So go to the dentist!

I am going to tell this story despite the fact that I've told it twice and it did little or nothing for those audiences. It's because it made me crack up with laughter in the middle of class!
First of all, it's not the one about the tooth fairy. That was last week, when one of my 7 year olds lost her tooth in the middle of class. Just for fun, when I found out she'd put the tooth under the pillow, I asked her what her tooth fairy looked like.
She thought a second, then said, "I don't know." Another pause, then added, "But she's rich!"
That was funny for sure.
But this- this is family humor. So I have to give family history. My mom's side gets the kind of hard of hearing where they think they hear, or partially hear, and fill in the blanks. Well, my Mom does. The funny thing to us is how badly off these guesses can be. Some make sense, like, "Mom, my feet are killing me." To which she replied, "Go to the dentist!"
Others, not so much. Like, "Guess who I saw last week? Ryan Stanley!"
"What, King Henry the Eighth?"
True stories.
So, today, when a little girl, who was crammed between her seat and the table told me that "My bum is stuck in the _____," I had every right to think that the last word was chair.
"Your bum is stuck in the chair? Well, move it!" seemed like the logical response.
But, after a puzzled look and a suppressed grin, she replied,
"NO, Mrs. Paulson, my BALL IS STUCK IN THE TREE."
I've officially become my mom!