it's a wrap

Last night, there were 4 teenage boys at my house.  All attend the same high school, and two had just watched their team win the semi-final game of the state play-offs.

I was in my room, and they were between the XBox upstairs and the television downstairs.  At about 11:30, I got up to check on them, turn off the lights, lock the doors, etc.  The TV was blaring, but there was not another sound in the house.  The absence of 4 teenage boys is a deafening sound.

I checked bedrooms, balcony, backyard, garage...not a trace.  Looked down the street...listened in the quiet neighborhood.  Nothing.  Called their cell phones.  Nothing.  So - not wanting to tell two other parents that I had lost their children - I got into my mom-mobile to search the streets.

A few blocks over, I saw toilet paper fluttering from the trees.  Hmmm......Not a very professional job, I must say.  And the mess...they left a roll in the street.  And bits and pieces like a bread crumb trail.

They saw me as I left, and so they arrived home before I did (and called me when they did).  They knew they were caught.  And truth be told, I was more upset that they had left without saying anything than the actual TP'ing.  Of course, if they would have said they were leaving, I would have surely told them, "no". 

So at nearly midnight, I was following them in my car while they picked up most of the mess that they had made....the scraps of paper and half used rolls in the street.  I think they were having the time of their lives.  I have been hearing rumblings of such a plan for quite a while, and last night, all the pieces fell into place for them to put it into action.  One of my offspring called it a "Celebration Wrap" in honor of their team winning a place in the State Championship game next weekend.

This is where the Mom Manual falls short.  On the one-hand, a fairly harmless rite of passage.   On the other hand, in this day and age of crazy people, not the best late night activity.  Am I a slacker mom if I don't get horribly upset about this?  Or are my children beginning a life of criminal activity with this (I have some mom friends who's children would n.e.v.e.r do such a thing!)

And then tonight, I snapped this picture of 3 of the 4.  My oldest has discovered his talents as a bar-b-q chef.  They thawed the steaks, seasoned them, and cooked them on the grill.  Medium rare.  And then sat down at the table like normal people to eat their one-course man meal.

Not sure what the attraction is with the white hat (that I used to wear in high school, I think).  But he can bar-b-q some mean steaks.