Happy Baby

Everywhere I take Isabella I always get the comment, "She's such a happy baby!" They're right. She smiles at everyone who'll smile at her. She's also really ticklish around her neck, so every time I change her shirt she laughs hysterically. I love it! She's also cuddly and great for hugging. If you're in a bad mood, come over and give her a squeeze - you'll feel better. If you stay a while and chat with her, she'll talk your ear off and love you forever. She's lives her life on Benjamin's schedule and never complains. Naps are always erratic and often interrupted, but she'll go along with it. Today she quietly fell asleep in her stroller while I pushed Benjamin on the swing. I am so blessed to have such a sweet little girl. I just had to post a tribute to her.


The place she'll stay content the longest is in the johnny jumper. We shortened it a bit so Benjamin can push her in it like a swing. They have so much fun together. Its wonderful to see.

Is it an accident?

Is it an accident if you don't hit anything? I have a bad habit - I crash cars. Since my first accident at 17 when I backed into a parked SUV, things haven't gone well. So a friend of mine joked with me once saying that I should keep a running total of how many days I go without an accident. She suggested I have a party or some kind of reward at certain days - 100, 200, 300, etc. That sounded like a fantastic idea to me, so I began. I was going strong at 465 - probably the longest I'd EVER gone when the rains came last week. Rain is great when you're sitting inside reading a book. Rain is not so great when you're driving on the freeway, especially in Michigan where they haven't quite figured out how to keep roads from flooding. So, here I am, zipping along on my way to Detroit for a church service project, when I round a corner and see that my entire lane is under water. Deep, deep water. I have another car next to me so I can't swerve over, so I grip the steering wheel and brace, as I feel my car lift off the road and begin to spin. That's when everything started to go in slow motion and I sat there in my rotating car thinking, "Should I brake? Would that make it better or worse? Maybe I'll just brake slowly." So I slowly depressed the pedal and prepared for the sound and feel of my car slamming into the center concrete barrier - a sound I know all too well. To my great astonishment however, I came to a stop without the familiar crunch of my side panel. Once I realized that my engine was also still running, I decided to try to drive out. I was facing traffic now, so I waited for an opening (not hard to find at 8am on a Saturday) and I slowly pulled out. As I did I noticed other cars who hadn't been so lucky. There were several bumpers, lights, etc floating in the water and one car in particular, about 100 meters ahead of me, getting loaded on a tow truck. I counted my blessings and started driving on to Detroit. That's when I noticed a peculiar sound. At first I thought I'd flooded my engine after all and it was just taking its time dying. But then I saw something strange out of the corner of my eye. I realized that odd noise I was hearing was a part of my car dragging along the road beside me. I quickly pulled over again and got out to inspect. I discovered that somehow (the force of the water??) the long metal bar that runs along the two driver side doors had come apart from the bumpers and was hanging by one lonely screw from the front end. My back bumper was popped up as well. I was on the phone calling Kelly when the tow truck driver I'd seen earlier drove over and offered his services. He already had a car on his truck, though, so I wasn't sure what he could do for me. He got out and looked at my car. "Oh - this is nothing. You want me to fix this? Push here," he said, indicating a spot on my bumper. I pushed and he banged and presto - the bumper was back in place. "If you give me a screwdriver I can take that bar off and you can drive home and have it put back on later." So I found a screwdriver in the trunk and within a few seconds I had a long metal rod in my back seat. "I'm a body shop on wheels!" he declared and drove off. So I didn't call Kelly, but got back into my car and drove to the service project, to the great surprise of all those from the church who aren't in the habit of having regular car accidents and aren't as immune to its acute psychological effects.


(This was my last accident - 465 days ago. I neglected to take a picture of the most recent one.)

So, the question in all of this is - does this count as an "accident?" Is my accident-free record over? Because that was the first thing that went through my head as I started driving again - ugh! there goes my count at only 465 days! However, as I've told a few people about it they've said, "What? that's not an accident! You didn't hit anything!" Yes, but my car was still damaged and doing a 180 on the freeway is not a minor thing. So, I'm not really sure. It sure would be nice to be able to reach the 500 day mark! :) I guess it's up for debate.

Those Thieving Ducks!

We went to our weekly German mom's club play group on Wednesday and this time we were at Shiawassee Park. However, since Benjamin and I had just been there recently, he found the playground far less interesting than the rushing stream. The recent rains had swollen the normally placid stream into a deep, rushing one and it was irresistible to a certain water-obsessed little boy. The best part, though, was that all the ducks were out on the grass again and one of my friends in the group had brought a bag of bread for them. So Benjamin and her little boy Luca got large pieces of bread to feed the ducks. (An old lady with a HUGE bag of cut up bread also came just as we started, so the ducks were in a frenzy.)



Benjamin gave two pieces to the ducks and then decided that he was hungry too and proceeded to eat the bread himself. Never let down your guard around hungry ducks, though. Even though he was standing on the bench, when he lowered his hand to his side, a particularly ferocious duck jumped into the air, and grabbed the bread from him. Benjamin sobbed hysterically until he got another piece of bread. However, after a couple more bites, he again got distracted by the mob of ducks and forgot his previous lesson. Once again a go-getter of a duck jumped up and snatched his bread away. Despite his tears, I just had to laugh a little at the sight. Those ducks knew what they wanted and weren't going to let some little boy eat it up. I made sure to give him something to eat once we were out of range. ;) Once the ducks were sated, they meandered back into the water and for some reason Benjamin and his pal Luca thought that was the funniest thing on earth. Each time a duck would flap up and splash into the water, they'd about bust a gut laughing. It was the cutest thing. And once again I forgot my camera. Thank goodness for camera phones. Remind me why I bothered buying a new camera in the first place?



Despite the challenges I face with Benjamin's fierce independent streak and his love of the word "no," he is really a lot of fun. He has a great sense of humor - so quick to laugh and play. He is loving and sympathetic and a great helper with Isabella. He's just a really great kid and I love being with him. Okay, enough motherly sentimentality. :) I just really love my kids, even when they drive me crazy.

Rockin' and Rollin'

I took Benjamin rollerskating yesterday. It was his first time in rollerskates and he looked so confused at first! So we come to this building, put wheels on our feet, and roll around in a circle? What? Once he got the hang of it, though, he seemed pretty excited about this new mode of transportation. We attended a special class for kids under 6 so although he was the youngest one there (besides Isabella), he saw that lots of other kids were doing it and it gave him the courage to give it a try. He held my hand and we went back and forth on the carpet for a bit before venturing out onto the rink. Then he got progressively bolder. What really got him going, though, was when he discovered the arcade games at the opposite end of the rink. Up to this point he'd only skated while holding onto me. But with a cry of "TV!" he let go of my hand and was off. He skated the entire length of the rink without holding on and without falling thanks to this single goal. It took some convincing to get him to continue rollerskating after that. However, we did Simon Says, The HokeyPokey, Red Light Green Light, and The Chicken Dance and he seemed to have a good time. The highlight, though, was when the lady running the class got out some little scooters that you sit on and turn the handle side to side in order to propel yourself forward. Pretty soon it was like bumper cars out there and every kid was out for the kill. It was pretty hysterical. I am so upset that I forgot my camera AGAIN! I need to surgically implant that thing on my forehead. Anyway, I'll have to go again and get some pictures then. For now, here are some cute pics of Benjamin at the park today with his buddy Max.



These ducks must have been so used to kids chasing them all the time that they never even flew away. Just waddled around and gave these boys the time of their life chasing after them.

Carnival Fun

There was a carnival in Plymouth this past weekend, so the kids and I decided to check it out. I hoped that there would be some rides that allowed little kids on by themselves and luckily there were a few. Benjamin only wanted to ride one of them, though - the "choo choo!" He was so excited when he saw the train! Without a moment's hesitation he climbed aboard and rode around and around. He was so cute and so happy. After that he wanted to ride the "neigh" - the horses on the merry-go-round. So we went there but they didn't allow kids his size to ride alone and they wouldn't let me on while holding Isabella. Darn carnies! So I stood there with a crying Benjamin trying to look pitiful and appeal to the controller's sympathies. As I did so, an elderly woman with her grandson came up and tried to get on. She was one ticket short, however, so she sadly walked away. That's when I had an idea. I ran after her and said, "I'll give you a ticket if you'll watch my baby while I ride with my son." She agreed and even fed Bella a bottle while we rode. Benjamin had such a great time. I didn't get any pics of it because I forgot my phone (what I was taking pics on since I forgot my camera at home) in the stroller but the tantrum that ensued when I attempted to get him off was a sure sign that he'd enjoyed himself. :) I had a lot of fun too. The rides, games, food, and fun atmosphere of a carnival are always great. Plus, it was within walking distance of a playground/park, so we stopped off there for a while before heading home. It was a great playground with lots of uncommon equipment and great, fast slides. It was a good mommy day all around.


Library story time starts next week, as does gymnastics class. We're excited! :)

Garbage Comedy

I just have to share a funny story from our crazy house this week. Friday is our usual trash day, but since it was labor day this past week, it moved trash day to Saturday. However, by the time Friday rolled around, we had long since forgotten what we'd done on Monday, so dutiful Kelly carried our two garbage cans, our recycling bin, and all our miscellaneous boxes and whatnots to the curb. As he was finishing and getting ready to head to work, our friendly neighbor yelled over, "there's no trash pick-up today!" So Kelly carried the recycling bin, the boxes, and the whatnots, all back into the garage and drove to work. An hour or so later, I get in the car to go to the gym and see all the trash in the garage. "Why didn't he take out the trash!?" I wonder. I could have sworn I heard him dragging it outside! So I put the kids in the car and then hurriedly carried the recycling bin, the boxes, and the whatnots out to the curb (for what I think is the first time.) This time there's no neighbor shouting to me becaus she's likely in her house laughing at me. When I drive back down our street a couple hours later, much more clear headed after my workout, I notice that we are the only ones on the street with our garbage out. Then I remember - Labor Day! So I drag the recycling bin, the boxes, and the whatnots back into the garage. Saturday dawns and Kelly takes Benjamin to Home Depot for some male bonding. I hear the garbage trucks and remember about yesterday's fiasco. I look out the window to see if I'm too late. No - the trash across the street is still there. Great! So I go into the garage and drag out the recycling bin, the boxes, and the whatnots out to the curb - again! As I am walking back up the driveway I notice something disturbing - maybe the garbage on the other side of the street is still there - but all the cans on our side are upsidedown and empty!! I was too late! I thought about carrying my garbage over to my neighbor's house but I didn't feel comfortable doing that. So, I turned around and drug the recycling bin, the boxes, and the whatnots back up to the garage. So, now we've carried our garbage back and forth FOUR times and still it sits in our garage, stinking the place up. Such is life in our house. You just have to laugh. I can only imagine the laughs we provided our neighbor! :)