Notes From The Trenches

Note 1:  I tend to track my children audibly.  I may not always have my eyes on them, but I'm usually listening and following their movements and actions through sound.  So the other day, when Doug and I were putting a rug down in the front entry way, I was well aware of Gabe entering the kitchen.

I heard him going in and I heard him pushing a stool around and then making noise at the counter.  Then I listened as he got down and started heading towards us in the entry.  I heard him do a little hacking cough a few times and immediately wondered what he'd gotten into on the kitchen counter.

As he walked down the hall towards us, he coughed a little, pointed at his mouth, and upon  reaching us, proceeded to yak on the new rug.  Yep, full on spew-fest on the new floor covering.

Doug grabbed him and carried him to the bathroom while I went for a washcloth and to see what in the world he'd eaten.  On the counter was a small jar of ground cinnamon.  In the open jar, was a baby spoon.

Note to self 1:  Approximately 1 tsp. of ground cinnamon, when swallowed, will cause almost instantaneous puking in small children.  Use this knowledge with discretion.

Note to self 1a:  Don't leave out the cinnamon.

NOTE 2:  The other day Sam walked out of kitchen carrying a can of Cheese Pringles and asked if he could have some.  Now, normally we don't buy chips, but these were on sale cheap so I couldn't resist.  Since I was on the phone and since he's so darn cute, I opened the can and let him have a few then stuck the can on my desk and forgot about it.  

A little later, Sam demanded a snuggle.  Gabe was asleep and Max still at school.  I was happy to oblige and plopped myself down on the couch for some cuddle-time.  A few minutes later, I was asleep and Sam was bored.  He got up quietly, and just as quietly got into the Pringles.  A minute later, a chip was pressed to my sleeping lips and a soft voice whispered in my ear "Mom, do you wanna kip?"

Note to self 2:  Sam is considerate enough to let me sleep, even while simultaneously waking me up.  And nice enough to share even if it is stolen property.

Note 3:  Max and I have been doing a lot of reading lately.  Every night at bed time, after he's in his jammies and has had his teeth brushed by Daddy, he meets me in my room for story time.  Since August, we've gotten through quite a few books and I'm starting to get desperate for age appropriate, appealing-to-boys-and-moms chapter books.  Which is what led me to pull The Adventures of Tom Sawyer out of my line of nice leather bound Children's Classics.  About one page into it, I realized I'd made a mistake.  Not only do I have to translate literally every paragraph because the language is so hard to understand, but Tom Sawyer is NOT a good example!  Which is why Max loves it.  Last night he told me "I wish I was Tom Sawyer!  That way I could do whatever I wanted a break all the rules!!!"

Note to self 3:  Quit giving your already mischievous son more ideas!!!

That's all I've got for ya.  Just writing this has made me tired.  

I'm gonna go take a nap.  

But not before I lock up the Pringles.