Men at Work

Uncle Sam came over today to work on our house. The kids wouldn't leave him alone. Poor Sam. He shouldn't have to work under such awful conditions. Just kidding. He loves it (I hope).

Matthew especially liked it when he went out front to the trailer. Every time he did, Matt was there as his little side-kick. It was pretty cute!

April Fools Day Madness

We really, really like April Fools Day around here.  I mean, we REALLY like it.

I usually plan for weeks, but this year the time got away from me a little bit.  I did my usual tricks, like switching all the cereal into different boxes, and things like that, but the rest I had to kind of improvise.

I did have the forsight to buy some bubble wrap beforehand, since April 1st was on a Sunday this year.  Haley was out with friends the night before, so I rigged her bathroom door with some of it.  I knew she would see it before it popped (which she did), so I also put some under her toilet seat, hoping she would sit on it and it would pop.  But she saw a little corner of it sticking out, so I was caught before it worked.  Better luck next year.

Grace was sleeping at Grandma's house because the Porters were in town.  Brenlee slept at our house, so he got to participate in all the fun.  After they went to bed, I hung gummy worms from the doorway of the bathroom.  They thought it was funny, but it was really just a diversion so they wouldn't see the bubble wrap in the door.  Unfortunately, it unraveled during the night and didn't pop.  I've got to figure out how to make that bubble wrap work for next year.

The gummy worms also came in handy at breakfast.  They poored their cereal (which came out all wrong, because I had switched them), and I gave them each a cup of red juice.  I had put two gummy worms in the bottom of their cups, and when they had almost finished, they said, "Hey, something's in here!"  Funny.  And gross -- they were all slimy.

  

Then the boys went out to play, and after awhile I called out the window to them. I said, "Boys! Come in quick! Grandma just called and said that Grace fell off the porch and her arm is broken! We have to meet them down at the ER, so come in and get dressed!"

 They bought it.

After just a couple of minutes of them frantically getting ready and asking all sorts of questions (and after Joey started to cry, saying, "I don't want her to die!"), I let them in on it by declaring "April Fool's Day!" 

They were mad at me, so Haley lead them in a revolt. They took window markers and painted all over my car. It was Sunday, so I couldn't wash the car until the next day. Little stinkers.

Gracie Lost a Tooth!

Gracie lost her first tooth -- well, technically the dentist pulled a molar a couple weeks ago because it had a huge cavity in it -- but this is the first tooth that fell out.  And it literally just fell out.

Grace spent the night at Grandma's house because Emma was visiting.  The tooth was just hanging there all day, and I told her to call me if she lost it before bed.

She didn't lose it before bed, but when she woke up, it wasn't in her mouth anymore.

They searched for it, and found it laying right next to where she was sleeping.  Thankfully she didn't swallow it!

I AM 29!!!!

I have an ongoing quest to remain 29 forever.  My children know how much I detest being in my thirties, and I had them convinced for awhile that I was 29.  They've been trying to trick me into revealing my true age, and they have succeeded a few times.  But I maintain that I am 29 most of the time.

Andrew even knows the proper responses.  A typical conversation goes like this:

Mom: Andrew, how old am I?

Andrew: 29

Mom: And how old will I be next year?

Andrew: 29

Mom: And the year after that?

Andrew: 29

Mom: Correct.

Joey is always trying to trick me, and Grace has been asking around (Grandma Jane) to see how old I really am.  She even had the nerve to say that Grandma knows everything (because that's what Grandma says), and that she told Grace the truth about my age.

Our breakfast conversation went like this:

Joey: Mom, you're 33. We know it.

Mom: I am not! I'm 29!

Andrew: Then what year were you born?

Mom: Nineteen.....eighty....(thinking, thinking)... three?

Andrew: Yeah right.

Grace: Grandma says you're 33.

Mom: Well, Grandma is old and senile, so I'm 29.

My kids may know I'm lying, but I'll keep it up forever.  And ever.  And ever.

Science Fair and the St. Patrick's Day Parade

Andrew has been working hard on his oxygen science fair project.  We found out that a bigger fire uses more oxygen, and Andrew was very well rehearsed in giving his presentation.  The room was full of parents, grandparents, and kids all sharing their experiments.  I think I speak for all of us when I say "I'm glad that's over!"

 (Grandpa checking out Andrew's best friend Ryan's experiment)

(Grace and Miss Emily -- we helped her with her voice range experiment!) 

***

And today is St. Patrick's Day!  In addition to cleaning up all the terrible messes the naughty leprechauns left us, we went downtown to take part in the Celtic street fair and parade.

As usual, we grabbed our hot dogs and sodas (usually they throw in a bag of chips, all for $2, but the chips were stuck in traffic on a truck somewhere -- so we got a soda and hot dog for $1!!)

We were a little later than usual getting to the fair, so we had to gulp down our lunch and go pick a spot for the parade.

But we had to stop and watch some Irish dancers first. The boys got up nice and high where they could see better.

The girls were happy to stay on the ground. 

We found our spot in the shade (it was 72* today!)

Now, please notice Joey's face in the next few photos.  Do you have that one kid that always ruins the photo?  That's Joey.  Every time.  Him and his eyebrows. 

We all enjoyed the parade, and took home a sack full of candy.  Matthew danced pretty much the whole time.  I love that he's not embarrassed to dance in front of anybody.  It's still cute. 

And here are a few of the things we really liked: 

When the Deloreans come, it is the moment we've all been waiting for. 

This thing just plane scared me.  It was the most awful machine I've ever seen. It was crooked and loud.  And it might not seem that big, but look at that full sized man on the ground. It would have squashed us like a bug. 

Until next year!

The Leprechauns Strike Again!

We forgot to put out the gold last night, and the leprechauns got us!

They left tiny footprints all over the kitchen as they searched around, finding nothing.  So they got into the fridge, jumped up on the counter, and turned our bread, licorice, and milk green!

Grace just couldn't believe that little guy.  She declared that his name is Roy G. Bivs. He has the most magic, so it must have been him.

 Notice Joey already has on his green shirt for the day.  He didn't want any pinches, so he put it on right after getting out of bed.

(They searched outside for footprints, but it rained, so they must have washed away)

 Detective work continuing...

 AAAHHHH!  She couldn't believe they made it up onto the counter.  Leprechauns are VERY good jumpers.

Oh man! They even got the licorice! AND the bread! 

Unbelievable!  I hope none of them show up to make a mess of the parade!

Over the River and Through the Woods

It was 70 degrees on Saturday!

After our chores (including cleaning out the garage, which was no small feat), we made a picnic lunch and enjoyed it outside on the deck.

Well, most of us enjoyed it anyway.  Grace did not like her sandwich, and picked it into pieces, which she consumed separately.  But the boys wolfed it down, just like always.

Then, because Grace had found a lady bug in her room and was extremely upset that we had to free it, we went to the Conservation Center to look for lady bugs.

Grace made a little pink tent out of paper for any lady bugs that she might find, to give them a home.  We didn't find any, but we had a great time looking!

 "Wow! These trees are BIG!"

We stopped by the river and found some good rocks to skip.  There's not much my kids like better than to throw rocks in water.  Keeps them busy for hours.

(looking for good ones...) 

Then some dogs showed up (with their owners), and the kids took turns fought over who would throw sticks into the river for them to retrieve.

They thought it was H-I-L-A-R-I-O-U-S

And then...

we tried to break our necks by climbing a weird tree.

Grace got herself into a predicament: 

Andrew made it up in no time at all, until I barred him from going any further.

 Since Grace was blocking the way, Joey tried it from the other side. But he found an opening in the tree that he thought was filled with disgusting eggs.  I took a look and tried to convince him that it was just old dried up bark, but he was pretty sure it was disgusting eggs.

And a little farther down the path, Joey spotted what looked like some body's old Christmas tree, still with ornaments on it.  We laughed, thinking about some old hobo out here in the middle of winter with a cute little Christmas tree.