Mommy Magic

Yesterday morning was the first chilly morning I remembered to take advantage of the great feature of remote start in my "new-to-me" car. Through the kitchen window I quickly started it up while I was finishing getting Bubby ready to head out the door. Tank had already went out himself, as usual.

When I got to the car to let Bubby in, I saw an unexpected site. Tank was sitting in his car seat, shaking, crying, and scared out of his mind. It took him a little bit to get it out but the gist of it was "the ccccaaarrr did that all by itself!!!" He was the most terrified I think I have ever seen him. Keep in mind, this kid is normally scared of NOTHING!

I couldn't help but giggle a little but managed to calm him down after a few miles down the road. All the while explaining that mommy can make the car do that with her keys and that the car is not going to drive off alone with him in it.

This morning as we walked out to the car together, Tank is mumbling to himself..."It's ok if the car starts itself", apparently reassuring himself that all is good. Since the remote start locks the doors, they were locked when Tank got there. After I heard him make a few tugs, I unlocked the doors with the remote. He jumped right in and said "Mommy, the car just opened the door for me!" Apparently the magic car is now his friend.

A Lesson in Sharing

I have long been fighting the sharing battle with the boys. For the most part, they actually do pretty well. But once in a while Tank turns into the Sharing Tattle Police and must "file a report" every time there is a sharing violation on Bubby's part.

Last night when we were getting ready for bed, Tank went to brush his teeth. I followed soon after with Bubby to help him brush his. What I found, was Bubby's toothbrush...wet. The main issue being, Bubby hadn't brushed his teeth yet. After a quick investigation, it was discovered that Bubby so nicely "shared" his toothbrush with Tank. Blah! Now, how to explain to a 2 and 4 year old that there are some things that we don't need to share? Oh my!

Cabin Fever & the Toots

Here are a few recent conversations in our house...


1. Cabin Fever

Tank: Ah, Mommy it's supposed to be summer already!

Me: I'm ready for it to be warm outside too buddy.

Tank: Go away stupid snow!! (As he looks out the window)

Me: It's going to get warmer soon and it will start to melt so we can see the green grass.

Tank: (Looks out the window again) But it's STILL there!

Me: Well it's going to take a little longer than that.


2. The Toots

Tank: Did you hear that mommy?

Me: Hear what?

Tank: I tooted!

Me: Ok buddy, but you don't need to tell everyone.

Tank: Oh, it's naughty to toot!

Me: No, it's not naughty. We just don't need to tell everyone when we do it.

Tank: Oh! Mommy did you know that toots make you poop??

Mommy: Alright tooter!

Selective hearing or maybe a poor choice of words...

A conversation after Tank's recent haircut...

Mom!: "Come here I see a couple long hairs I need to cut off your head."

Tank: "NO! Don't cut off my head!"

Sedation Please!

There have been better days than the one we experienced today. Tank had to get some dental work done, which we knew was not going to be easy. We decided to try the nitrous oxide approach and have it done in the office vs. the full sedation at the hospital. We were wrong. If I could turn back time, I would save Tank the pain and the rest of us a few gray hairs and guilt.

This photo was taken during the happy stage of the event. The "I just had my shots and am enjoying the strawberry smelling happy juice coming from the "elephant nose". And no that's not a smoke in his mouth, it's a cotton roll so he doesn't bite his lip...which ended up happening anyway in the end. This was the last somewhat "happy" moment of the day.

Shortly after this, all hell broke loose. After 2 hours, and a lot of blood, sweat, and tears, we finally got it all done.

For being such a trooper, he enjoyed a milkshake for lunch and then got to pick out a new toy at the store before heading home for a power nap. Tonight he told me "Oh mommy, I'm so proud of you!" Like I was the one who was put through the pain today. I'll admit, I'm a bit scarred from it but I've learned my lesson. If full sedation is an option for anything in life...TAKE IT!!!

Breakfast in Bed

In observance of Dr. MLK Jr Day, I slept in this morning. And of course by slept in, I mean I wasn't hassled by little people until around 7:30. Ahh, was a joy that was! But as I awoke, I hear a strange chomping sound coming from the other side of the bed. My first thought...uhhh, dog or child? Turns out, it was both. Tank apparently woke up a little earlier than I and decided to get some breakfast. I was pleased to see that he chose an apple. Not so pleased to see him sharing with the dog, straight off the apple! Puke!

Following in his mother's footsteps

Bubby has chosen to follow in his mama's footsteps and lose a tooth early, at the ripe old age of 2. We don't know how he did it or where the tooth ended up. I noticed a few days before Veterans' Day that his one of his bottom middle teeth was raised above the line with the others. When I went to check to see if it was loose on Veterans' Day, it was gone. So yes, apparently it was loose. We made his first trip to the dentist for the nontraditional trauma visit. She said all was fine and he must have just bumped it and wiggled it loose. Nothing to worry about. Except of course that like his mama, he won't have a tooth until probably 1st grade. At least he only lost one, and not both bottoms like I did.

No really...excuse the mess!

I have decided that all little boys should come with their own personal maid. Oh wait...I think I get that job. Well, in that case, I've been working overtime lately. These little monsters have been keeping me on my toes more than usual lately. Here's a few of the latest happenings...

1. The Great Cheesecake Disaster of 2010

After a recent trip to Des Moines for a work related seminar, I picked up my friend Tami a well deserved piece of Adam's Peanut Butter Cup Fudge Ripple Cheesecake from The Cheesecake Factory as a special thank you for allowing the boys to come at 6 am so I could make the trip to Des Moines that morning. When I went to get it from the refrigerator the next morning to take it to her, this is what I found...

Apparently Tank thought it looked pretty tasty too and had a midnight snack while the rest of us were sleeping. I think you could see the steam coming from my ears like a cartoon when I discovered it. Upon arrival at daycare that morning, he sadly told Tami "I'm sorry that I ruined your special treat" with the big brown eyes batting like he could get out of it with his cuteness. Grrr....

2. The "Artist"

This event wins the top prize for worst mess yet...hands down. Notice I didn't say worst mess ever, because I'm sure one of them will try to top it in the future.

One recent morning, I went to get Bubby out of his crib. As I neared the top of the stairs, I could smell the present waiting for me. Thinking it was just a nasty diaper, I approached his room preparing my nose. Turns out I should have prepared my stomach as well because I almost lost my breakfast when I saw what was really waiting for me. Bubby did have a extra nasty diaper that morning, however, it was what he did with it that made it the worst mess yet. He had taken the liberty to remove the diaper, toss a little of the contents out onto the floor, and proceeded to "paint" the entire crib, every rung mind you, along with every wall he could reach. He was covered head to toe with the diaper contents as well. As he stood there smiling with poo on his face (hurl!) I just froze, not knowing where to even start.

I attempted to use wipes to get him cleaned off enough that I could take him down to the bathtub. But at this point it was dried and not coming off with a simple wet wipe. (Hurl again!) So I did the extended arm carry and ran him down to the tub to soak it off. After he was all cleaned up, I changed my clothes as well because I still smelled it on me somewhere that I couldn't find. Turns out the smell was just embeded in my nose and wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. I returned to the scene of the crime, removed the bedding, and started to tackle the mess. I think I used a whole container of Clorox wipes on the crib and walls. But it still smelled. After giving up, I just opened the windows and hoped the windy day would help the cause. After a full day of airing out, the room was pretty close to being back to normal. I however, am scared for life. Ha!

3. Swiper No Swiping!

As you already know from the Cheesecake incident, Tank tends to get himself in trouble by stealing snacks and treats that he knows he shouldn't have. I have tried to curb this habit in several ways that haven't worked yet. Such as moving the treats to the highest shelf, out of sight. And putting locks on cabinets/appliances. But nothing stops him. Recently, I found 2 boxes of Little Debbie Honey Buns under his bed. Most of them were gone, with only a few lucky survivors. I have also found several bottles of juice on the kitchen floor during the night. All gone. On a recent Saturday morning, he got up early and helped himself into the deep freezer. Again, it has a lock on the top of it but it didn't stop him. He used the dog kennel to stand on top of it and reach the top lock to gain access. Then helped himself to a popsicle. I later found the popsicle wrapper and melted remains on an end table in the living room. This lead me to check the freezer that was still standing open. I also found the box & wrapper of a German Chocolate Bar that I had bought for a recipe. The entire bar was gone. It's no wonder that kid is always amped. He's pumped full of sugar!!

Refrigerator Reruns

Tank's reponse to leftovers for dinner...

Me: "Get up in your seat, it's time for dinner."

Tank: "Yeah!"

Me: "Here you go." (as I sit his plate in front of him)

Tank: "Awww, we SAW this already!"

Me: "Well you're seeing it again, so eat up!"

Do You Think I'm a Cute Kid??

Vote for Tank! His photo was chosen by Parents Magazine to be in the running for a weekly winner in the Cute Kid Contest. Vote today through Sunday for my favorite in the bunch!

Click HERE to vote for him!

Mess...after mess...after mess

I have spent WAY too much quality time with my Spot Bot lately. I don't know if there was some altered shift in the universe or what by the boys have been extra messy lately in their usual antics.

It mostly started last weekend when I woke up to find an opened container of ice cream sandwiches melting on the kitchen table. 2 were missing. I had a little bit of an idea where they went. After trying to salvage the remaining sandwiches by refreezing, I headed to the bathroom. The door knob was covered in a sticky dried chocolate substance that was clearly from the sandwich wafers.

The usual messes of the day followed. That night when I went to put Tank to bed, I noticed an usual pile of purposefully placed toys in his room. Did I even want to know what was under there? Probably not. While displacing the pile, I found my slippers...covered in chocolate. This can't be good. As I got to the bottom, I found the remains of those missing ice cream sandwiches. It appeared as if he put my slippers on and danced around on top of the ice cream as if it was going to disappear into the carpet to hide the evidence. Apparently when that went array, he averted to plan B...cover the crime scene with toys.

This mess wasn't anything I was going to be tackling that night. So I tried to pretend it wasn't there and went to bed.

On Sunday, I spent the morning moving the Spot Bot all around Tank's room to clean up the excessive ice cream disaster. On one of my trips downstairs to empty & refill the Spot Bot, I discovered some type of bodily fluid on the kitchen floor. I'm not sure if it was of the boy or dog origin but either way, it was disgusting. Thankfully it was on the vinyl and cleaned up quickly. Now, back to Tank's room upstairs. It took me most of the morning/early afternoon to get everything back in order.

I was on my way to put the Spot Bot back in it's resting area when I came across the progress the boys had made while I was cleaning upstairs. They had removed almost every toy & piece that went with it from a collection that I had gathered to send to a garage sale. Keep in mind, these toys were going to a garage sale because they no longer play with them. So why were they suddenly interested in them now that they were gathered & placed neatly in tubs for transport? Because they are trying to send me to the loony bin, that's why. After this episode, I found myself screaming out loud..."No more kids & no more pets...I'm done!!!" Now mind you, the decision whether or not to have more children has not been agreed on yet but this day pushed me much closer to the edge.

Fast forward 6 days to yesterday. Bubby has been having some tummy trouble the past couple days and Saturday it finally happened. Through some sort of Houdini like magician act, he managed to poop through a fresh diaper all over the floor. And then stand up and sit in it a couple times. Then, before I knew what happened, he ran around and sat a few other places. This is why I sometimes just need to put myself in time out and step behind a locked door and try to breathe...slowly. After another round with the Spot Bot, that mess was gone and Bubby was put down for a nap. After a few hours, I popped in to check on him. I found a dry diaper on the floor and a naked butt up in the air. I decided not to wake him by trying to put the diaper back on. After all, what was another mess? Although this one could be disastrous considering my 20 month old with tummy trouble was sleeping without a diaper. I tried not to think of what I was going to find later.

A while later, he awoke. I was actually excited to see that the mess that evolved from this potentially hazardous situation, wasn't as bad as I expected....no poop! Of course the bed was soaked, as was he. And there was a clear sign of the fact that he stood up and peed out of the crib onto the floor. This left a wet spot on the carpet about 2 feet from the crib followed by a little wet line all the way back to the crib. This was mostly cleaned up with a Sham Wow and a little "Kids 'n Pets" cleaner. The Spot Bot needed a rest.

By the way, I have 2 little boys for rent. But there are still 2 more days left in this long weekend. They may be for sale or free by Monday. Also, for any of you that are thinking of having kids or have newborns, you might as well save yourself a panicked trip to Walmart and buy a Spot Bot & lots of cleaning solution right now!

Highlights

So many stories, so little time! Here are the highlights around our home over the past few weeks:

• Tank has been picking cherries off our tree this week. He brings them to me 1 at a time and says I can put them in a cake. Thankfully he hasn't asked to try the cake yet - because I generally just toss them in the trash when he leaves the room. I have childhood hatred issues against that tree and all days I was subjected to monotonous pitting of those God forsaken cherries. But alas, tonight he lost a battle with the tree. I wasn't present to witness the event but I was told that he was halfway up the tree when he fell out and bumped all the way down. So now he's sporting a nice giant bandage on his face where the worst of the contact was made. From the looks of the battle scars, the tree won.

• Bubby has taken on a budding personality. He seems to be thinking he's a big shot now who can demand his every want and desire and it shall be granted. Well he's wrong. He's going to learn real young that life is full of disappointment. And stomping your feet and screaming doesn't always get you what you want. But on the flip side, he's turned into quite the comedian. He is constantly turning heads and making people laugh. His latest game is affectionately entitled "Gitch yew!" He runs around to every person in site and touches them quickly and shouts "Gitch yew!" and runs away. This goes on for hours. Ahhh, cheap entertainment.

• Our newest member of the family joined us about a month ago. Remi is our new miniature pinscher. She is 2 years old and full of spunk. I never thought I would see a creature that could wear out the energetic boys that we have, but I was wrong. She has a battery that never quits! We have found that she likes to dart out of the house whenever she sees the opportunity. She has taken several tours of the acreage. Our discovery has been that Tank seems to be the only one that can catch her. But to her demise, he likes to carry her back into the house dangling from her collar. Good thing she's not a heavy dog.

Tattle Tail!

We've got a tattler! On Sunday, Daddy was laying on the floor with a blanket and Tank wanted it. When Daddy didn't give it up, Tank came running to be and proclaimed "Daddy's not sharing!"

Then a short while later, I let my mouth slip and called something "stupid". Tank prompted scolded me with a stern "Mommy, don't say that! That's naughty!"

Well, at least I know he hears me once in a while when I'm rambling on and on.

Playin' Outside!

Baby Blues!

Get your motor runnin'!

ABC Jam Time!

This was much more energetic before he realized I was peaking in with the camera...

(P.S. Scroll to the very bottom on the page and Pause the other music before you play the video)

TMI & the Easter Bunny!

While we waited for the egg hunt to start in Williamsburg today, the boys played in the park. Correction...Tank played like crazy and Bubby sat back and watched, like usual. At one point, Tank proclaimed from the top of the slide..."I tooted! Mommy, I tooted" Of course everyone laughed as Daddy and I slouched and shook our heads, trying to pretend we didn't know the little boy full of "too much information".

After the flatulence had cleared, the egg hunt began. There was a 5 egg limit per child, which I figured would be a hard thing to explain to Tank when there were hundreds of eggs all over the place. But he actually handled it well. I think he was overwhelmed by the amount of kids...there were tons! Bubby didn't even want to pick up the eggs. He was extremely overwhelmed and on sensory overload. Once Tank was done over in his age group, he hopped (pardon the pun) over to Bubby's group and helped him out.

I should mention that the day started with this...

So when the Easter Bunny was transported over to the park for the egg hunt, via a firetruck with blazing sirens, Bubby was less than impressed. He actually screamed and clung to me every time I tried to put him down after he witnessed that horrific site.

But I do have to give him credit, Tank wouldn't even go near the Easter Bunny.

Bilingual Kids & Hereditary Traits

Remember the posting about Tank counting in Spanish? Remember how I commented that I hoped he didn't start using words that I didn't know? Well it's started. He was standing in front of the refrigerator shouting "aperire!" Apparently that means "open" in Spanish. I had to watch Diego to officially learn that this morning. As if it's not hard enough to translate what a 3 year old is trying to say in English. Now it's in Spanish. I'm going to have to get a Spanish Dictionary to be able to communicate with my kid.

On another note, since it was so nice out today, we spent the afternoon outdoors. Tank was riding his over powered Power Wheels (see 11/8/09 post) while Daddy & I built some shelves in the shop. I noticed that he stopped riding, got his wagon, and headed over towards the scrap pile. I figured it was picking up sticks in his wagon and taking them to the pile like we did last weekend. But...I was wrong. It wasn't much longer when he returned with his find. Last fall, one of his tricycles broke and ultimately ended up in the scrap pile. Apparently he didn't know its location until today. So when he spotted it, he was determined to retrieve it. He dug it out himself and put it in his wagon, along with the broken axle that had fallen off. He pulled it back over to the shop and said "Mommy fix it!" Now, I can fix a lot of things. But there was a reason that tricycle met its doom.

So after today, my fears have been confirmed. He definitely has the genes in him that prevent him from letting things go. And I have the fear now that he may be following in his grandpa's foot steps and have a hard time getting rid of things that may have potential. Now I'll be the first to admit that the apple didn't fall far from the tree and I have my own problems too. But...let's remember who put that tricycle to rest in the first place.

Do you hear that?!

Can you believe that it is so quiet in my house tonight that I can hear an owl hooting outside? It's very eerie if you ask me! I had plans to meet my college girlfriends today so Daddy took Tank & Bubby to go see his family, and then went on to practice with his band. They aren't back yet so I'm sitting alone in a quiet house. I almost feel like I'm doing something that I shouldn't be doing. You know? But for now, I will enjoy it! It will be chaos in about an hour I'm sure.

The boys have been up to their usual antics. Tank is still proving everyday that yes he can find more ways to get in trouble & hurt himself in the process. I can't help but shake my head every time he hurts himself doing something he shouldn't. He gets up and says "I'm fine!" and goes on his way. If he would have gotten hurt while he wasn't doing something he shouldn't be doing, he would be screaming and running for sympathy. Funny how that works.

Bubby has turned into quite the little thief. I can't count the times that I hear a drawer slowly close and then hear little footsteps running away. The faster he runs, the more likely it is that he really shouldn't have what he has in his hands. He likes to steal things from Daddy's tool drawers and also from the bathroom drawers. I have found several piles of Q-tips in various places around the house. As well as little pieces of toilet paper. He likes to steal a roll and then slowly tear it apart and drop the evidence around the house. And of course the day wouldn't be complete if there weren't a tampon in the toy box or a pad in the cereal cupboard.

Clean It Up!

Friday night I was giving the boys a bath as usual. The phone rang so I grabbed it quick. When I turned back around, Bubby had the nastiest look on his face. And I soon discovered why. He had grabbed the soap and taken a bite. Blah! I tried to dig it out but I think I was making it worse. He had chomped on it so much that it was stuck in his teeth too. The mere thought makes me want to vomit. He was gagging and salivating quite a bit. I thought maybe using his toothbrush to get it out of his teeth might help but I think that prompted more gagging. After a few drinks, he was alright. Hopefully that was his first and last attempt at that.

Uno dos tres...

Dora & Diego are definitely teaching Tank something new everyday. As I was peeling an orange for his lunch, he stood by the trash and each time I dropped a piece of peel into the trash he would count...uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco...etc. He got to 8 before he lost interest. I'm far from bilingual (except for your basic German) so I can't take credit for this one. But I'm sure the source would have to be his fave Nickelodeon cartoons. I just hope he doesn't start using any words that I don't know.

We're Going Streaking!

We're going streaking!! No, we didn't have an "Old School" reenactment. Well, maybe we did. Some of you may remember Tank's love for stripping down and sleeping in only what God gave him. Well...it seems he has passed this trait to his little brother. Today I put Bubby down for a nap with just his diaper on because he has been running a fever and was quite uncomfortable. When I went to get him up later in the afternoon, he had taken his diaper off and thrown it out of the crib onto the floor. And was running around in the crib with a bare butt. I'm glad to report that he at least waited until he was done with his nap, therefore the majority of his pee was contained. Which was not the case about a week ago when I went to check on Tank in the morning and found him shining his rear to the world. He however had not waited until morning to bare it all. He stripped before going to sleep and left a lovely overnight mess, all over the bed.

On a slightly related note, many of you also know that we have been working for the past year it seems, on potty training Tank. We're still not there, but we're getting closer. This morning he had an accident in his underwear so we were changing him in the bathroom. Bubby strolled in as he usually does and proceeded to throw up all over himself and the floor. Tank was dancing around like he had to pee more so I jumped him up on the toilet to avoid another round of bodily fluids in places they don't belong. Oy Vey!

Computer Hog

If you haven't heard me rambling on about the ClickStart My First Computer by LeapFrog then you are probably in the minority of my friends and family. Tank got this for his birthday last year and got several games for Christmas as well and he hasn't looked back since. He has learned so much from this learning game that he's a totally new boy. As many of you know, he was a real late talker. Up until about 4-5 months ago, he only said a few words here and there. I don't know if this game is to thank for his recent blossoming or not but I'm going to praise it anyway. He is now talking nonstop, knows his shapes, colors, ABC's, and numbers. So if you are looking for a fairly inexpensive, learning game that will even give you some quiet time for yourself while your child learns...this is it!

Since this game hooks to your TV (we just set it up on a 13" so he has his own setup) Tank hasn't been on our computer yet. But since he's a keyboard and mouse whiz now he thinks he can use our computer too. Tonight I was being quite productive (ahem!) and playing a game on Facebook. After a quick break to put Bubby to bed, I came back to see Tank in my spot playing my game. When I asked him to move, he stated very matter-of-factly "I'm working!" Apparently I have used that excuse before when I've been on the computer. I guess we've reached the point now that he's going to bust me on my "fibs".

Got him!

Remember that mouse that I posted about several weeks ago? Well he got me again yesterday. I was walking into the kitchen and he ran across the counter. ICK! A mouse on the floor is one thing but on the counter...absolutely disgusting! So I waged war again and rebaited the traps, determined to get the little sucker.

Well sometime during the night, I got him. But the story doesn't end there. Apparently, the cat isn't up for mousing much anymore since she is fed in a nice warm house now. But...catch a mouse in a trap for her and she'll take it. So she ran off with the mouse, trap & all. She had her snack and apparently abandoned the trap when she was done. Wait, I failed to mention that since the head gets stuck in the trap - she couldn't get that out. So...leave it to Tank to run across the trap and bring it to the kitchen. He just set it on the table and left it. So I come into the kitchen, not even knowing that I caught the mouse in the first place, and see a trap with a mouse head stuck in it - laying on the kitchen table. BLAH!! I think that might be worse than the darn thing running across my counter! I of course went into disinfecting mode and scrubbed both boys hands and got the Clorox spray out to clean the table. But not knowing where it had been in the meantime really freaks me out. Did I ever mention that I'm a tad bit of a germaphobe? Ick!

Almost Christmas!

Just a picture of us dressed up. It doesn't happen very often so we thought we better take a picture.

Daddy's grandma passed away a few days ago so we've been busy with the visitation, funeral, and family time. We also had Christmas for my Grandma's side on Saturday. So we've been covering a lot of countryside the past few days. Special thanks to Tami for keeping the boys overnight on Friday. We weren't too sure how they would handle sitting for the visitation and funeral so they played with Bug and Punk instead.

The boys are getting excited for Christmas. Well Tank is, Bubby doesn't really know what's going on yet. Tank keeps asking to see "Sinta!" and really enjoys finding the Christmas lights on our way home from daycare each night. It doesn't matter if it's the 1st set or the 50th, he screams just the same. It was cute the 1st night, a little much after the 20th. But those are the joys of childhood.

With another busy week on tap, we look forward to church and dinner at Grandma & Grandpa's on Christmas Eve. Then up to check for Santa's deliveries on Christmas morning!

Happy Holidays everyone!

Poor Kitty

Does this sweet little boy look like he could ever harm any living creature? Surely not, right? WRONG! With the recently cold weather, we decided it was probably time to let our cat back in the house. She was put outside the day that Tank came home from the hospital because I had issues with her being so curious about him. Now that Bubby is old enough, I thought it was time to let her try another stretch inside.

The first night, she lived in the lap of luxury. Eating and drinking all she wanted, laying on the rugs in the warm house. The next morning when the boys awoke, she learned that this new found haven wouldn't come without it's hazards. Those hazards being in the form of 2 very curious playful boys. When she does come out of hiding, they chase her around the house like she's a new toy. She usually allows this for a few laps around the house before she dashes back to her safe place behind the TV or couch. I'm actually surprised she hasn't dashed outside at the first sight of an open door.

Family Pics

I again apologize for the gap in blog posts. My DSL modem and I have not been getting along well lately.

Here are a few highlights from our recent family pics...

Eeek!

So, I got up during the night to go to the bathroom. I was in the bathroom, minding my own business, and a little icky disgusting creepy creature went running by the door. AUGH! He saw me and scurried away. But not before trying to run back in the bathroom a few more times. But of course now that I know he's in the house, there will be a full out war on critters until I catch at least 2 of them. Because where there's 1, there's more.

1st line of defense was to set some traps, that is, after I put on my boots to go with my PJs. To think of a mouse running across my bare foot makes me throw up a little in my mouth. Or maybe a lot. After getting up this morning and finding no captures in my traps, the 2nd line of defense was to let the cat in for a little while.

As you can imagine, letting the cat in sent 2 little boys into a tizzy chasing her around and playing with her. Against my better judgement, I put a bowl of food down for her. (Note to self: if you are trying to get a cat to chase mice, don't feed her.) Well it wasn't long until my mommy radar went off after 5 seconds of silence from Bubby. I knew immediately what he was doing. So I ran to the kitchen to pull the handful of cat food out of his mouth. Ick! Maybe he should be the mouser instead of the cat. So now, there are 2 wild boys chasing a cat who is supposed to be chasing a mouse. I don't see this working out as I planned.

Oh No...He's Got Wheels!

Ever wonder what would happen if you wire a Power Wheels for a bit larger battery than it was built for?

Birthdays!

Tank & Bubby celebrated their birthdays last Saturday. Bubby's 1st birthday was the 24th and Tank's 3rd birthday is today, the 28th. The party went a little something like this...

'Tis the Season...For Illness

Tank is finally getting over the crud that has kept us home since Sunday. He went back to daycare fever free today so he's well on his way to recovery. Hopefully everyone will be healthy for the boys' birthday party this weekend. I can't believe they are going to be 1 and 3 already!

Even though he was sick, Tank still found several ways to get in trouble over the past few days. Let's see, first he locked himself in the car...

Then he rode the back wheels right off his tricycle...

This morning when it was time to leave the house and start our day, he was suddenly missing his socks. When I asked him where they were, he ran right to the bathroom and pulled them out of the toilet. Blah! Now I have far passed the point of trying to figure out why kids do certain things but what on earth would possess someone to walk by a toilet and think "hmm, I think I'll throw my socks in here?!"

Keeping on the theme of the bathroom, he also threw his basketball in the toilet a few nights ago. Needless to say, it got thrown in the trash. I just can't bring myself to let them play with something that was once floating in there. Ick! Also, tonight he ran to the bathroom because he needed to go. When he got there, he found Daddy in there already. He loudly screamed "GET OUT!" when he found the toilet to be occupied already. Apparently it was an urgent matter.

Breakfast Anyone?

Apparently someone thought his little brother was EXTREMELY hungry this morning and gave him 1/2 a box of cereral. Sheesh.