Costco and Me: A Dangerous Relationship

Good gravy. I don't think I'll ever make it out of Costco for less than $350 again. Two giant boxes of diapers, a box of wipes, salmon, chicken, paper plates, bread, chips, fruit, milk, eggs and few other odd things...

The funniest part was loading up the van. All four kids were packed in there and then all of the boxes and jars were jammed in around them. All the frozen foods were up in the front passenger seat, the diapers were shoved in the floor space under the carseats, the box of wipes sat precariously between the two older kids in the back. The rest was creatively stacked in the the "cargo area" of the van. (Anyone with a Kia Sedona can tell you that the "cargo area" is a joke.)

We did manage to entertain the elderly shopping today... until Wonder Boy decided to get mad at his brothers for touching the cart.

Home Improvement Safety Reminder

Just in case there was ANY question at all in your minds, I feel it my duty to remind you all that toddlers and power tools should never exist in the same dimension.

We are building shelves in our schoolroom. A friend has been gracious enough to do the brunt of the assembly for us and we are doing the staining and finish. However, the assembly has required the use of a router, a saw, and a pneumatic nail gun. I've had compressor hosing draped across my living room for half the weekend. Now, the tools have never been plugged in without our friend being right there to actually operate them... but the hosing has had to stay in place. Just after lunch yesterday, I found the Miss M at one end of the hosing... and WB at the other end! I am happy to say that I don't have any accidental "Run By Nailing" incidents to report. Our Fearless Leader and Friend had to run up to the hardware store two or three times - a task we've come to expect with any home project. (LOL, it's not a project unless it involves a great deal of sighing, a trip to Home Depot, and possibly some swearing.) But other than supply runs, a cut finger for our Friend, and a lot of sawdust, nothing too exciting or bloody happened.

I have to give WB a lot of credit. He was cooped up inside all day long because outside was just not safe with the saw & router. He was so cute running to open the door every time Our Fearless Leader and the Friend were carrying the 7-foot-long boards through. Then he'd run to the middle of the board and "help" carry it. He eyed the nail gun... but asked to leave the room once it was in use - praise the Lord that the darned thing is so loud! I am relieved, however, to have all the equipment gone and be left with the task of varnishing today.

Home Ec 101 - Cooking and Reading

Cooking and reading should never be attempted simultaneously. Especially if the cooking involves pancakes, or some other "must watch it" type of food.

I have been thoroughly engrossed in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Thoroughly. I actually had to make a daily chore list and include meals and changing diapers on it. I figured pancakes was a simple dinner -- throw it together and babysit the griddle. No biggie.

Burned pancakes, anyone?

Snow in July?

Wonder Boy was in the pantry as I was mixing pancake batter for dinner. I heard an odd noise. Care to venture a guess?

Let's just say that Malt-O-Meal sounds a bit like snow... and we all know the odds of snow in a Phoenix pantry in July is something of an impossibility. I had to vacuum the whole darned pantry for 15 minutes to get the cereal out of there. It still smells like chocolate. :)

My life is NEVER boring with this kid.

The Long Term Effects of GERD

Let's just say that the words "Gag Reflex" are commonplace in our home now and I am able to control the average mess with only 3 paper towels.

Miss M is teething. She has 4 fabulous, little, razor-sharp teeth and is now of an age to experiment with biter biscuits. Enter Wonder Boy. He sees said biter biscuit and... takes a bite. The next thing I hear is "eh eh eh." That, by the way, is Wonder-ese for "Mommy, get this out of my mouth before I puke." I know the drill, so I grab a paper towel and instruct WB to spit the goo out of his mouth. While he does this, I am saying that he shouldn't take his sister's snacks and...

Blaaaaaaahhhhp.

Oh yeah.

WB took his spitting a hair too far and puked everywhere, including MY feet. Ew. Ew. Ew.

So I grab a few more paper towels, strip WB down, wipe up the floor, wipe off my own feet, put WB on the clean mat by the stove, and proceed to mop the floor. Then it was off to the tub. Would you be impressed to know that all of this took place in the span of just 10 minutes?

She Did It!

Miss M signed "all done" today. And she babbled something that sounded a lot like "ahduh" - but that could be my imagination. I'll have to give it a few more days.

I wish I could report that Wonder boy has mastered English... but alas, I cannot. There's always tomorrow.

That's My Boy!

Dinner on the 4th of July was quite spectacular at our house: chocolate chip pancakes. Nothing like celebrating the freedom to eat total junk for dinner.

Our dinner conversation was amusing. Being the 4th, I thought I'd ask the kids about politics - you know, every 12yo, 6yo, 2yo and 9mo is totally engrossed in today's political scene... right? Here's how the conversation went:

Me: So, Beloved 6yo of Mine, are you a Democrat or a Republican?

6yo: Um... a... Publican.

Me: Yes! (hands shoot up in the air in a victory stance) THAT's m'boy!

6yo grins.

Me: Ahem. So, WHY are you a Republican?

6yo: (without skipping a beat, mind you) Because it sounds American.

Ya gotta love it. :)