Shenanigans and Other Goings-On

So we all know that Mother's Day is actually where we compile everything we do as mothers - the good, the bad, and the ugly - into one fabulous day of concentrated motherly activity, right? I mean that Murphy's Law takes the reins and everything that can go wrong for a mother typically does - on Mother's Day. Not sure why that is. Okay, so this year my Mother's Day was actually pretty great and I am not complaining. Apparently we even set a precedent for Brooklyn to bring me breakfast in bed on Sunday morning at 6:30 am (as she did today). The day after Mother's Day, however, it was back to the trenches. Here's an overview of what went down on Monday:

 *WARNING: Not for squeamish people - contains mention of poop* 

I took Brookie and Troy shopping, and on our way out to the parking lot, Brooklyn couldn't resist running ahead of me. I told her three times not to run away from us and to hold on to the shopping cart, and finally she inevitably took a huge spill across the parking lot. Her little knees were pretty torn up. I guess some lessons teach themselves? Back at home, Troy pooped during lunch. Then I guess he wasn't quite sure if he had ACTUALLY pooped, so he checked by sticking his hands (both) in his diaper, and then was so disgusted to find them covered in poop (the kid HATES poop. You'd think he would have clued in and learned to use the potty by now. Or at least learned NOT to stick his hands in his pants and especially not when he is probably stinky) that he immediately wiped them off on the nearest surface, which happened to be the countertop and chair he was sitting on. Nice right? Brooklyn came running to tell me, and I quickly whisked him away to scrub his hands and change him. I took him back downstairs and was cleaning myself up when I heard him say, “Mommy, it’s stinky over here.” I looked over and of course he had climbed back up in his [NOT CLEAN] chair to finish his lunch. (That was the point when I realized it was not just the chair that was dirty. There was poop sitting right there next to his mac-n-cheese.)

 But just wait - we’re not remotely finished. For dinner (don't judge what I feed these children, by the way. We’re working on it. Baby steps) Kate and Brooklyn both wanted a can of salmon for dinner. That's it - nothing else; just the can of salmon. And Brooklyn wanted to eat hers straight out of the can. So I opened the can and gave it to her. Like she was a cat. Oh wait, actually I gave her a fork. So, slightly more human. Well, then she dropped the can on the carpet below the bar (you know how canned salmon comes? In little tiny itty bitty fishy pieces....) Most of the contents remained in the can, but the little bits flew everywhere. Kate nobly got down on the floor cleaned up every single little scrap, but no sooner had she finished than Brooklyn knocked her can on the floor AGAIN! This time spilling ALL the contents. GAH! So Kate and I helped her clean it up once again, and as we were finishing up, Brooklyn had been playing with some small heart-shaped beads Kate had given her. Finally after a few moments Brooklyn said sheepishly, "Mommy, I'm sad to say this, but I put one of those beads in my nose and I can't get it out!" I have to say I’ve heard these kinds of stories before, but so far none of my kids had ever thought of this kind of shenanigan. Leave it to Brooklyn. Fortunately, I was able to help her dislodge the bead from her nasal cavity without a visit to the emergency room. What a capstone to my crazy average-mommy-day!

Meanwhile, since then we have been enjoying beautiful weather and a great weekend with Travis. I came home yesterday to find them all playing baseball in the yard. Brooklyn and Kate helped me capture these great bits and pieces of the afternoon. (Up at the top, Troy chases his baseball.)