endearing story about the baby/toddler/child they saw. No ulterior motive, of course.

I finally told them that we wanted to wait until I was done with school before we even began thinking about kids. This appealed to their logic and they promised not to mention grandkids to me until May of 2010. However, my parents are sneakier than I give them credit for.

My aunt casually texts me to say that I should have kids. If they had grandbabies, my parents might have flown out from Texas for Thanksgiving.

My sister visits them and calls me to say “they talked about babies like ALL weekend. I think they want you to start having kids.”

Instead of harassing me directly, my parents are using relatives and other loved ones to pass along baby musings. I guess they technically kept their word, since they never said anything to me directly. The next time I use loopholes to get my way, however, Dan will know that the trait comes from both sides of my family.

I recently decided to take December off from film and theatre projects. There was going to be one small exception, but the schedule conflicted with my parents and sister’s trip home. So I decided to skip that project as well. This gives me plenty of time to paint my nails get ready for the holiday season and finish up the semester with a bang.

Dan and I often have flippant discussions and debates. In reality, they are hardly debates. I give my opinion, he gives his and then we both agree that his is wrong. It’s a mutual agreement, I swear. Every once in awhile, we will have a serious discussion that somehow morphs into yet another silly conversation.

Me: I’m going to get a job in January.
Dan: I think you should wait until after you graduate in May. Next semester is going to be a hard one for you. And your schedule doesn’t give a whole lot of free days for work.
Me: But I’m worried about our finances if I wait that long.
Dan: We’ll be fine. I should get a raise and a bonus check in February that will last us. Plus we’ll have the money from your grant.
Me: But then I’m going to get used to be a spoiled housewife and will whine when I have to go back to work.
Dan: In that case, you are required to write about 35% of my papers next semester in exchange for your spending money.
Me: What about the housework and cooking? Are we going to continue to split that 50/50?
Dan: *snort*
Me: Why are you laughing?
Dan: Do you really think we split the cooking 50/50?!
Me: Well, kinda! I claim the times we eat out and have dinner at your parents’ too. I think that makes my portion more like 60%.
Dan: What about the litter boxes? Are we going to split that chore 50/50?
Me: …come to think of it, keeping score isn’t healthy for our relationship.