uh oh. The packrat gene has surfaced December 30, 2007

in my firstborn. Well, to be honest, I’ve known for some time that he’s “blessed” with this charming character trait. Like, since about the time he threw a hissy, as only a 3 year old can, when I (strongly) discouraged his plan to save all the junkmail in his own special junk mail stash bin. It’s been dormant for awhile now, though.

To be fair it’s not a mystery where he got it from. I am a carrier of this gene myself. I just actively resist letting it manifest itself in my life. To the point that I’m very anti-packrat because, well, I have a tendency to do things to one extreme or another. So, it was with cringing and gritted teeth (on the inside, anyway) that I just smiled and said “fine” when he announced that he’d like to keep all the cards that anyone in the family gets from now on. I asked what he was going to do with these cards and he just shrugged and said “keep them all in their own bin.”

Sigh. I might as well just start drawing up plans for the storage shed right now.

Little twilight zone moments December 18, 2007

So, I just opened a letter from the IRS.  Not something a person usually looks forward to which may be why it’s been sitting on my desk for days.  Right at the top in bold letters it says “This is not a bill”.  OK.  So far, so good.

The next paragraph is bolded and centered and it says “You Made One or More Late Federal Tax Deposits But We Didn’t Charge You a Penalty”.  First, I love how they capitalize it as though it is a title.

So why did they contact me?  Just to let me know they weren’t going to charge me the $175 that they could.  You know, if they wanted to.  If they were the old, hateful IRS not the new, kinder gentler one.  And to make sure I understand what I’m supposed to be doing so I can get it right next time.  Little do they realize it’s more an issue of being calendar-challenged than anything.  Understanding what I’m supposed to pay when is my accountant’s job.  I just don’t follow her instructions so well.

Anyway.  It just seemed a little bizarre to have the IRS be so… well, nice.  “No, really, don’t worry about it.  I’m sure it was an honest mistake”.  Not really something one expects to hear from the IRS.

Drought Relief: 1 December 14, 2007

Boys on the beach after bedtime watching a meteor shower: 0

  So, the weather interfered with our plans.  There is supposed to still be some decent meteor activity still tonight.  But it’s still cloudy and rainy so, who knows.  Not to mention DS2&3 have a music program at the preschool tonight.  That plus a trip to the beach  after dark to hang out and watch the heavens might be just a little too much fun in one day for everyone.  Maybe me, in particular.

Of course, if it’s the least bit clear I will be pestered to death to go watch so I suppose I might as well plan for that.  Last night there was some significant reluctance to believe me that pouring rain = cloudy skies = no view of meteor shooting through the atmosphere.  Yes, the clouds *are* between us and the meteors.  (One would certainly hope, anyway!)

Tomorrow night December 12, 2007

We’re going to let the boys stay up for awhile to watch this spectacle of nature

Our planet Earth is now passing through a stream of debris in space.

Some of this debris will enter Earth’s atmosphere to appear as “shooting stars” in our night sky. In other words, these next few nights are the peak nights of the Geminid meteor shower. Tonight and Friday night are great times to look.

The Geminids are one of the year’s best meteor showers. It’s a consistent and prolific shower that typically produces 50 or more meteors an hour, or about one every minute. You can expect the Geminid meteors to start flying around mid-evening tonight.

DS1 is very excited.  I think I’ll just go ahead and print that story and save it for the next time he has to do one of those current events projects.

Of course, given that prime time for the show starts is just about the time they should be drifting off to sleep I’m sure I’m going to pay for this on Friday morning.  But at least it’s Friday – I can get through one sucky morning of non-waking boys.

You know that stage December 9, 2007

where the parent knows, essentially, nothing. And then sometime later on in life the parent gradually gets pretty smart again. Typically sometime not long after the child is out on their own and having to actually fend for themselves. Doesn’t every parent / child pair goes through this to some degree for a number of the teen years – maybe even into the twenties?

Well, I suspect I might reach that “gawd, Mom. Don’t you know *anything*??” stage a little sooner than I might have expected with DS1 – my little brainiac. I actually first realized this the day he came home from first grade and gave me a pop quiz on the 5 types of vertebrates. I did not do so well on that. But I was reminded of this suspicion recently when we had this conversation. Again, driving home from school – usually the time of day when all his mental circuits are cookin’ with gas and mine are mostly just fried.

Him: Mom let’s play guess the animal.

Me: OK. you think of one and I’ll guess

Him: OK, I got one. (waits for me to guess)

Me: Well, you’re going to have to give me a hint to narrow it down a bit (thinking to myself “or this is going to be one loooong guessing game”)

Him: It’s microscopic.

At this point you could just go ahead and picture me with a blank look and a big cartoon-like question mark floating over my head. An orange one.
Me: well, how about an amoeba.

Him: Nope. Guess again.

Me: Well, actually, I can’t really think of anything else it could be that would be microscopic.

Him: (big sigh) OK, well, I’m not sure if it’s exactly microscopic. It was zooplankton.

I guess sticking to something one might find at a zoo or a farm or in the jungle or the forest would just be too easy.

Two loose teeth December 9, 2007

DS3 comes running in this morning with his finger in his mouth saying (through his hand) “look Mom, look”.  It took a minute but then I realized he was showing me that his tooth was loose.  Of course, my boys being the way they are my first thought was if he’d fallen recently or gotten hit in the mouth.  After all, I was away last weekend and it’s just the sort of thing DH would neglect to tell me.  Then I realized it was two!!

OK, I am so not the mom to bemoan my “babies growing up too fast”.  I’m totally in favor of it.  I enjoy the highly interactive, creative, self-propelled, communicative, own-butt-wiping, self-entertaining, through-the-night-sleeping versions of my children much more than the previous not-doing-those-things stages.

But I was (and am!) totally not ready for that!  He’s only 4 (well, for a bit yet, anyway).  DS1 was through Kindy when he lost his first tooth.  Of course, to make matters worse, DS2 thinks he should have a loose tooth, also.  Given that they have so far been the “different as day and night in every possible way” twins, I have no reason to think that DS2 will do this on an even remotely similar time-table.   Time to start practicing my “everybody is different” speech in all its variations.

And I better make sure I remember exactly what the tooth fairy left with each tooth for DS1.  Because I’m 100% certain DS1 will.  And he’ll be registering official complaints should there be any hint of inequity.

Tonight I put on Christmas music for the boys when they were going to sleep.  All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth came on.   SIL was here today with neice K.  SIL was singing that song and telling DS3 that Grandpa would be singing it to him (repeatedly) at Christmas.  So when it came on the stereo in the boys room, after lights are out and it’s all quiet, I hear DS3 muttering emphatically “I just hate that song”.  Perfect.  This should be good for the trademark DS3 High Drama Hissy Fit.  Luckily, the HDHF is generally short-lived and easily de-railed into laughing.

DS2’s latest idea of fun December 9, 2007

DS2 will come running in from outside saying “I have to go potty”.  Naturally, this matter is not attended to – like ever – until it reaches emergency status.  However, suddenly, he has to stop if he sees me en route and says “Guess!”  I’m supposed to then respond with either “pee” or “poop”.  If I get it wrong, I have to guess again (fortunately, there are only 2 choices in this game so it’s mercifully short).  If I get it right he shouts “right!” with such great fanfare and enthusiasm you’d think I’d just won a trip around the world.

Ah, the bizarre workings of the 4 y.o. mind.  No one tells you you’re going to end up playing the “guess the pending bodily function” game when you decide to have a baby.   Of course, there are many, many things no one warns tells you about before you actually go  ahead and strap yourself in for that roller coaster ride of parenting.

As if I didn’t hate the paper clip guy enough December 9, 2007

you know, that annoying little animated paper clip in the M$ Office Suite products. Turns out he’s got an evil cousin. Orange Number 5. Yup, just as annoying. Even if he is sporting the auto-insurance-selling gecko’s accent.

Oh, and I like the gecko. He’s cute. And funny.  He regularly makes me want to switch insurance carriers.

The possibility of Mr. Orange Five being my built-in “assistant” in using this software would keep me from trying it even if a) converting my tried-and-true and perfectly functional bookkeeping software to something new seemed like a good idea b) I was a fan of bloated software suites or c) I had a personal goal to use as many M$ products in my daily life as possible. Fortunately, I’m safe from that temptation since options a, b and c are all 180 degrees from the truth.

It’s only a matter of time, though, before my curiosity gets the best of me and I’m forced to google to find out if Mr. Gecko’s voice is, in fact, done by the same dude as Mr. 5

Dear Fundraiser-du-jour marketing peeps December 4, 2007

I would be vastly more inclined to consider the literature you mail me if you did not address it to Mrs. MyHusband’sFirstName OurLastName.

You see, when I see  myself addressed with a name I’ve never, for one moment, considered using, I am compelled to quickly get the offending bit of mail into the recycling bin as quickly as possible before I give it much thought and ruin my afternoon with a bit random pissiness.

How does one even get on a list under a name that’s never been used by anyone other than (I’m sad to say) my own mother addressing cards and letters?

Reason for not going to sleep #42 December 3, 2007

DH put the boys to bed about an hour ago. I go out to the dining room to do some work at the table and hear the telltale noises of small feet that were in bed a minute ago and are now in the hall. Looking over, sure enough, there is DS3 peeking with one eye into the kitchen from the hall.

Me: What are you doing up?

DS3: I can’t sleep

Me: How come?

DS3: Because my brain is talking to me too much.

LOL

As I type this, he just appeared in my office doorway. I guess the Christmas music / glow stick / my special teddy bear that is off-limits for playing with incentive plan has failed. We will now move to “take your pillow and lay on the couch and try to fall asleep” musical sleeping spots game.

Any odds on whether this child ends up in my bed tonight?