Chloe woke up from her nap and Steve went up to get her, she was all pink cheeked and messy from sleeping and was half asleep when Steve carried her down the steps like this, but smiling because her daddy makes everything fun.

Grocery shopping.  I had my little point and shoot camera with me, Chloe was busy singing, Eti is looking a little nervous because I bought octopus.

Steve rides the cart from the store to the van, scooter style, usually with Chloe sitting in the cart and him yelling "Oh no Coco we're gonna crash oh no!!!"

Eti usually orders owls with his buttons.  The first owl I made was inspired by something I saw online, I looked everywhere for a pattern and could not find one, and finally saw this on Etsy or somewhere (I had the link to give credit to the original designer but when we had the virus every single one of my favorites was lost so I can't find it now).  Any way all that to say I did not invent this pattern, I drew it up based on something I saw online and then just made a smaller one for the baby.  He wants a wife for "Mr Serious" next, but first he ordered this nest and it took forever!!!  He wants Mr Serious to have a large family and every time I thought the nest was large enough he requested it to be just a little bigger .  I put a handle on it so he could carry them around.

Both boys got one of these bags.  They were very very easy to make I used a pocket from some old army fatigues, (Pockets from cargo pants would work just as well)  and then attached a handle.  I call it a gathering bag and they bring it with them on hikes to put little treasures in, like pine cones and leaves.  The handle is long enough to go over their head like a messenger bag.  When I took this picture I found a map they drew and a small rock, inside the bag.

A few weeks ago I found out that our store carried octopus.  I try to give my kids a large variety of food so that they will not be picky eaters. I told them that on the next shopping trip I was going to buy octopus.

They were not as excited as I was about it.

They groaned,  fake cried and needed to talk endlessly about it.

What was it going to look like?

What would it taste like?

How many bites did they have to eat?

Sometimes in the middle of the day, I would say "Octopus" in a sing-songy voice and they would all start worrying about it again.

I am a mean, mean woman.

If Eti was quiet during the day I would ask him what was on his mind, he would look down with droopy shoulders and say solemnly "I'm just thinking about the octopus".

The dreaded day came

They all took a bite at the same time, I had to crop the picture of Eti so you would not see chewed octopus, by the time I came back in the room after taking this photo,  Eti's face was all purple trying to swallow it.

Don't judge me, the kid is fine, he only had one bite and got a button for his effort.

Jeff said it tasted like chicken and had another piece

Chloe declared she loved it and had three pieces ( I am allowing for the possibility that she may have been showing off to her brothers).

I had one piece

It smelled like dead fish

Very soon after, my face turned bright, bright red, all down my neck, my lips tingled and I had a strong, strange headache.

Steve had to go to church because he had to work at the sound booth but he was scared to leave me, he made me call Juls because she lives close by, She kept her cell phone right next to her in case I had to go the ER, Steve called as soon as he got to church.

Nothing happened

I was fine

I only had one bite, the symptoms faded and I was back to normal.

The kids were in bed, when I saw the headlights in the driveway.  I raced to the kitchen and sprawled out on the floor like I was unconscious from an allergic reaction.

I heard his footsteps then his keys in the door and then... him knocking.

I opened one of my tightly shut eyes

I had latched the door. I ran up, unlatched it and then raced back and assumed my position

He opened the door

took one look at me, said

"Nice"

and then stepped over me and went into the living room.

The kids had a golf theme pep rally at school.  Jeff came home with a handful of golf tees. 

He lined them all up on the floor of his room and then went to do something on the top bunk by the time he was going to come down he had forgotten about the golf tees and jumped off the bunk bed ladder.  Landing right on a golf tee. 

It went through his sock into his foot.

Not just a little way in, HALF of the golf tee was stuck in his foot, right into his heel.

It wasn't bleeding.

I wanted to take him to the ER.

Steve was already on his way to get the pliers

we agreed to call the doctors office

She said pull it

I held Jeff on my lap, my brother Justin was there and he was cracking jokes to get Jeff distracted, and Steve pulled it out (it took two tries, it was in so tight)

Jeff was a trooper

After it was all done his little body couldn't stop shivering from the stress of it all.

You know what is the most interesting thing about all of this? I took him out on a date, just he and I after school the next day.  I wanted to give him a chance to talk it all out and make sure he was okay.  We went to two or three different places and he was limping along, kind of off dragging his leg because he is not ready to put weight on it yet.  Everyone openly stared at us.  Pointed, whispered.  They did not know, he did not have a sign saying, "I am not handicapped this is just from a golf tee mishap".  It was so blatant the way people were staring, I told Jeff to start watching to really feel the impact of it.  So that when he saw a child who was truly handicapped he could smile instead of staring and whispering.  I was surprised at how many grown women and men would satisfy their curiosity and openly gawk, literally stop walking, stop what they were doing just to watch Jeff pass.  I have so much more empathy for mothers with handicapped children, I wonder if they struggle with anger. 

Playing a memory game on the ipod