Nate, my doppelganger, even in language

Way back when Jon and I were dating, Jon's mom Roxane made a memorable meal. While cooking, she dropped a glass and it shattered everywhere, including into the vegetarian pasta dish she had so thoughtfully planned and prepared. We sat around the table chewing, occasionally crunching into shards of glass. I was raised to be polite but I had to draw the line at eating glass. At the time, she made a joke this would be a story we would tell our kids one day.

I still crack jokes to Roxane about feeding us glass. I try to get it in at unexpected times, such as the last time she visited and asked what we wanted for dinner. My answer - I'd like some glass pasta please.

Before Jon and I left on our solo vacation to San Fran, we told Roxane and my mom Jen that Nate had a really bad habit of tipping his chair back at the kitchen table. We had tried everything to get him to stop - explaining it was DANGER!, timeouts on the rug, timeouts in their room, no tv, no dessert - but he continued to do it. The first day we were on vacation, Nate tipped back in his chair, the chair fell over, and Nate banged his head on the ground.

Of course the moms did not tell us this story until after we got back from vacation, and they felt really bad about it. Jon and I were not upset because everyone was fine and much worse accidents have happened on our watch. And honestly, I must be a horrible mom because my first thought was, "That will teach Nate not to tip back in his chair."

It hasn't stopped him. He still does it. He tips back and says, "Danger! Fall down. Bump the head. Grandma Roxane." I wonder if Nate will forever tease Roxane for that one.