Do you remember having a child's imagination?

Ok...breathe...not yet....almost not laughing...Ok....

Every now and then, you have a surprise in your day that inevitably has you wanting to stuff your nearest cloth item in your mouth to prevent a wholesale burst of what would be considered inappropriate laughter. Today, I had the pleasure of driving two little girls home from gymnastics. One is an only child, the other is one of mine. The conversation that followed went something like this:

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"No...I know the leprauchan and he doesn't like that. I know exactly what he likes and he doesn't eat real food. He doesn't like anyone really but he talks to me as he lives in my house. (News to me.) He wears green and will pinch anyone that doesn't wear green, especially on St. Patricks Day."

"Well," pipes up the only child, "In my family there are three children. Only my mom and dad and me are real. My brother and sister are older than me. They have three eyes. They have four arms and 70 legs. They only have one nose but it has 79 nostrils. (Can you imagine?) They are green all the time as they are aliens."

"Can you talk to them?"

"Well, they are invisible. They can only see invisible things. So if you hear a bumping noise in my house it is probably my sister running into the real things in my house. Did you know that not even the smartest people in the world can talk to my brother? Scientists are studying aliens to try and learn how to speak alien. I know them really well as they are my brother and sister, but I only know a couple of words. My brother doesn't speak any human at all. We don't know enough about Aliens."

"My leprauchan is invisible too. I bet they can see each other!"

"Yes, but is the leprauchan an Alien?"

"Not really, but he can change his shape."

(Eventually by the time I am home they have worked it out so that they are a team that communicates with Aliens and Leprauchans. They are drawing maps currently to discover locations like the Daddy Tickle Tunnel, Alien resting points, Leprauchan lunches." They are in full costume and regalia. They have a fishing net and are trying to catch invisible leprauchans.

I have to say, this is an amazing game. I had fully intended on doing laundry and perhaps some housework but who can concentrate when the best stage show is ongoing in my basement?

"All the leprauchans have to be captured and put into the tickle tunnel Mrs. Emma. The Daddy is missing. We have to control them." They are now princesses of leprauchans.

This might just be the best pot of gold ever!