Rain, rain, go away!

The boys were very upset with me today because I was either unable or, more likely in their minds, unwilling to stop the rain from falling and interrupting their plans to play in the sandbox with their new sand sifters. "Rain, go away!" they yelled out the window at one point. At other times, they simply pleaded, "It's not raining!" On the one hand, it's nice that they think I'm so powerful. On the other hand, I suspect it also makes them think I'm rather mean about it all.

Meanwhile, Chas (and Eddie, too, for that matter) likes me again. So of course, he says he doesn't like his Mama. Apparently he is a one-woman boy. Hmm. Steph doesn't seem to mind it yet. But trust me, it gets a bit grating after a week or so being constantly told "I don't like you, Mama."

And I'm not sure if it's the rain or what, but I could swear Chas seems a bit depressed. He gets all teary for no real reason. Actually it's been happening since I had a migraine on Thursday and it was perfectly sunny then. Gotta keep an eye on that. Speaking of the migraine, the boys brought me some "get well" artwork. I thanked them and told them it helped. This afternoon I was tired and tried to get them to let me lay down on the couch in the playroom, telling them I didn't feel too good. Pretty soon Eddie had enough and went looking for a cure. "Where are your get well pictures, Mommy?"

Rambling? You bet. But it's a posting. That's more than I expected out of myself this week.

The Little Engine That Thinks He Can

That's what Eddie calls his new favorite book, "The Little Engine that Could." We went on a boy book buying spree Sunday and that's one of the new titles. They have a ton of books and we usually just pick out new ones from the library, but we got a little crazy. Anyway, Eddie loves his new book about the engine that thinks he can.

Last night the boys were fighting over whose hand I would hold (both) and whose bed I would sit on (neither) as the went to sleep when Eddie pulled out the big guns. "He doesn't like you," Eddie said, reminding me of Chas' unpleasant little habit of reminding me that he doesn't like me. Gotta appreciate the effort, Eddie.

In other Eddie news... Took them to the zoo today. In the aquarium, we came upon the tank that holds "Nemo fish." Another mother was there telling her kids about the Nemo fish, etc., so I refrained from my usual, "Look! We found Nemo!" joke. I just pointed and told the boys to look at the Nemo fish. They both talked about the Nemo fish for a moment then Eddie clarified. "Really they're clown fish." I tell ya, that boy blows me away with the stuff he remembers. It's not quite as crazy as when he pointed and identified a tapir (I had to double check and he was right) but still cool. On the other hand, today he could NOT identify the tapir, though to be fair it was sleeping with its butt-end pointed at us.

So after a trip to the zoo, what did the boys report when Steph asked what they did today? "Heather and Auntie Cathy and Oscar came and played!" Which, while technically true -- the three did stop by for a bit this afternoon -- is a short-sighted answer that will not yield them another trip to the zoo in the near future.

OK, rambing, but at least I blogged. Which is more than I can say for most days lately. But get off my butt -- I've got a cold.

You like me! You really, really like me!

Apologies to Sally Field. Anyway, for several days, Chas has been telling me, "I don't yike you. I yike Mama." I admit that it bugs me the teensiest bit. This morning, he hugged me and said, "I like you so much." Cue the harps and the angels. He's over it now. The only people he likes are his Mama, his Auntie Cathy and his cousin Gavin. But I know the truth....

Meanwhile, another new development. The little fart told me I was scary to him because I told him "no." Later he said I was scary because I told him he could do something he wanted to do "in a little bit." It seems he has figured out that we avoid things that scare him. So he's going to be scared of being told no or wait. Sigh. But you gotta admire the devious thinking.

On our way back from the library

(Note: Somehow in editing this post I erazed the photo of the boys in the wagon with sunglasses on. I would re-send it, but after checking "last sent" on my phone, I realize that I erased the cute wagon photo in order to take one of the ginormous turd Chas left in the potty chair yesterday. I'm sure there's some meaning there, but I have no idea what.)

Going to the library it's mostly downhill. Going to the library is nice. Coming back is a bitch.

"I'm flying high like Jay Jay" Chas screams joyfully

Note, please the gigantic dirt stains on Eddie's knees.

Something has irritated Chas.

How to ensure that your scalp and your brother's are both full of sand by day's end

Chas thought himself quite daring to actually step into the sandbox..

Easter candy to die for...

OK, that's not even funny. Here's the deal. Big old candy day with egg hunts etc. At the church we sort out Chas' candy to make sure he doesn't have anything with peanuts. Fine. Get home. Tired. Boys playing with candy. Suddenly Chas screams and runs toward us crying with chocolate and PEANUT BUTTER oozing out of his open mouth. Must have caused a small reaction in his mouth. Thankfully nothing else. Just lots of spitting, rinsing, teeth brushing and prayer saying.

I can get so relaxed about the allergy thing and then something like this happens. Imagine how I'd be if he ever went into full-blown anaphylaxis. Ouch.

Anyway, much fun today at Delsa's gym with foam cube pit etc. And of course, the cutest boys ever. Oh happy Easter day indeed.

Cough cough cough

Eddie coughed his way through last night. He's doing it again tonight. Chas is beginning to join him on the cold train. It makes me so sad/helpless.

On the other hand, they've both told me today that they don't like me. They like Mama. (I gotta get her agent.)

Oh, and I am Pig. Which would be far more upsetting if it weren't for the fact that Chas is Kipper, Eddie is Tiger, Mama is Jake, Auntie Cathy is Holly and Heather is Arnold. See, I'm Pig, not A pig, but just Pig. It's a character in the Kipper world. (And Eddie was coaxing Chas tonight to "use a a-sent ((accent)) -say, 'Kippah.'")

Near death experiences and the common cold...

Last night, my uncle and some cousins were in town and we were all supposed to get together for dinner at The Black Angus, incidentally the scene of the most infamous date I was ever on. (OK, not the exact same Black Angus -- then again, aren't they all the same? Isn't that the point?) Anyway, Heather had volunteered to babysit the boys. We were excited. Dinner, out with adults. The boys were extraordinarily excited at the prospect of spending time with their beloved "Hedder."

Per usual, we were running late. So I called Heather to see if she would meet us at our house. She didn't answer the first couple of times I called. Then she did answer but was both confused and belligerent. Uh-oh. Sounds like a reaction. I admit, I got pissed. I figured she was dieting etc. and that was what caused it and that she should have been more careful since she was going to be watching the boys. We got sobs when we told them they had to go eat with us, so I held out hope we could treat the reaction, leave the boys and still have some well-done red meat.

It was fairly quickly apparent that this was no ordinary reaction. Steph did an amazing job helping Heather and eventually calling 911. The paramedics were great -- most of them. (The Milton Fire crew seemed a bit dazed and confused themselves. Perhaps we should have checked THEIR blood sugar levels.) In the midst of this, I was running back and forth between Heather in her mom's upstairs bed and my boys who had fallen asleep in their carseats. It was, for want of a stronger word, stressful. I'm not sure exactly at what point I went from pissed to worried to sorry for her -- it was very sad when she woke up scared out of her mind with a room full of emergency personnel hovering around here. I never thought it would end badly -- I knew once we got some sugar in her she'd perk up. I didn't know it would have to be delivered via IV, but still, I had faith. What scared me was the precariousness of it all. What if she hadn't volunteered to babysit? What if we hadn't stopped by to check on her? You can't live your life with people hovering around you, even if you are a diabetic. She's gong to be alone sometimes. Shit happens. It's just scary to realize how fragile a think life can be. Whether it's an insulin reaction or being hit by a bus, mortality surrounds us and we escape usually without even recognizing how close we came to death. I think that's for the best. When we realize it, it leads to poor sleep and general unease.

And now, on to the real trauma of today, which is that Eddie is getting a monster of a cold. Poor little guy. I hate it when they are sick. I mean, I hate it when I'm sick and when they are sick it's 1,000 times worse. (Truthfully, it would only be 100 times worse if I could know with some certainty that I would not also be coming down with the cold, flu or whatever the hell bug they catch, myself.) Chas seems to have passed his soy challenge, but today he had bumps under one eye and tonight his eyes were red and swollen. It's probably just exhaustion -- no nap and precious little sleep last night -- combined with hands covered with dog and cat dander. But I worry. It's what I do.

Cozy bedtime or crime scene photos?

So tonight, after several attempts to get them to go to sleep, we just left the little farts in their room. There was plenty of noise, but we figured they'd settle down eventually. After a while it got quiet. Too quiet. OK, that's not true. Just quiet enough. We figured they'd just gone to bed. On our way to bed, however, Steph looked in and found them like this. Sound asleep. We giggled quietly and grabbed the camera. They didn't stir even when we turned on the lights and got going with the flash. Please note the little waffle-marks on Chas' cheek from where he was sleeping on the foam play mat on the floor.

Steph says they are stubborn and they get it from me. I have no idea what she's talking about.

Choo-choo cheeked Chas

Voila: Blue truck and green car cheeks!

Chas was a bit nervous (read: scared out of his little mind) but decided to get a train painted on his cheek.

Cautious Chas takes careful note of what happens as Eddie gets his 2nd cheek painted.

It's free face-painting night at Round Table!

D.J. Jazzy Chazzy at the Seattle Children's Museum

Eddie does his best drive time schtick

My most excellent wife teaches Chas the fine art of tech support

These Boots Were Made for Puddle-Jumping and other oddities....

This weekend we drove up to North Bend, our favorite place to buy shoes for the boys. They were not impressed, but I think we used enough trickery to get them to at least wear their new tennis shoes and rain boots. The sandals we'll work on later. Anyway, they were very thrilled with the idea of boots made for puddle-jumping. So today, Chas comes up to me asking for his rain coat. I look at him and this is what I see. Please note the boots and their placement.

Anyway, the other "oddity" was just a funny thing Ed said. He repeated a phrase of Steph's to report on the way to the shoe store that he had spilled some of his chocolate milk. "We got spiwwage in the viwwage." (We've got spillage in the village.)

The boys and I slept though church (thank you daylight savings!) and today they were very snuggly. I love it.