The Ice Cream Alarm

So, a few months ago, I got this idea from a friend's post on facebook.  She and her husband put their kids to bed, and then sounded the ice cream alarm...everyone had to get up, get in the car and go get ice cream in their pajamas.  Tonight, seemed like a good night to try it.  It is spring break, the weather was pretty today, and let's face it...I wanted ice cream.  So, we got the kids bathed and in their pajamas.  I didn't want to go as far as actually putting them to bed, because that just sounded like a beating.  So, right before they were to go to bed, Mark got our weather radio and started sounding the alarm on it, and we ran through the house and told the kids to get in the car.  We were laughing and smiling, but the kids were a little freaked out.  They kept asking what was going on.  When we got in the car, I told them, "it's the ice cream alarm!  We're going to get ice cream." 
Here are just a few of the comments that followed...all of these took place on the way to get ice cream, or on the way back:

"What?!?!  You scared us half to death!!"  (Aidan)

"Mommy, don't do the ice cream alarm again.  It's not funny."  (Ella)

"Maybe yelling 'get out of the house! hurry!  get in the car!' was a little over the top."  (Mark)

"Don't worry about us, we're just sitting in the back seat, scarred, eating ice cream in our pajamas."  (Aidan)

"That wasn't funny."  (Ella)

"Ella, I have to tell you something.  Our parents have problems." (Aidan)

"Ice cream alarm.  Bad idea."  (Ella)

"I'm in my pajamas, but I didn't even go to bed.  I don't like the ice cream alarm." (Ella)

"Maybe next time we could just get ice cream."  (Aidan)

"The ice cream alarm is not funny."  (Ella)

So, maybe they were just a little traumatized by us running through the house sounding the weather alarm while yelling, "Hurry!  Get out of the house!"  (Okay, so that part was all me...I get a little carried away sometimes.)  At least they will have a good story for their therapist some day.  Sorry kids.