WeeBee 1, Mommy 0

The other afternoon I wanted to make a quick trip over to Target to get a new extension cord, since I accidentally ran the old one over with the lawn mower.  Usually when I go shopping I try to leave Lowly home with Daddy, because she vehemently objects to being in a shopping cart that is not constantly in motion.  I don't shop that way - I'm always fumbling for circulars and coupons and comparing prices, and if I can get out of a store in ten minutes I consider that to be a huge accomplishment.  WeeBee, on the other hand, loves sitting in the cart and giving a running commentary on everything he sees and everything we need to buy.  You haven't really lived until you've wandered through Foodtown on a Sunday morning with a toddler yelling, "CHICKEN, WHERE ARE YOUUUUUU?" at the top of his lungs.

Anyway, back to the Target trip.  I told WeeBee I was going to the store, and asked him if he wanted to come along.  At first he said no, then he changed his mind, and started running around the house looking for his sandals.  (When one lives with a toddler, a good third of the time it takes to get out of the house is spent searching for footwear.)  Once he found his sandals, he ran over to Lowly, who was perfectly happy in her swing, and had the following conversation:

WeeBee:  Lowly!  You coming in car?  Carseat?
Mommy:  No, WeeBee, Lowly is going to stay here with Daddy.  Come on, we'll go bye-bye in the car and go to Target.
WeeBee:  Lowly, you want carseat?
Mommy:  No, Lowly's staying here.  Come on.
WeeBee:  (starts fumbling with the buckle on Lowly's seat strap)  Lowly come.  Carseat!
Mommy:  WeeBee, come on!
WeeBee:  (throwing self on floor and rolling around)  Nooooo!  Lowly come too!  Lowlyyyyyyy!

Ninety nine times out of a hundred, I have zero tolerance for temper tantrums.  But there he was, on the dining room floor, crying because he just wanted to be with his little sister.  He loves going to the store, and he wanted Lowly to have as much fun as he was.

Ten years from now he may very well deny this ever happened.  So, just this once, I gave in.

From the Country That Brought You Ikea

It's been a long time since I found some weird news for you all...

http://news.yahoo.com/swede-tried-build-nuclear-reactor-kitchen-144852351.html

I guess when you can furnish your entire house out of furniture you put together yourself following instructions without words, the next logical step is to build your own nuclear reactor in your kitchen?

It's Been One of Those Days

The kind where I want to run into the bathroom, lock the door, stick my fingers in my ears, and yell "NOT LISTENING!  NOT LISTENING!" at the top of my lungs.

I blame our dog for starting this all - she was the one who started barking for no identifiable reason at 3:15 this morning.  That woke up Lowly.  By the time I had checked to make sure nobody was breaking into the house, and the dog had water, WeeBee had woken up.  He stumbled out into the hall as I came up the stairs, and I scared him half to death (I guess he was expecting me to be in my room?)  In any event, he let out a blood curdling scream and jumped backwards so hard into a closet door that the door popped back open.  (It's one of those ones with the magnetic latches that work half the time.)  I felt horrible by this point, so I let him climb into my bed, where he proceeded to spend the next twenty minutes spinning around in circles, getting comfortable.  By the time he finally fell asleep, Lowly decided she really didn't want to be put back to bed semi-awake, and started hollering.  I think I got about 4 hours of sleep last night.

Since then, the whole morning has been a mess of exploding diapers, overturned Cheerios bowls, barking dogs, and incessant whining for milk, juice, crackers, bagels, and stories, in no particular order.  God help the next telemarketer that calls me, because I'm ready to scream.

Thomas the Tank Engine Music Videos

WeeBee is obsessed with Thomas the Tank Engine.  Obsessed as in our conversations when he wakes up in the morning run something like this.

WeeBee:  Hiya, Mommy!
Mommy:  Hi there, WeeBee.  What's up?
WeeBee:  Milk?  Juice?  Milllllllk?  Fuffle?  (That's waffle, for those of you that don't speak WeeBee.)  Ohhh, fuffle and butter!
Mommy:  Ok, let Mommy put Lowly in her swing, and I'll get you milk and a waffle.
WeeBee:  Oh, ok!  Milllllk!  Fuffle!  Thomas!  James!  Henry!  Thomas, where aaarrrree youuuuuuuu?  Where's Thomas?  Fuffle?

I can't really complain, since I watched the videos over and over again as a kid, and I still remember the day I got my first Thomas train.  Granted, I still haven't gotten over the fact that Ringo Starr no longer narrates the stories, or that they've switched to computer animation.  But all this time I had no idea that there were words to the Thomas theme song, until last night when I put on some random episode thanks to Netflix, in the hope of calming WeeBee down before bedtime.  It's not the newer one that they sing at the beginning of the current episodes, "They're two, they're four, they're six, they're eight," (thanks for making my kid think that's how you count - that's a rant for another day,) but the original one.  Something about "Thomas the Tank Engine rolling along."  It's part of Thomas' First Music Video, but you try typing that into youtube.  I'll save you the trouble - all you get is fan videos.  If I ever find it I'll post the link - the little children's voices are only mildly creepy, and it's good for a laugh.

I have to go now, because WeeBee is at my elbow trying to hand me "nose gunkies."  Judging by the way he's giggling I don't think there's anything there, but I'd better distract him...

I Despise UPS

It is 108 degrees here, and the bathing suit that I ordered is lost somewhere in the Buffalo area, on or near a train.

First of all, it's news to me that UPS even used trains.  Their commercials certainly leave you with the impression that everything is delivered via bright shiny trucks and planes.  Second, their customer service makes the people at DMV seem downright accommodating.  The only thing the representative was able to tell me was that a train had been late.  Not whether my package was on a train, or waiting for the train, or whether it was in Buffalo, or had gotten on the next train, or whether it was going to sit in Buffalo until Monday.  And then I couldn't even use big words in my online complaint because they limit it to 500 characters, which infuriated the English major in me even more.  I'm actually in the mood to put in a second complaint that they only allow you to use 500 characters.

I understand that things get delayed, but when you can't explain to me what you're going to do to fix it or seem the least bit apologetic, the angry letter writing campaigns begin.  >:(

Ink Stains, Lowly, and the Further Adventures of Teddy Bear

Well, for those of you who were wondering, a combination of vinegar and lysol wipes will remove pen marks from seat cushions.  Consider yourselves warned that the combination will leave your hands smelling rather funky for the rest of the day, however.

I've realized that Baby Lowly really hasn't gotten much of a mention on this blog yet - namely because up until this week she really hasn't done much.  But the other day she managed to flip from her back to her tummy, which I thought was rather impressive for a 2 1/2 month old.  I had put her in her bassinet on her back, and she usually rolls immediately onto her side.  I came back 5 minutes later and she was on her tummy, fast asleep, and stayed that way for the next 7 or 8 hours.  Happy Dance!

WeeBee shocked me today by sharing Teddy Bear with Lowly.  He's always very sweet to her, and he's offered her things in the past (cookies, her blankets, the occasional tub of diaper cream) but Teddy Bear is one of his most prized possessions.  She was sitting in her swing and he put one of his other bears on her lap, which made her smile.  Then he ran off and got Teddy Bear, and put that on her lap as well.  (By this point we couldn't really see much of Lowly - the bears are about the same size as her.)  Then he got his blanket and put that on top, at which point I unfortunately had to intervene before he piled anything else on there.  Still, it was incredibly sweet of him, considering how attached he is to Bear.  Now if I could only get him to stop walking up to her when she's sleeping in the swing and shouting, "Lowly?  Lowwly?  You want out?"

Ink Stains

I don't suppose anyone knows how to get pen marks off a corduroy seat cushion?  WeeBee went to town on the living room while I was making breakfast.  The little stinker knows exactly what he did - as soon as I saw it and said "WeeBee, what were you doing?!?!" he grabbed my knees and started his "I sorry Mommy!  I sorry!" routine.

In any event, if anyone has any tips, I'd be extremely grateful.