Ugh!

I can't relax today because I know I have to go to traffic court tomorrow for not one, but TWO traffic violations--BLAH! A couple of weeks ago, I was driving to the zoo and went through a speed trap (unknowingly speeding in a school zone...) going forty mph in a TWENTY-FIVE mph zone! I was handing apple chips to Landon in the back seat one at a time and had missed the sign that said during such and such hours, the speed limit changes to 25 (try going 25 mph on a four lane main road some time...just try). Soooooo, I'm speeding and get pulled over (at least everyone else was getting pulled over, too--heh heh heh!--The traffic was pretty bad at the time). After the officer asked me "Do you know how fast you were going?", I remembered that I had lost my license a couple of days before. Crap. I also couldn't find where Andy keeps the insurance information, so I was batting a thousand with the impatient cop, as you can imagine. I vaguely remembered seeing my license under my seat at some point in time, so I began digging and digging--swearing to the officer it was in the car. He watched me dig for about ten or fifteen minutes (just staring holes in my back). I did finally find my license (ha HA!) and held it up triumphantly to him. (He looked really surprised, like he had been so sure I had been lying--mmmuwwaa ha ha ha ha ha--Hey, c'mon now, it's the little things. Let me have my moment.) Anyways, it gets worse still. The cop also told me that my tags had expired (!!!) and I wanted to choke Andy's little neck (he's sooo bad about this type of thing). I was driving his car for which he forgot to pay this year's taxes (of course I didn't check this before hopping in to drive it), I couldn't find anything the cop asked for, and the entire time I was sitting there in the church parking lot, wondering if I was going to be sent to the pokey, Landon was getting restless in the backseat, asking me if I was Herbie (The love bug. Because I was going too fast. Nevermind.) I got two tickets--one for the speeding and one for the expired tags. He didn't charge me for not having proof of insurance (Andy had found it in his wallet and driven it to me, but the cop was all pissy and wouldn't even look at it). I was so humiliated, you have no idea! The next day, on the way to the grocery store, we were in the same car (I was driving again, dang it!), and I got pulled over for the tags AGAIN! (My luck.) I showed the sweet little cop that I had just gotten pulled over for the same thing and that I couldn't pay taxes til Monday since it was the weekend. She looked at the ticket and said the previous cop had written out the ticket wrong (???!!) and that she was sorry, but she'd have to give me another ticket and another court date. Right. Of course. Tomorrow afternoon, I have to go to my first court date to try to get the fines reduced (something my cheapskate husband definitely won't let me out of, no matter how much I beg or plead). I have always HATED getting in trouble. It's so embarassing to stand there in court and be like, "Duuuuhh, Ah wuz speedin' and ah didn't pay no taxes, duuuuhhhh!" I feel so stupid and I already know what the judge is going to do. He's going to first check my record and see that I have another court date in a couple of weeks for another ticket. Then he's going to mess with me a little, treating me like I'm an sassy law breaker and rolling his eyes if I try to explain myself (they see this all day, after all). Then, after torturing me, he's going to reduce my fines and add court costs, bringing the total almost back to what it was (making me wish once again, I'd stayed at home). *sigh* Oh well, maybe I'll see some interesting cases while I sit there for half of the day. Last time I was in traffic court, there were two little old ladies fighting over a bush between their yards (they had been spraying each other with a high pressure garden hose and one had gotten hurt). There were also two men who had been fighting over a crack rock (they had been taking turns hitting each other with a baseball bat to see who would last the longest. You guessed it...winner takes crack rock). Welcome to the South. If something like that happens before I have to take the stand, I might be in better shape--ha ha ha! Wish me luck--(CLEARLY, I'll need it! ;o)

PS) If you're a police officer, pulling someone over for speeding, act at least a little human (especially if there's a kid in the car). My son used to love cops, but now he thinks they're "bad" thanks to the first one that pulled me over. :o(

Great.

So, today at Whole Foods Market, I heard that there has been a recall of all Stonyfield Farms Fat Free Blueberry Yogurt. Why, you ask? Well, there might be fragments of plastic or glass (Glass? Are you kidding me???!!) in the product. I just thought I'd mention it since pretty much everyone I know eats this stuff. I know we do! Scary.

Just a Reminder

Join us for Earth Hour tomorrow night from 8-9 p.m...But, before then, calculate your carbon footprint so you can see why it's soooo important to do this. The site also gives you some tips for how to live a more green lifestyle--and didn't we see earlier this week how necessary it is to be more conscious of the environment, when an ice chunk seven times the size of Manhattan collapsed into the ocean? Time for us to wake up and go green! Let me know if you participate in the lights-out tomorrow!

The Difference Between Andy and Me

Okay, so there are a vast number of differences between my husband and myself (he's pretty much my polar opposite!), but this story sums it all up pretty nicely.

Yesterday, I was mixing up my favorite lunch concoction of rotisserie chicken, tomatoes, and avocados (served on wheat bread with Havarti cheese--Mmmmm!) when I realized that there was some kind of gross blue powder all over the outside of my avocado. I, being the paranoid germophobe that I am, asked my husband to come check it out for me. I asked him what it was, and he answered that it was probably "just dirt". "Blue dirt?" I said, (with a snarled lip and a roll of my eyes, of course). He shrugged nonchalantly and went about his business. I kept inspecting the avocado, imagining all of the things that could be on my food. Andy finally volunteered to try it for me, to prove there was nothing wrong with it, so I handed it over. He picked up the avocado and looked all around the outside of it....Then HE LICKED IT!!! He licked the nasty blue powder right off of the side of the avocado!!! I looked at him in shock and disgust and asked "Why didn't you just take a bite??!!" His answer?

"I don't like avocados."

Needless to say, he survived. He always does. And I'm still crazy. I always was.

A Thursday "Tag, You're It!"

Thanks for the tag, Andrea!

The rules are:
1. The rules of the game get posted at the beginning.
2. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
3. At the end of the post, the player then tags
5 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

What I was doing 10 years ago: Ten years ago I was eighteen years old...a senior in high school, probably counting the days til graduation and getting ready for spring break! I had a boyfriend at the time who was living in a foreign country and I was probably excited that he'd be coming home soon :oP Eighteen was such a transitional time--Almost grown up, but stuck in high school thinking you already are!

Five things on my To Do List today:
1. Go to the Pottery Barn Outlet to look for a white shelf and kid's furniture (Yay!)
2. Clean my house (on my to-do list every day!) Blah!
3. Take Landon OUTSIDE! (It's going to be 75 degrees and bee-you-tee-ful!!)
4. Figure out how to waste time til Andy gets home from his 7:30
(!!!) meeting tonight! I hate when he works late! :o(
5. Figure out what to have for dinner

Snacks I enjoy: Our snacks around here turn out to be more like mini-meals. I like to split a grilled cheese sandwich with Landon or eat a bowl of cereal or something. I also love to eat fruit throughout the day or go out for a smoothie--Yum! And, like Andrea, now that Lent is over, I am probably going to be permanently seen with something sweet in my mouth!

Things I would do if I were a billionaire: This could get really long and boring, so I'll try to narrow it down to: Pay off bills, buy a house and GIVE, GIVE, GIVE!!!

Three of my bad habits:
1. WORRYING!!!
2. Procrastinating
3. Losing my keys!!!! :o)

Five places I have lived:
1. With my family in the house where I grew up (and then later there again when Andy and I bought it!)
2. In an apartment with my friend, Melissa
3. In a townhouse with a girl named Sarah at Clemson University
4. In another townhouse with my firend, Shannon, after college, and
5. Here, where I live now!

(The only place I left out is the house Andy and I rented before moving here. It had a mouse problem--to put it kindly--and we like to pretend it never happened!)

Five jobs I’ve had:
1. Hostessing at a restaurant
2. Waiting tables at a restaurant
3. Baby-sitting
4. Working at a friend's gift shop
5. Photography

People I want to know more about (a nice way of saying TAG!):

1. Sharon
2. Kim
3. Jennifer
4. Sue
5. Kate

I Have Two Words For You A.I. Fans:

DAVID COOK!!!

Happy Birthday, DADS!

Somehow, out of all of the people I could have married in the world, I wound up with someone whose dad has the same birthday as mine! (Our brothers are both named "Brian Joseph", too! Weird.) Anyways, yesterday, we got to celebrate two of the best men we know at the same time. Dads...this one's for you!Tom Pfaffl is one of my favorite people to be around. He is always telling funny stories and teasing everyone with a cheeky grin on his face. His laughter is absolutely infectious!!! Even tuesdays are a party with Grandpa Pfaffl! He cooks delicious food for us every time we go to visit them and always has the whole family involved in something fun--sports wagers, beach trips, board games, you name it. I am so blessed to be able to give my son a grandpa who teaches us without even trying, to grab life by the horns and ride it for all it's worth...one who teaches us that if we fall (or fail), we just need to dust ourselves off and give it another go... one who shows us everything in life is as it should be and to just send worry on it's way. Tom, you are a riot! Happy Birthday to our beer-making, joke-telling, advice-giving, always-there-in-a-pinch, Wisconsin man! We love you!







And now I'd like to send out birthday wishes to my own Dad, who I love more than life itself! My dad is one of those people ho seem to know everything and know how to do anything! We always joke that he will go into his garage one day and blast out on a homemade spaceship. He can build a house as easily as he can whip up a wok full of fried rice. He raised us to know everything he could about the world around us, never leaving a question unanswered, and I know my siblings and I owe a lot of who we are to him. I have been around my dad for twenty-eight years and I am still learning so many new things about him every day! He is one of those rare souls who would give anything to anyone without ever expecting anything in return, and I love him with all of my heart. Happy birthday to my spiritual advisor, role model, and confidante....You're the best "Pop-Pop" Landon could ever have ;o)

Our Easter

Despite my desire for a change in pace, this Easter turned out to be a typical Granger holiday, celebrated in the typical Granger pandemonium. Andy and I decided (after trying to fit a million things into one short weekend) to just stay put for Easter and spend it quietly and simply at home. How did we plan to accomplish this simple, quiet holiday, you ask? Well, we decided not to drive to Andy's parents house since the hour and a half long drive back and forth gets a little difficult on holidays. We decided not to go over to my dad's house. We decided, instead, to make a quick trip to my Grandma's house and then to spend the rest of the day at our house. What else did we do to "simplify" the holiday? We decided to cook a huge Easter dinner and tell everyone in our family they could drop by if they were up for it. So, yeah, what followed our brilliant decision making process was less than simple, if you can imagine.

Easter, for us, began at 8:00 a.m--

8:00 a.m: Andy gets up and gets ready to go to church.
8:30 a.m: Andy tries for the first time to wake me up.
9:00 a.m: Andy tries again to wake me up.
9:15 a.m: I finally get up to take a shower (& blame Andy for not
making me get up earlier--ha ha!).
9:40 a.m: I am almost ready and begin to get a very cranky Landon
dressed. (Cranky in the morning? Wonder where he gets it?)
9:55 a.m: We are officially late for 10:00 Mass at Prince of Peace
& plan on making it to the 11:00 a.m. Mass at St. Mary's
downtown instead.
9:55-10:45 a.m: Running around the house, peeking through Landon's
Easter basket, making breakfast, packing bags of
toys and extra clothes and snacks and doing who
knows what else--blah!
11:05 a.m: We are officially late for the 11:00 a.m. Mass
(!!!) downtown and find out there is another
Mass starting at 11:15 in the church gym. (By this time,
we are running like crazy, clothes wrinkled, hair flying
all over the place, shoes covered in mud...I was a
little irrate, but on a mission!)
11:35 a.m: Landon has put in an impressive good, solid ten
minutes sitting quietly in church and is pretty
much done. All snacks are gone and sneaky tries at
diverting his attention from his shenanigans are
exhausted. My "mom hisses" and threats and even my
frantic bribes were being completely disregarded.
11:40 a.m: After watching Landon try out soccer moves all over the
bleachers and chairs of the church/gym (imagining loudly
that his white dress shoes are soccer cleats and his
white knee high socks are shin guards), Andy escorts
Landon outside so I can get at least something
out of the Mass I worked so hard to get to--PHEW!

I still don't understand how in the world we can manage to be late for something we had so much time to prepare for! *sigh*

Anyways, after church,Landon met his second cousin, Cam, for the first time. They are the same age age and hit it off right away (sassy little things!). The two of them immediately ran off together and proceeded to ruin their Easter outfits, climbing trees and chasing each other in the dirt--Ha ha ha! They were so cute together!

We zipped over to my Grandma's for lunch right after church and then raced back home to finish cleaning and begin cooking....One green bean casserole (totally homemade--no canned stuff--Woo hoo!), one pan of Macaroni and cheese, one corn souffle, one sweet potato casserole, and one tray of cheese-stuffed-bacon-wrapped chicken breasts later, dinner was ready. (Hey, be quiet, comfort food is never pretty! Ha ha!)
My mom and step-dad, sister and her fiance, Michael, Michael's mom & my three brothers (and two of their girlfriends) all kicked back with us in our living room, eating big plates of food and hanging out. As I said before, when there's a room full of Grangers (and everybody's a comedian!), things can get pretty rowdy. There were channels being flipped on t.v., YouTube videos being played on the computer, forty loud conversations being held over under and across each other and, later, we proved once again, that no family get-together is ever complete without playing ROCK BAND!!!! By the end of the marathon night (about midnight), my eardrums were five seconds from shattering, my house was a huge mess and I had decided I didn't want to see food again (to eat it or to cook it) for about a month! It was a the opposite in every way from what we planned, but it was FANTASTIC...So, am I complaining? No way! It was as loud and as hectic as ever, but I wouldn't change anything about it for the world...,>!! and I would do it all over again the exact same way next year if everyone else was game. I can never get enough of my crazy family! :o) So, that's about it for today! I hope all of you had a great Easter and that those of you who have blogs will post tons of pics for me to see!

My Official Interview ;o)

1. If you had to live in a country other than the US, where would you live? Why?

Ooh! I would have to say somewhere in Europe...probably France since I (used to) speak the language. Besides that, I absolutely love it there!! If I ever stop being terrified of flying, I cannot WAIT to go back again and bring Landon!

2. Did you always want to have kids? If so, how many? Has that number changed since actually becoming a parent?

Yeah, I'm pretty sure I always wanted to have kids...or at least, I always pictured myself eventually having kids. I wanted to have two or three and that number is more or less the same after having a kid (The way my kid has been testing my patience lately, sometimes that number stops at ONE!). I change my mind all the time, though. Some days I want four (three in a row and then a midlife crisis baby). Sometimes I want to get pregnant one more time (just to see if it's any better than the last experience) and follow that kid with an adoption (or two!)...I want to adpot really badly! I guess I'm not being very clear in my answer here--Sorry! :oD I'll just say "I have no idea what I want" and when I figure it all out, you'll be the first to know! ;o)

3. If you had no children, what career path would you choose, if you were planning it today?

Ooh, good one! Well, let's see...if I had no children, I would NOT go into either of the fields I studied in college--Nor would I go into any field I thought I wanted to be in before having Landon. I learned the hard way that I don't have to prove anything to anyone. I don't have to prove that I'm smart. I don't have to prove that I can be rich or successful. Knowing what I know now, I would go back and do something I LOVE doing. I never quite grasped that I could actually make money doing what I loved until recently. Maybe I wouldn't have known any of that without having Landon. Having him also made me be interested in becoming a lactation consultanat or a doula or a nutritionist, but since the question asked what I'd be doing if I never had any children, I'd have to say, probably something involving art or design, fashion or entertainment. Will that suffice? :oD

4. Where is your favorite place to eat? What do you typically order?

I had to sit and think about this one for a minute because I LOVE to eat, but I have come to realize that I actually love eating at home best! I worked in restaurants for over ten years and that experience kind of ruined most aspects of dining out--ha ha ha! (Watch "Waiting" if you think you can stomach it!) I am also a pretty darn good cook, if I do say so myself, so I just pick out what I like and have it every day. Not to say we never eat out (we do plenty!)...just that home is best--and usually healthiest, too!

5. If you had to choose something you miss from your childhood, what would it be?

(This could get sappy!!) The first thing that comes to my mind is my Grandma. I still miss her every day. I miss playing outside every day and not wanting to go in until we had to. I miss climbing trees and feeling all cozy and safe at home with my parents and siblings. I feel like I just POOF became a grown up and sometimes I feel like I should still be a kid, having someone tell me what to do and taking care of me. :o)


Now it's your turn. If you want to be interviewed, leave me a comment including the words "Interview me." I will respond by emailing you five questions. I get to pick the questions. If you don't have a valid email address on your blog, please provide one. You will update your blog with a post containing your answers to the questions. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

More Easter Fun!

Today we had our neighborhood easter egg hunt, so I thought I'd load you all up with some more pictures!

Mr. Landon packing up treat bags for the Easter egg hunt


Sloan picked him up and went to meet the other kids in the cul-de-sac


While the eggs were being hidden, all of the kids hung out in their favorite spot (the drainage pipe--ha ha!)


Mid-Hunt!


Landon and I checking out the stash


Poor, tired, sweaty Landon taking a much-needed break

Our Sunday

Today, we went to my dad's house for brunch (Mmmmm brunch-y food! My favorite!!). On the way over, I bought little plastic eggs and candy, stickers, and sidewalk chalk to fill them with so that the boys could get a practice round in before next weekend. (Is Easter REALLY next weekend? My gosh!). Anyways, Andy and I hid a bunch of eggs: sports eggs shaped like athletic balls, eggs shaped like dinosaur heads, and a few that looked like jewels. The boys were so cute, trying so hard to hide their eyes by the back door. I kept seeing them peeking through their little hands and hearing muffled voices asking, "Are you ready?!" Here are some pictures of the cutie-pies:

Here they are, heading out to hunt!

I had to teach Andy to "hide" the eggs in plain sight for the kids :o)

The competition was fierce :o)

Ben kept taking breaks to count his eggs

Landon was so proud of himself! ;o)

Don't they look like they could be brothers?

After the egg hunt, my step-mom ("Grandma Diana") rested with the boys while they all watched Herbie!

Landon's Latest & Greatest

This is the Melissa and Doug Easel we just bought for Landon. He stands in front of it for hours just working away! The easel has a chalk board on one side, a dry erase board on the other, and paper that rolls down so he can paint! We also bought no-spill paint cannisters (also by Melissa and Doug) that fit right into a tray on the easel and were so happy they ACTUALLY WORK!!

And THIS is what Landon did to set up his new workspace. I just bought a box of giant sidewalk chalk and when I came out of the kitchen tonight, I saw that Landon had emptied the entire box of chalk into the little chalk ledge on his easel. It cracked me up! Hopefully it will last a while!

The Evil Eye

This is soooooooo funny!!!!!!

Woo Hoo!

Andy and I actually went out of the house last night. Together. Alone. To a party. WITH GROWN-UPS! I can hardly believe it myself! My friend Jessica had a St. Patty's Day party and my mom baby-sat for a couple of hours so that Andy and I could both go---Yay, Mom! I saw some old friends, had some wine, and laughed and laughed all night. I almost thought I had forgotten how to have adult conversations! I guess everyone needs a break every now and then...even "Super Moms" such as myself ;o)

Waaaaaah "I Want My Mama!"

Did I ever mention that tornadoes scare the begeebus out of me? Well, they do. And guess what? We have a tornado watch today until 7 p.m. Crap.

The "Terrible" Threes

Someone once told me, "There's no such thing as the terrible twos...Just WAIT until they turn three!!". We are now beginning to see what that person meant here at the Pfaffl house! Phew! Landon is learning to be very sassy and stubborn. He has begun throwing temper tantrums and crying when we tell him "No". I can just see the wheels in his head turning as he tells me not to look at him before he messes with the computer. "Did you throw that?" is (more often than not) followed by his false-innocent, "NoooooooOOO....." and every one of my no's are followed by his now-famous, "You're not my best friend." come-backs. I tell him we're leaving somewhere and he either plays the "going limp" game in front of everyone or runs away to hide (soon to be followed by the going limp game if /when I catch him). I have recently found the one thing that's more difficult than a precocious almost-three-year-old....TWO precocious almost-three-year-olds!!!
We were at the little playground inside our zoo when the aforementioned incident happened. The playground is set up for pre-schoolers. It's covered in a layer of soft mulch and offers lots of safe play equipment for little ones, all surrounded by a wooden privacy fence and tucked away in the middle of our zoo. It has always been a nice, quiet place to let Landon burn off some energy, but lately it has felt like I have been the one burning the energy, running from one end of the playground to another, chasing my cheeky son. Today, I was sitting in the Adirondack rocking chairs with the other moms while the children ran around and played together. I watched Landon climb up the ladder to the slide and cheered for him when he came up with new (potentially dangerous) ways to come down. I watched as he tried to discreetly join in games with the other kids (glad to see him "putting himself out there", but sad that he's an only child....that's for another blog post entirely!).
I watched to see how he interacted with other kids, trying hard not to run to the rescue when he was ignored. Then I watched as another kid Landon's age picked up a huge fistful of mulch and threw it right into Landon's face. The other boy's mom and I exchanged a look that at least showed me we were in the same boat (and up the creek without a paddle to boot!) Apparently, I'm not the only mom dealing with the terrible threes! Before I could stop him, Landon had picked up his own fistful of mulch and threw it back at the boy. I was almost in arms length of Landon when the other boy's little two-year old brother joined in. All three of them were rubbing at their eyes and spitting out little pieces of wood, alternating between wicked laughter and accusing tears. We finally straightened everything out. The boys apologized to each other, hugged, and went their separate ways. I went over "Mommy's Playground Rules" one more time (the hundredth time, maybe?)...But, a few minutes later I saw the little boy pick up more mulch, sneak up to Landon and ram it right into his face again. I jumped up and ran to them, but not before a little pre-schooler smacking match broke out. They were swatting at each other and squealing and hopping all over the place. I had given Landon my warning and carted him out of the playground (as promised) faster than you can say, "Mommy Nap Time". He was, of course, kicking and screaming, telling me how unfair it was and that he didn't love me. I sat him down on the ground, made eye contact with him and had him talk to me for a minute about what was bothering him. I asked him, "What on earth possessed you to throw mulch at that boy?" and had a weird parenting moment when he told me, "The boy hit me and he throwed mulch at my eyes. So, I throwed mulch at he's eyes." I had seen the whole thing and I KNOW Landon didn't "start" it...and after hearing what he said, the "Mama Bear" in me had the silent urge to run after the "other mom" and say, "This was really YOUR kid's fault! HE started it!". Instead, I had to give him the whole "Just because someone hurt you doesn't mean you can hurt them. It is NEVER okay to hurt someone else." I could see the confusion on his face and I wanted to explain it to him in a way he could understand. I told him that instead of hitting someone, he should just tell them he didn't like what they were doing and come straight to me to tell me what was going on.
What do you guys do in situations like this? I guess i really want to know, what do you FEEL in situations like this? Any Mama bears out there? This is all just sooooooo new to me! He really has been a different kid lately (growing up, perhaps?) and it's been so hard to adjust to. I want to protect him from getting his feelings hurt, but I want him to be able to sort things out for himself, too. I want to make sure no one is physically hurting him, but if they do, I want him to know he can't retaliate...I want to raise him to be sweet and calm, but he is naturally a strong-willed, independent show-off. He's a boy through and through, all covered in dirt and bruises, doing anything for a laugh. How do I walk the line between letting him be "Landon" and letting him get away with too much? is there a simple answer to that question? Doubtful. Anyways, I know all of this is just a phase....and I love Landon no matter what. I still have the sweetest moments imaginable with him. he still give me the best hugs, kisses for no reason, and loves to be held and snuggled up. Three is the most challenging age yet, though. He is too big to be little and too little to be big, poor thing. He's trying to discover who he is and can't we all relate to that?

Our Cute Li'l Cul-De-Sac

We took advantage of the beautiful weather today by going to the zoo and then playing outside until dark. We live in a fantastic neighborhood made up of five cozy cul-de-sacs and there are young children in almost every house. Once the warm weather hits each year, all of the kids knock on each others' doors, calling everyone out to play. They run around each others' yards and play games while all the parents hang out. It reminds me of the way my siblings and I played with our friends when we were little and I am so glad that even in this chaotic day and age, there are still places for my son to run around carefree with a bunch of other shrieking, laughing kids. I'm even more glad it's all right in my own front yard! Landon always has the best time and I love watching him smile like that! I remember last year Landon was kind of the baby of the neighborhood, but now, almost every afternoon, there's a pack of little munchkins on my porch asking in unison, "Can Landon come out and play?". I watch my little boy as he takes off in a frenzy, collecting his games and toys to share with his buddies, and wonder how in the world he got so big so fast.

It's My "Dootie", I'll Clean It Up

Well, actually, it wasn't MY "dootie" per se and technically, I left it for Andy to clean it up, but whatever. Potato, Po-tah-to. Anyways, here's the story...

Once upon a time (last Thursday to be exact), Landon and I decided to go out into the backyard to pick a bouquet of daffodils for the little old lady across the street, "Grandma Martha". It was a beautiful spring-like day and daffodils had bloomed all over our yard. We were able to cut at least twenty stems without even putting a dent in the garden....Ahhhhhh, lovely. We made our way back into the house, (carefully dodging piles of Jackson and Molly's "business")...I should say "carefully, but not accurately" because Landon had (without my notice) stepped in some and before I ever did notice, my wild child had tracked it ALL OVER MY HOUSE!!!! Blehhhhhhh! Those who know me know I am somewhat of a germ-a-phobe, so imagine if you will what my calm, rational reaction was when I realized Landon had done an amazing job with running over every accessible surface in our home within ten minutes. You guessed it, we packed our bags and moved down the street to my mom's house until the carpet cleaners could come. Enter cheapskate husband stage left (superhero music here): "I'll steam clean the carpets myself!" (<-- Read in a manly voice) Ummm...Yeah right. Needless to say, I was at my mom's house for four days while my cheapskate husband (who also happens to be my procrastinating husband and my unable-to-complete-a-household-chore husband) (sorry Bub...kiss, kiss) saved a few bucks. *sigh* Good times.

I guess I could have posted pictures of this, but I don't know who would gag more, you or me. (Oh, and by the way, I didn't really take pictures--I didn't have time to think of future giggles during my calm, rational reaction).