My dad was Switzerland. He didn't want to get involved in any of it. I am pretty sure that he was silently rooting for my sister and me, but when backed into a corner he would always turn into the enforcer for mom.

Since it was basically us against my mom and she could not watch everything we did, she would try to rule by remote control. This would involve her yelling at us from three rooms away to make sure we were not shaving the dog or doing anything else that would send her to the funny farm.

"What are you kids up to?" she bellowed.

"Noooothing," we sang in the sweet unison of children who were really doing something pretty awful.

"Are you playing with matches?" she screeched.

"NOooooo," we said in the tone that all kids use to lie with. In fact, I am pretty sure that it would pass a lie detector test because when kids say "NOooooo" they know it means yes.

"Are you doing anything that involves any harmful chemicals?"

She continued through on her laundry list of things we could be doing: "Could what you are doing be fatal?" "Will it require professionals to clean-up?" and "Will the SPCA need to be contacted?"

Every question got the same answer: "NOooooo." This continued until mom got so fed up she got up to see what we were doing.

Fortunately for us, this usually took long enough for my sister and me to run away from the scene of the crime.

That was then. Now mom is grandma, and it's amazing how she is no longer the enemy. In fact, she has become an ally.

She came to visit last week. Before our son was born, my wife and I would entertain my parents by taking them out to movies or some other local hot spot. Now, my mom comes alone (apparently bringing my father would only cut down on the amount of time my mom can hold our son) and she baby-sits so my wife and I can go out and have fun. ("Having fun" as defined by parents means going shopping for more baby junk.)

Grandma likes to get us out of the house because she can do all the things with our son that my wife (who, strangely enough, is now the mom) won't allow because she is afraid he will get hurt.

As dad, I have to try to be Switzerland, but it is really hard.

When we came home from shopping, my wife started cleaning up the house while grandma, my son and I went into a back bedroom to look at his new toys.

We tore open the packages and started playing with the stuff. Grandma laughed. My son giggled. I was just trying to be Swiss, but I cracked and shoved a colorful rattle into my son's mouth.

"You are not opening those toys and letting our son put them in his mouth before they can be washed, are you?" the new mom yelled from the kitchen.

We all stopped laughing. My son knew we were in trouble and he looked back and forth between grandma and dad.

I looked into my mom's eyes and I saw the fun, carefree spirit that I never saw when she was just my mom. Not having to worry all the time will do that for you, I guess.