Define: Emergency

I realize the kids and I have different definitions of "emergency"

It came to me as an epiphany as I was sitting on hold trying to decern if the sound coming out of the speaker was just the advertisements from the hold pattern/voice mail system or if it was an actual person picking up the line..

And the kids see the phone there and suddenly.. EVERYTHING is an emergency that needs immediate attention

-"MOM! JONMICHAEL put a marble in my piano!"
-"MOM!!! He hit me!"
-"MOOOM Kayla won't get out of my room!"
-"MOOOOOOMMMMMMM!!!!"
-"MOM! JONMICHAEL won't get out of my room!!"
-"Mom, can I have some milk?"
-"Mom, is it snack time?"
-"MOM! Joey's in the refridgerator!"
{CRYING}
{Screaching aka fake crying}

Mind you most of that is being said yelled at the same time and drowns out most thought in most adults. Much less the ability to hear.

What they didn't mention was that while I was on the phone...

Jon Michael took a stool to the counter, got up there, got the 5 lbs tub of coffee, put it on the ground and took the scooper and started scooping it onto the floor.

No.. THAT they forgot to mention.

There was an aroma of fresh coffee that met me as I re-entered the house..

Backing up to clarify:  Oh, yes.. I went outside.

Because I couldn't hear the person on the phone.
I was out there long enough to discover that the kids and/or military airfares were not actually cheaper than the web airfares, so.. maybe 2 minutes?

You should see what the do when the 4 of them work together and they have more than 2 minutes of indirect supervision. Like when on the phone for a week waiting for the good folks at the IRS.

IF ONLY they could harness that power to do something helpful.. like laundry.