How to get far in life.

Remember this kid?

For those of you too young, it is Eddie Haskel from Leave it to Beaver. He has been reincarnated and I am now raising him. These are just a few examples of the many Eddie Haskel-isms he has been throwing around lately.

To a recent nursery leader: “I sure do like you dress“.

To an aunt: “Nice shoes, Aunt Crystal!”

To me: “Mom, nice pants! Sister Jones has some just like that." (The pants he was talking about were black pantyhose that I was wearing to church one day)

To Grandma: “I really like your shirt.”

To me: “Mom, that was a great dinner! Just like Grandma Barb's.”

To Grandma: "Grandma, those are nice lines on your house!" (meaning the eaves that are painted green)

Where do they keep the fly swatter?

We came across this little jewel while we were in La Center, WA. I am so glad that we don't live in a place where this is necessary. I am on the hit list for mosquitos and they always seem to find me whenever I venture out into moist environments.

I wonder if you need an entomology degree to work for the district.

New Found Freedom

Clara is now on the go, not afraid to try anything. She has been crawling like a pro for about a week now and is already attempting to do the stairs. Crazy girl, crazy mom!

Mom vs. Thomas

I’ve been trying to work on the whole disciple thing lately. I seem to run into too many problems when The Golden Child does something that he shouldn’t. 1. I sometimes think it is cute, if the infraction isn’t too bad (I know…bad mommy!). 2. I make a loud Ba-Ha noise because I am trying not to laugh. 3. He has me wrapped around his finger so tightly and he knows all the right moves and buttons to push.

So after many tests and experiments, I figured it all out! My new ammunition… I have found that if I threaten to throw away one of his toys, he is putty in my hands. This has been working well for about a month now. I have finally felt victorious over this 3 foot tower of strength who has the ability to read my mind. He has stayed in bed, picked up his toys when I have asked, and done anything else on the long list of requirements for being a 3 ½ year old. But like all good things, they must sometime come to an end. Recently, I found that my ammunition has run out and I am now left with nothing but blanks.

This was what went down at Walgreens the other day. I made the mistake of taking him along while I downloaded 600 pictures. I thought it would be a quick trip. I always do it at home and time isn’t an issue. Walgreens was and issue. I had to stand next to the Walgreens Photo Kiosk for 20 minutes waiting for everything to finish. So in other words, I had to keep him entertained and within a 5 foot radius of myself. Because we were standing right next to the Clock “department,” (a.k.a. 3 feet of dedicated shelving) Thomas found a Cars alarm clock that he had to have.

T; Mom, look at this!
M: Oh, That is pretty nice.
T: Mom, can I get it?
M: No, honey. Not today. We can’t take that home on the plane with us.
T; But Mom,. Please.
M: No
T: PLEASE (he has learned this fun negotiation tactic)
M: Thomas, put the clock down now. I told you we can not take that on the plane with us. (Honest answer would have been: We can not take that on the plane with us because I bought too much stuff at Craft Warehouse and we don’t have any more room in the suitcase.)

The begging went on for a little bit longer.

I finally had had it and was about to blow a gasket!

M: You put that clock down right now or I will throw away one of your toys when we get back home!

He paused and looked at me with his huge brown eyes. I knew he was scheming something up.

T: Okay mom, when we get home you can throw away that monkey.
M: You mean the sock monkey I made you?
T: Yes, I don’t want it anymore. I want this!

After I took the knife out of my back, I explained to him calmly that I made the monkey and there was no way we were going to throw it away. I then pulled trick #2 out of my hat and used the old lets-ask-Santa- for- it-next-Christmas trick. Somehow that appeased him and he put it back on the shelf and went on as if nothing had happened.

Don't you hate it when people make you look at pictures from their vacation!

We had a wonderful trip to the Pacific Northwest! Here is just a smattering of the many pictures we took.

We spent a couple days in Port Townsend. The drive up was beautiful, even though it was really long. We thought it would take us about 4 hours and it ended up taking close to 7! We had to stop several times for construction on the 101 and then there's the whole - "Mom, I've gotta pee!" factor. Once we got there, we really enjoyed the beach.

We had a great time at the grandparent's house. We were able to break Nana out of the "home" for a few days. Thomas had a so much fun playing with her. How many 91-year-olds do you know that can still hit a baseball? Very impressed!

Clara decided that she was going to go on a baby food strike once we got up to Washington. She ended up letting us feed her nectarines, an avocado, bread and some chicken and rice soup. One morning she even talked me into a powdered doughnut.

There is something about this guy that just puts her to sleep!

We drove up to Steve's Grandmother's home on Monday. La Center is a beautiful little town just outside Vancouver. Thomas had a great time exploring everything. There is a giant cherry tree in the backyard. We had fun eating the cherries right off the tree! He really wanted to know what was in that red barn!

Just up the hill from La Center is the Cedar Creek Grist Mill. I really wanted to take the kids there. The amount of green is unbelievable. The mill is situated so deep in the forest. The sunlight just barely makes and appearance there. I could not believe the amount of moss that covered everything. It is such a contrast the the dust that covers everything here at home!

Our last stop was Multnomah Falls. I love this place. I never grow tired of visiting and just sitting and watching the falls.





Can I just say I love my new SLR! I was able to get this shot from the bottom of the falls. After I took it, I had to get out of the sight because watching Granddad show Thomas the falls was giving me the willies!

This is the current favorite aunt for the kids. They had a blast playing with Aunt Leah while we were there. She is so much fun!

I will miss looking at this! This is the view from the family room and dining room in their house! Rough life, wouldn't you say!

Dear Old Man at PDX who works for the TSA,

Please accept my apology on behalf of my son. He was the one who slapped your hand out of the way when you tried to approach him with the super-cool Jr. TSA Officer badge. I hope you were able to see my disbelief and disgust with this situation by the way I was standing there, frozen, with my mouth open (I know I need to work on my disciplinary actions). Please understand this is the first time that the Golden Child has acted this way to a complete stranger. He was only acting out like this because his horrible parents took him away from his Grandparent’s house after 10 days of pure bliss and he was very upset.

You’re doing a great job, keep up the great work!

Sincerely,
That little brat’s mother

P.S. The musician playing the grand piano while you go through security is a nice touch. It kept me very relaxed even though I knew we were running a bit behind for our flight.

Oh, I hate this part!

1. 10 days of laundry that will cover my family room floor until it is finished.

2. Fear of the scale until I am able to lose the extra weight gained from Burgerville Berry Shakes!

To be continued...

Things that make me laugh.

Happy Monday! Have a great week!

Grosgrain: Ice Cream Social Frock GIVEAWAY!!!!

I found this blog and LOVE it. I thought some of you mommy's may want to check out the give-away this awsome lady is doing. Grosgrain: Ice Cream Social Frock GIVEAWAY!!!!