We got home from preschool today, had lunch, and headed upstairs because both girls were Grumpeeeeee.

It wasn’t quite naptime, but they were both struggling to pull it together and play. After about 20 minutes, we all took a break lying on Rachel’s bedroom floor. Hannah found a spot with her blanket nestled under one of my arms. Rachel felt like she had been displaced, so I encouraged her to nestle under the other arm. We all closed our eyes.

Suddenly, Rachel, in all seriousness, says, “It smells like a skunk in here. Is there a skunk?”

Hannah’s diaper was wet, but she hadn’t pooped. I impatiently said, “No, there isn’t a skunk in here.”

A few more minutes went by. Rachel was quiet, but I could tell she was unsatisfied.

Then it suddenly occurred to me that her nose was nestled directly into my armpit and I had forgotten to put deodorant on. In my defense, I wasn’t sweaty or even that smelly, but if you had your nose smashed up against my armpit, it was going to be unpleasant, to say the least.

Another minute went by and I tried to decide whether to explain to Rachel why it smelled to her. I wasn’t really in the mood to give a puberty lesson, but I was feeling slightly sorry for her with her nose right there.

So finally I said, “You know, the reason that you are probably smelling a skunk is that I forgot to put deoderant under my arms this morning.”

“What?” She thought about it for a minute.

Then I explained that when people become teenagers their armpits sometimes smell and they have to start wearing deodorant. She had always wanted to wear deoderant, but never knew what it was for.

Suddenly, she started laughing and laughing. We laughed together on the floor for about two or three minutes.

When she stopped, she said, “This was like having a big arm meeting.”

Then she sighed and said, “I’m tired of laughing. Are you?”

I really wasn’t. It was such a relief after all the whining.

Now excuse me while, I go put on some deodorant.