Wuthering Hyders

Irrational Fears

We all have them whether we admit to them in public (or even in private) or not. I, for one, can't sleep with the closet door open if I can see it. It's not that I think there's something in there that needs to be restrained. I really have no idea why. I'm also acrophobic, claustrophobic, and hydrophobic when it comes to large bodies of water (or even the deep end of a swimming pool). Depending on what I read before I go to sleep, I also tend to need a nightlight. Yes, I'm twenty-eight and I KNOW there's nothing there to be afraid of.

With all of my irrational fears, it's not surprising that my kids have a few, as well. Actually, I think Abby is pretty near normal, but Perrin... He was a sensitive soul from the beginning. He was clingy and cried a LOT. He doesn't like loud noises or the dark. Never has. Lately though, he's developed some bizarre (almost annoying) fears. The first is his fear of spiders, which, in and of itself, is not all that abnormal. What IS abnormal (at least in MY book), is the fact that he sees spiders EVERYWHERE. A piece of string. "Mommy! A 'pider!" A dust bunny. "Mommy! A 'pider!" A dead ladybug. "Mommy! A 'pider!" Cookie crumbs. "Mommy! A 'pider!" (Okay, I may have exaggerated the bit about cookie crumbs. Those he's more likely to lick off the floor.) He freaks out about there being "spiders" all over the house and I've only actually seen one in the house. He's like The Boy Who Cried Wolf. He says he sees spiders so often that I've started tuning him out.

His REALLY irrational fear is the garbage truck. Not the noise it makes. (Although, he's not fond of that either.) Oh, no. He's afraid that the garbage truck is going to take him to the dump. His eyes get all wide and his bottom lip sticks out when he hears the garbage truck (or anything that sounds like it) and he climbs into my lap and begins chattering worriedly about it taking him to the dump. I keep trying to reassure him that the garbage truck only takes garbage, not people. (I still don't know where he got the idea that the garbage truck DOES take people. Heath denies it was him.) It's not working. I'm really at a loss here. I suppose I'll just have to hope he grows out of it.

Aside from all of the spider hunting and garbage truck threatening I've been doing, I've been trying to make more time to read. This can be tricky unless I do something like hide in the basement closet or the clothes dryer (as I'm claustrophobic the dryer isn't really an option though) to get away from the kids for long enough to read more than five words. I've even been reading some non-fiction for a change. I picked a book on our trip to the library today called "Ambitious Brew". I'd tell you what it's about but I've only read the first twenty pages or so and it's about time to make dinner. It seems like it's going to be a good read, though. Not my usual subject matter, but good nonetheless. If you really want to know what it's about (Admit it. You're curious.) you'll have to Google it or Ask. I'm tired of doing all the work here.