Brainwashing my children

Tara's latest blog entry is about Emma's answers to a number of Mother's Day questions. Today started "Mother Appreciation Week" here at our place, I had Tara ask the other girls the same questions. Some of the answers:

"How old is your Mom?" - Ruth's answer: Just bigger.

"Where was your Mom born?" - Ruth's answer: At the church.

"How did your Mom and Dad meet?" - Mary's answer: Mom saw Daddy holding up a sign at the bookstore.

This shows 2 things, first, Ruth's in her own little world sometimes. I'm surprised the answers didn't involve the preschool she hopes to go to soon. (But she's not going there for a year and a half...) Secondly, my stories are starting to take hold in the legends. I'll admit, the story about the bookstore technically is true, but isn't really how we met. I just like to tell it that way.

The story?

Back in the day, one late February it was very warm outside, I didn't have much to do. They were building the expansion to the library then on the North side of the building, so nearly all campus foot traffic ended up on the South side of the bookstore during class breaks. It was a good place to set up booths for clubs or whatever. That warm day, I ended up grabbing a textbook, and went to the bookstore. I went and got a big piece of poster board and a marker, and made a sign that said "I'm looking for a wife, please stop and talk to me." I set the sign up at one of the booths and sat down to read my book. (Or sort of read, I only got through about 10 pages in 90 minutes.)

I got lots of reactions. Most of them were disbelief at what they were reading. I thought the reactions were hilarious. Quite a few people stopped to talk to me, more girls than I actually expected to talk to. (I was mostly in it for the reactions it would get from people walking by. Quite a few girls came by...) A photographer for the school paper came around and took a picture, but it never ended up in the paper. One lady came by and told me all about her 4 daughters. To top it all off, Tara walked by, and when she saw me, said "What are you doing?" I just pointed out the sign, since it was fairly self explanatory. I think she was a little shocked, and a little not so much shocked. (It was me doing it, after all.) Hilarious.

Well, the sign clearly worked. I went out there with the sign, and one of the girls that walked by that day eventually married me. I call that a success.

Tara calls it twisting the facts. We had known each other for some time at that point, although we hadn't been dating to that point.

Anyway, if I am asked how we met, I use that story. It's still good for getting reactions. Tara gives the best reaction when I tell that story, she sticks to her guns - "That is not how we met..." Anyway, based on Mary's answer, my stories are sinking in, despite Tara's efforts to mold history in the way she wants...