Umm, something like that.

Michaela, Jenna and I were in the car the other day and I was explaining to her that our car (or "tar", as Jenna calls it) is very safe and big and heavy and we never have to worry about getting hurt if something hits us.

(Okay, that may be a slight exaggeration... I mean, we don't drive an Army tank but our big black SUV looks pretty daunting to the outside world- Don't mess with me and the precious cargo I hold, I like to think it says to the other cars on the road. And besides, I'm all about making things simple and easy for the girls to understand.)

So Michaela thinks about this for a second and says, "You mean, like a space meteor?"

I try not to laugh and say as gently and casually as I can, "Well, I was thinking of other cars, but yeah, we'd be safe from a space meteor, too."

A little later in the car ride, Jenna, who was still smarting from a ferocious talking-to I gave both girls that morning about not talking back, listening to and doing as Mommy tells us to, etc., asks in a very quiet voice, "Are you a good mommy or a bad mommy?"

Ouch.

I tried to reassure her that of course I am a good mommy and that I am a mommy who wants her girls to be good listeners and show good behavior.

And even later in the car ride, Michaela asked about a spot on Dan's arm where he donated blood at work. "Do you have to give your blood when you go to work?" she asked. I reassured her again that, no, Daddy chose to do that to help someone who might be hurt and need extra blood. "But does he have enough left? Doesn't he need it?" I told her it's like if you have four cookies and you give one to your friend who is hungry: you help him out and you still have three cookies left. (Which, incidentally, is the number of cookies I was allowed to have after dinner or for a snack when I was growing up. Is that the norm? Were some moms more strict and only gave their kids two? Did more lenient ones give four? or five? I have to consult Dan on this and see what the rule in his house was.)

She was satisfied with this response and said while she shuddered, "I'm NEVER giving my blood away at work!"