The tooth fairy ain't made of gold kiddo!

I got home from my business trip on Thursday evening. Katie was already at dance class. I headed over to the dance studio. When I got there, the first class had just ended. Katie saw me coming and ran and gave me the biggest hugs! She really made my day. She kept telling everyone how it was her "lucky day" since she had lost a tooth and her daddy came back home.

Later that night when Katie went to bed, she placed her tooth under her pillow. I keep the golden dollar coins handy for these special nights. Just before I headed to bed myself, I tip-toed into her room to check on the tooth fairy. I reached under her pillow to look for the tooth. What I found was the tooth and the following note:

It is the memories like this one that make my life worth living and make me always look forward to getting home from my trips!

Random Pic of the Day (I'm scared!)

The picture below is of a recent school project done by my daughter. Click on it to make it larger and read what she wrote under her drawing. I was laughing so hard my sides hurt. She doesn't know what is so funny about it and I think I will wait until she is older before I explain it. LOL

Favorite 4 My Friday

One of my favorite things in life is going to see my kids in any type of activity they do. I have yet to miss a single one. It kinda ties in with my Thought 4 My Thursday post from yesterday.
Today, the third graders at Katie's school were doing a "Wax Museum." Each child was dressed up as someone who has had an influence on America. When we walked into the classroom the children were all standing behind their desks. I walked over to Katie and she was looking down. I thought she was upset. So after asking what was wrong a few times and her not responding, she motioned with her finger to her desk. There was a cut out marked "Activate" I got it now. We need to push the button on the desk to activate the wax statue. Once I pushed it Katie looked up and smiled and began to talk about her person. She was Carrie Underwood. It was fun walking around and looking at the different children and they just loved when someone pushed their button. It was obvious that the children had learned to do research. They each had some fun facts about the person they were portraying.

Katie dressed as Carrie Underwood

Katie's cousin Joey as Abraham Lincoln

"Insulting Batteries"

If any of you have a Facebook page, you know that one of the popular things to do on there is take silly surveys. You can find out important things about yourself like, "What 70's TV character am I?" or "What animal would I most likely turn into?" My son Tyler recently took one titled "What crime am I most likely to ever be arrested for?" His result was "Assault & Battery"

The other day, we were sitting in a restaurant having dinner and this survey came up. As we discussed it, my daughter sat with a puzzled look on her face. As soon as there was a moment silence she loudly asked, "Why would anyone insult a battery?" We all lost it and laughing so hard I am surprised we didn't get kicked out of the place!....tm

Buying a room for $1.31

Like most kids, mine are under the misconception that they own part of our house. Tyler had commented recently about the bedroom being "his." This then of course gave Kaity the idea that her bedroom was in fact "hers." I pointed out to both of them that in fact, my wife and I own the house (along with the bank) and that we allow them to live there for now. Of course being the smart ass that he is, Tyler had tossed 2 cents at me so he could claim his share of the home. I told him when he moves out I would go take the splinter he just bought and give it to him.

Last night Kaity and Tyler were having one of their several daily battles. Suddenly Kaity ran up the stairs and brought down her change bank. She opened it up and grabbed some change. She proceeded to count out what she grabbed. It totaled $1.31. She handed it to me and then walked over to Tyler, put her hands on her hips, looked him in the eye and said, "I just bought your room! Now go upstairs and clean your stuff out of it!" She then told him, "I am turning it into my storage room. I am going to store shoes and clothes and a piano!" I should point out that Kaity does not play the piano. In fact, we don't even own one.

I sat there laughing. It was just way too funny. Of course Kevin was just looking at both of them and half smiling. He shares the room with Tyler and just got evicted by his 8 year old sister. She told him, "Too bad." I am still chuckling over this whole thing.

By the way, can anyone come help me lug the piano upstairs for Kaity? .....tm

Random Pic of the Day

Never in my life did I imagine a day where my kids
would sit in the yard petting chickens in their lap!

The Golden Egg

I tell my kids all the time that one of the reasons we had children was simply so we could mess with their heads. Last night was one of those times.

When we first got the chickens, Katie was very excited. She was hoping that these chickens would lay golden eggs so we could be rich. Can you see where this story is leading yet? Well, being parents that hate to see our children disappointed, my wife decides we need to help Kaitlyn realize her dream. We took an egg and spray painted it gold. Since paint doesn't dry so fast on eggs, we had to wait a day or two to carry out the plan. Last night I put the egg inside the chicken pen. Out in the open where she would see it easily. I gave her an ear of corn and sent her out to give it to the chickens. Of course I had to go outside to see her reaction.

Kaity ran to the chickens, tossed in the corn, and came running back. She had not seen the egg. So, I said to her, "Bug, what is that thing in the pen?" "Did someone toss a golf ball in there?" Kaity ran back and looked and announced, "Nope. It's just a rock." I told her that it didn't look like one so we should go look closer. That's when it hit her. "OMG! OMG! The chickens laid an egg! And it's golden!!" She took the egg and was running around yelling. She ran into the house to show her mom. When my wife asked her if she was sure it was an egg Kaitlyn replied, "Yes it is. I smelled it and it smells like poop!" In between laughing I asked why it would smell like that and of course she informed me it was because, "Eggs come out of a chicken's butt" Can you see me rolling on the floor holding my sides at this point?

Well, of course Kaitlyn has been calling people to tell them about her chicken and its golden egg. We overheard her telling her cousin that a plain egg is only worth $5 but this golden one is worth $20. Where she came up with those figures is beyond me. She also claims to know which of the chickens actually laid the egg. I can only wonder if she went outside and sniffed each chicken's butt to compare to the smell of the egg.

She wanted to put the egg in her back pack and take it to school today but, I convinced her that would not be such a good idea since it would break. And everyone knows that no one will pay $20 for a broken golden egg. Whew! That would have been a mess!.........tm

The no-competition field day competition.

My daughter goes to the same elementary school that I went to as a kid. I remember looking forward to field day every year. It consisted of things like track and field events, tug-of-war, three-legged races, relays, and the peanut hunt. Of course that was before kids developed peanut allergies. I was far from athletic but, I always had fun. I didn't care if I won awards or not.

Today was field day for Kaitlyn. I took the day off so I could go and watch. Aside from the fact I love going to the things the kids do, my wife is in Washington DC for the day. What I saw today seemed fun for the kids but the competition was gone. The events were no longer based on skill or athletics. Instead it has become one giant kids party. There were about 12 different stations that the "teams" rotated to. Events included things like dancing, crab soccer, an obstacle course, face painting, and sand art. Since when did sand art become a field day event? There were no stop watches. No ribbons for the top competitors. No judges. Nothing that would make the kids strive harder to be the best. Have we gotten that pathetic that we must prevent our kids from having to grow up and face the fact that they may not always be the best? How does this prepare them for life down the road where they may have to compete for things like jobs and promotions? People win and people lose. We get over it.

This was the closest they came to a sport.

I don't recall the hula hoop as an olympic event.

This was kinda cute. The one in the back had to lead the blind
through a field of debris without stepping on anything.

Getting her face painted.

Face painting results.

My daughter needs a mute button!

Yesterday being Mother's Day we did what we usually do and took my wife out for a late lunch / early dinner at Applebee's. While sitting waiting for our food I was telling my wife that I had seen a sign for fresh eggs at $4 a dozen. I then commented that I was going to go home and squeeze our chickens to get eggs. Well, my daughter looks at me and in a nice loud voice, so that everyone in the place can hear, states, "Daddy you can not choke the chickens!" I sat there half mortified and half on the verge of laughing. I calmly told her that I did not say choke. I said squeeze. Of course she was not following me and continued to protest loudly about me choking the chickens. Needless to say my wife and I are laughing hysterically and making sure we try to clarify to her what we meant. I was making sure that I also spoke loud enough so everyone could hear me. My guess is they were laughing too hard to hear me. Kids!....tm

Bug's First Communion

Yesterday the youngest of my children made her first communion. It was a beautiful day here on the Island. The weather was actually more typical for a June day as opposed to it being the end of April but, I am certainly not complaining. My daughter has been looking forward to this day for awhile now. We started off the day by going to the 9 AM mass to witness my brother's son making his first communion and then it was back for the 12:30 mass for Bug's turn. Now you may call me a wimp, but I have to confess, when Kaitlyn came down the aisle along with the other celebrants, I had to fight the tears. Maybe I am prejudice since she is my daughter but she looked absolutely gorgeous in her white dress and veil. I know that in no time at all there will come a day when she walks down that aisle again. Only then she will be moving on to become a wife. I am choking up just typing this.

So, to all of you parents out there, no matter how tough the days get with your children, cherish each and every moment you have with them. They grow up way too fast.

Bug, Tyler, Kevin, Carleen, and I.
(Ignore the date, I forgot to set camera).

Bug looking like a bride inside the church.

Bug -vs- Daddy -vs- Chickens

My daughter calls me at work yesterday and begins our conversation with "Daaaaaady?" It was that drawn out way of saying my name that immediately lets me know that she wants something. I figure she saw some new toy or was going to beg me to stand in a mile long line to see the New Hannah Montana movie that opens today. So when she asked, "Can I have a chicken?" I had to make her say it again to be sure I had heard her right. Indeed I had. Being a normal dad, and weighing out all my possible options of how to say no without being the bad guy, I gave her what most dad's would consider the only possible answer. I told her, "Go ask your mother." Little did I know that my wife had already played that card and it is why Bug was calling me. Grrrrr! Well, after listening to her tell me about how her grandmother wanted to buy this chicken, (Don't you just love mother-in-laws?), I reluctantly agreed. As I was getting ready to hang up, Bug tells me, "Ok I will get two." Okay wait, did she just two? "Kaitlyn! I didn't say yes to ...{CLICK!}....two!...Hello? Hellooo?" Rather than call back and argue I rationalized the need for a chicken to have a playmate.

Okay, now I know I have talked about starting a chicken farm before, and my friend Dena asks me all the time just when I am moving to NE to do it, but I have never raised a chicken in my life. In fact, the only time I have ever really touched a chicken,(other than the many nights spent alone choking one) it was on my dinner plate and not about to run around the kitchen. So, I do the only thing I could think of and send a message to Dena since she has experience. My two major questions, "How do I keep a chicken warm in the winter?" and "How long do chickens live?" After she finally stopped laughing at me, she did eventually answer those questions. She also gave me some other helpful tips about clipping wings and high fences.

A few hours after the initial "Daddy can I have a chicken" phone call, my daughter calls me again. This time she starts out telling me about a note the tooth fairy left her. She tried to trick the tooth fairy by leaving the little silk "tooth pouch" under her pillow with what she thought looked like a tooth inside. The tooth fairy responded by leaving a note telling Kaity not to try and trick the tooth fairy. She also left Kaity a trial sized packet of cat food. I started to panic since we do not have a cat. I had a talk with the tooth fairy, who assured me that we did not have a cat hidden some place in the house. I then asked Bug if she had gotten the chickens yet. So I asked her to tell me what color they are. "Well, I got a black one, two white ones, and..." Wait did she just say three chickens? "......and Tyler got 3 brown ones!" So, that means she got 3 and Tyler got 3 and even using new math that still adds up to, OMG 6 CHICKENS! I asked her again and she confirmed that we did in fact now have 6 chickens.

"Where is your mother?"
"She is in the house."
"Put her on the phone!"
"But Daddy...."
"Give her the $@%# phone!"
"Are you going to ask her why we have 6 chickens?"
"No dear, I am going to give her my favorite chicken recipes!"

Well, it appears that you can not buy just one or two chickens. At least not live ones. They only sell them in lots of six. And since my daughter already had her heart set on a chicken.....yeah you know the rest. So I now have six baby chickens in my house since they can not go outside for about another month. I am just praying they are all female and that I can at least enjoy fresh eggs. Time will tell. In the meantime I will just be thankful she didn't ask for a cow. We are not zoned for a cattle ranch.

Oh, and Dena is still laughing her butt off at me over this one. She pointed out that I'm finally living my dream of being a chicken farmer. Keep laughing Dena! You told me that you would help me if I ever did it. So, be expecting many many phone calls for advice!.....tm

Bug's logical conclusion

Today is my oldest son's 17th birthday. Hard to believe I am old enough to have a kid that age but, then Dena has 2 even older and she is younger than me. Anyway, I asked my daughter if she remembered to wish her brother a "Happy Birthday?" She responded that she didn't. I figured no big deal she would do it later. As I was driving her to her cousin's house I commented on how cold it was for this time of year. After all, it is Spring and yet the temp is only in the low 20's. I then told her that it was not unheard of though since 17 years ago it had snowed a day before Kevin was born. I saw the look on her face that tells me the little light in her brain clicked on and she suddenly had a revelation. She looked at me and said, "Wow! Kevin was actually born on his birthday!" Then she realized that she too was born on her birthday. Imagine that!

I don't know why she never got the whole concept before but, rest assured if she ever knows it is YOUR birthday, she is going to know what your mom was doing on that day!

Tiger Peanuts

Today as we were sitting at the table enjoying a pizza, my son and his friend started talking about foods and weird things people eat. Kevin started talking about his trip to Japan last August and mentioned that they wanted him to drink some sort of juice from a poison wasp. He politely refused. However that made me ask what was the weirdest thing he actually did eat there. I explained to him that they eat rather strange things there. I told him that they eat things like Tiger penis. (They really do but, it is expensive). My daughter gave me the 'Daddy-you-are-so-stupid' look and yelled, "Daddy! Tigers don't grow peanuts!" I lost it. I was laughing so hard I almost choked. The boys were rolling on the floor. She still has no clue why and I am not about to explain it to her........tm