Nine years old is a time for a lot of things, it turns out. There are the hormones and the friends, and then there are the daily dramas, real and imagined. It is also the time of ridiculous jokes, constant puns, and the ever present jinx. If you have kids or remember being one, you know that there are rules around jinx and that they are unflinchingly rigid. Basically, it goes like this: if two or more people say the same thing at the same time, one must say, “JINX!” followed by “you owe me _______.” In the heyday of

In the heyday of jinx, or my heyday with it at least, the common answer was, “You owe me a coke.” Daughter was taught jinx by some friends and while they often said “soda,” she decided that you could say anything. We have heard all sorts of things from her that she attempts to make us owe her, such as microscopes, trips to Disneyland, costumes, microscopes, movies, etc. She is nothing if not ambitious.We did, of course, explain to her that really isn’t how it works. A simple coincidence of saying “please pass the butter” at the same time does not get you a several thousand dollar vacation. Nope. Jinx has had a lot of discussions in my house, certainly more, I thought, than it deserved.

Then yesterday I was cleaning our floor, and Husband was helping Daughter get ready for bed. I heard them both say, “I love you,” and then Daughter added a loud “JINX! You owe me… a hug!” This is the best jinx I’ve ever heard. I loved jinx in that moment. I hope it never goes away.