Stone Soup by Jan Eliot for March 01, 2009

Wow! Time to hire a sitter and take yourself out for a “personal sanity day”!

She’s only GOT three fingers!

That’s true. How strange to draw them with only 3 fingers on each hand.

That’s a comics standard. It’s faster than drawing 4.

Traditionally, the three-finger standard is said to have begun with Mickey Mouse. Supposedly Walt Disney figured that giving Mickey four fingers on each hand would, through the thousands of drawings necessary to comlete an animated cartoon, cost a great deal of time and money while resulting in very little increased information. A three-finger cartoon hand can do just about everything a four-fingered one can, like make a recognizable fist, play a piano, or even flip someone the bird. Just about the only thing that it COULDN’T convey is a Vulcan salute. :-)

But if three fingers are easier and more economical than four, that doesn’t mean that two fingers would be even better than three. Everycody would look like Nightcrawler.

Did she kidnap Calvin?

Wow, I don’t remember that situation being *so* incredibly tough; esp. since Joan does have a cooperative hubby, and her Mom around. I’m no hero and it was livable; my buddies with three preschoolers used to say that 3 feels like lots more than one added to 2 (maybe because moms have only two eyes and two hands to go round!). But the worst I knew was FOUR kids under 4 - a three 1/2 y.o., a set of 18 month twins, plus a newborn. Now that WAS insanity…

arceedee how did you survive? i babysit all the time. And Firday i had 5 kids for about 3 hours the yongest was 9 months, then 2years, 4 years, 7years, and 9 years. they drove me crazy. and the older ones just provoked the younger ones. then we were out side. i want kids but the first will have to be out of dipers before i have a 2nd one. and so fort. not that i want more then 3 kids.

I am a teacher, and a mom of 3- all grown,tabbylynn. If you get crazy with a lot of kids, it’s because you need some training, that’s all. How else would teachers survive? You need to read up on how to manage them before having them for best results. Montisorri methods are the cream dela cream. Good Luck!

tabbylynn my friend….. I only had a couple of kids, like Joan in today’s strip. It was an acquaintance who lived with her four kids under 4 - if it HAD been me, I probably wouldn’t be writing this today, just running around in circles yelling woohoo! woohoo! like Daffy Duck :) (the four grew up to be a very nice family, I must say). And teaguemj is right, practice, time, reading and training are the ticket to stress-free kidminding. With one of my grandsons in Montessori school, I agree about their methods.

http://tinyurl.com/dykmse

It is too bad that time with kids is assumed to energize a loving parent. If spouse says, “Where do we want to go on vacation?” it is a very strong personality who can say back, “Could you and the kids go? I’ll stay home and do the 50 projects that are annoying to begin/keep organized/complete with kids in the house!”