The Circus at the Breakfast Table

Is it just my household, or do other people's children behave this way?

It seems like every morning when I come down to the kitchen, there's a circus going on.
In trying to teach my older children a little independence, I'm allowing them to get their own breakfast in the morning. The result of this is that the bench gets strewn with bowls, cereal, milk galore, cups, toast, jam, the teaspoon drawer empty and just about every bread spread known to man is lined up along the bench waiting to be used, like a smorgasboard of condiments. The only one that does get used is the jam, and I have to spend precious minutes putting all the rest of it back on the shelves, because by the time breakfast is over the children have shrunk and tell me they can't reach that high. Hmmmm.

To add to the hilarity, oldest son is chasing oldest daughter around the room in an attempt to kidnap and torture her much-loved teddy. He stops when I come in the room. Whereupon one of the children, (I forget now which one) breaks out into the Wiggles in soprano.

Younger son is standing on his chair at the table talking about how tall he's getting, demandng that I look and enforce his announcement by agreeing with him that yes indeed, he is getting tall. Now please sit down and finish your Milo before you spill it.

It takes several stern reminders to get them to actually sit down at the table and eat their breakfast.

Then youngest daughter gets up, and fortunately all she wants is cuddles and breastmilk.

Long may it last.