We have two boys – one on one they are a handful; collectively they can be a nightmare.

From time to time, I find myself working later than anticipated and on more than one occasion they have been fixtures in my office for long periods. I tense up just  thinking about the wrestling matches, verbal wars and paper clip fights I have broken up and I’m sure Jo Anne has found office items in places she never thought possible, thanks to my boys.

As I am writing this blog, I can hear them in their room arguing over what channel to watch on TV. It’s amazing how they can disagree over the same thing day in and day out like it’s the first time.

I have been criticized for my parenting skills because to some it seems as if I am ‘hands-off’ or 'uninvolved' in their mischief. The truth of the matter is that I believe boys will be boys. Children disagree over small things; brothers will fight over nothing; but it all works out in the end.

When things aren’t going quite the way I planned and I am ready to pull out my hair, I think about families who aren’t as fortunate as I have been: the couples who try for years to have children of their own without success; the children who are confined to wheelchairs and hospital beds who would love to be running and the parents of those children who would to chase them. I think about my parents and grandparents who remember the days when I was young and wish somewhere deep in their hearts they could relive those magical years.

In short, in spite of all the shouting, petty arguments, wrestling matches and messes I have cleaned up at the mercy of my children, I am lucky to have had them to drive me crazy.