Life at Lothlorien

When I was in school, one of the economic theories I heard was that if you gave everyone in the class a dollar, by the end of the day, some people would have lots of money, some the same dollar, and some no money. With children, you get to see that in practice. Me: "CC, why are you putting away the bathroom towels? That's B's job." CC: "He said he'd like to play instead, so he's paying me $1 if I'll put them all away." And I decided to keep my mouth shut because all I wanted was for the towels to be folded and put away by someone other than me.

It's very interesting to see myself through my child's eyes. This is what my second grader did at school for Mother's Day. It really made me smile!

I've written before about the evils of teaching your children to read and write. Now I have a new parental caution. I have often encouraged my kids to try new foods -- sometimes just a bite. Even if you didn't like it before, your tastes may change. Well, that one came back to bite me. You see, my kids are fairly purist when it comes to chocolate. So, I am able to keep a stash to myself by buying things like Hershey bars with Almonds. The other day I am having one and B asks if he can try a bite -- after all, he says, he may like them now. Sure enough, he thinks they're great and I now have to compete with him for an afternoon snack. Be warned!

CC's new words/phrases: For lunch today, we had tater-totters. Rubber band bands Ol' Stewball was a race car (the lesser known Peter, Paul and Mary song)

At least my laundry duties balance out somehow. CC changes clothes 2-3 times a day (or more), while B has taken to wearing the same shirt and pants for 3 days in a row. I really can't decide if it's worth it to say something on either front.

CC: "I got the most presents. I must have been very nice." A few minutes later: "Grandpa only got three presents. Oooh, he must have been very naughty!" (which Grandma agreed with -- Gpa didn't get many presents because he went out and bought whatever he wanted, so not much you could get him -- very naughty) CC: "I drew this Christmas tree. Do you know what the purple stuff is around it? It's the garlic." (Ah, the garland. I love the funny pronunciations they have -- Grandma is proud of how B is growing up, but still misses the year of the Crackernuts) Store clerk on December 23: "Is Santa going to come to your house?" CC: "No, he already came." Clerk: "What do you mean?" CC: "There's already a bunch of presents under our tree!" Me: "CC, you kept Gma's Cat in the Hat fingerpuppets!" CC: "Yeah, I'm tricky!"

I found a piece of paper on the cabinet. It had B's name, with a big circle around it and a slash through it. "CC, did you make this sign?" "Yes, I was going to put it up on my door because I was mad at B, but we had a discussion and he let me watch Scooby Doo, so I put it away." She picks up on things so quickly. She also has pretty good handwriting for a 5-year old.

B loves pancake puffs -- you know, they advertise the pan on TV. My DH often makes them on Saturday mornings and they are really good. He made them yesterday, then came and told me this story in amazement. B took a bite of the puff, chewed it slowly, then announced, "Dad, you forgot the nutmeg!" And you know what? He was right. Ahh, the gourmet tastes of a 7 year old.

There are good things to every thing a child learns, but there are also bad things. This is what I found on my shopping list today. "CC," I asked. "Did you write chocolate on my list?" "Yes," she replied. "I couldn't find any chocolate that I liked, so I want you to buy some at the store." "And how did you learn to spell chocolate?" "Oh, I just looked on my brother's paper." (He had been surveying us and graphing our favorite ice cream flavors. He is disappointed that more people don't like strawberry ice cream. Note his contribution to the list.) So, if you think it's a good think to teach children to write, just remember that it also enables them to add things to your grocery list.

B came running out. "CC swallowed a bouncy ball!" I checked on her and she seemed fine -- no choking. She was only a little remorseful (I think mostly at being caught doing something she knew she shouldn't. So, we decided to give her Ipecac and make her throw it up. We figured if we waited, we were looking at an ER trip, bowel obstruction, etc. Besides, throwing up is a good negative consequence for putting something in your mouth that you shouldn't. Of course, after we administered the Ipecac, we got more details. It was a ball that she had bitten in half a week earlier and she only swallowed about 1/4 of it. I had thrown away half, and other bits and pieces were in the floor in the bedroom. No cause for panic now, but still thinking that throwing up is a good consequence for her. She took the Ipecac and randomly would say that her stomach didn't feel good, but nothing happened. We got everyone ready for bed, read stories, etc. and were giving hugs and kisses goo...

CC's birthday was recently and it became apparent that she was well aware of her special status. One evening, B came running in, all distressed. "CC says if I don't let her pick what to watch on TV first in the morning, she's going to give all my stuff to Goodwill. Can she do that?" I can't believe he thought she might be able to follow through on that one.

Cece's question for the day: Mom, when you die, you go to heaven. If you die in heaven, do you come back as a baby?

My DH was checking on B, who was out of bed using the bathroom. B was acting a bit surly. "Is there something you're upset about?" queried Dad. "I'm mad at my sister." "Why?" "Because she came into my room, squirted water from my squirt gun on the floor, and then drank the rest out of the squirt gun. And I was saving that to be ready for tomorrow." "Go to bed." Dad then walks into CC's room. She turns away from him. He asks her if she was in her brother's room. She doesn't want to talk, and Dad realizes it's because she has something in her mouth. He takes her into the bathroom to spit out the gum she is apparently chewing and speaks very strongly to her about NEVER, EVER chewing gum in bed. Then, my DH comes to tell me the story. "BTW, he says, is CC allowed to chew gum?" "She has a few times," I replied, "but not lately because she just swallows it." "Well she was chewing it i...

I finished reading CC's bedtime stories and we went to join B and Dad. B gave me a look and pointed to the sign on his door. It had my name with a big circle around it and a slash through it. I was banned from his room because I had taken some of his toys away (he hadn't cleaned up before the timer went off). I was a bit hurt by the ban, but I'm trying to see it as a positive way of him expressing his anger. It was a lot funnier when he put up a similar sign banning his father a few days earlier.

Creativity abounds in my family . . . So far this summer, the children have made their own pond in the backyard, put an empty gift wrap tube in a bookcase to make a tank (for the monsters in the closet), snuck up on me as sharks in the swimming pool, and used tube pasta as finger extensions. Speaking of the tube pasta, CC also found it makes a great horn. When it broke, she flattened it out and told me it would make a good yoga mat for her Little Pet Shop puppies. I hope they always have that ability to see things as more than what they appear.

Never, ever, ever utter the phrase "Bundt cake" in front of two small children. It will ensue at least 15 minutes of hilarity in the back seat, then random giggles for days and days later as you hear from another room "butt cake! butt cake!"

I found a piece of paper with a 1-800 number written in my 7-year old's handwriting. "What is this for?" I asked. "That's because it's not available in stores," he started. "No, I mean what THING is it for?" "Oh, the pancake puff maker. But I am missing one of the numbers, so I have to watch and try to finish it." I think we need to go back to DVDs and stop watching commercial television. In the long run, it would probably be cheaper.

I went to get an Oreo the other day. We have the new easy open/easy seal package. All I found it the package was cookies. No cream filling, just the cookie part of the Oreos. I'm betting on the local chocoholic, CC, although she tries to smile and look innocent when I explain that you MUST eat the entire Oreo, not just the middle.

B has learned how to tie water balloons. Heaven help us now.

I have always loved polka dots and got to show my creativity lately by repainting the kids' bathroom. My DH said I had to wait until after the new floors were done, then was surprised to come home and find the wallpaper ripped off only 2 days after the floor guys left. (Does he not know me at all?) I forgot to take "before" pictures, but that's okay. The bathroom wasn't hideous or anything, it was pink floral -- not a kids' bathroom and not to my taste. Plus, it was painted over wallpaper and the seams bothered me. Now, I think it is just right. Besides, it matches the SpongeBob toilet seat much better.