Not Mad For Madras

First off, everyone give Jayke a big round of applause for becoming a big boy! He is now potty trained! Woohoo! A MAJOR accomplishment for us and he is very proud of himself as we all are. Now on to today's post.
It's Wild Card Wednesday and just to change it up a little the tutu making, flip flop wearing, TKW has assigned us a new letter this week. It is M as in Mother, Mad, Macho, Money, Meemaw, etc. I totally forgot about it but had promised my grandmother a new picture of the kid today and it turns out I can work it into my M theme. Bonus points for sure!
Along with being a Big Boy now, using the potty and all, The Boy has also begun to have an opinion about what he wears. I didn't realize this until I tried to get him dressed this morning. I grabbed an outfit our of the drawer that he has not yet worn and tried to put it on him. The shirt went on, the socks went on, but when I tried to put on his shorts he said plainly, "I am NOT wearing those pants." What? I thought he was just being silly, trying to irritate me like he does some mornings. I tried to put them on him and he flipped out. "I am NOT wearing those! I don't like those pants! Those pants are UGLY! No, no, no! I want different pants!" Since when does he have an opinion about his clothes? I mean, I knew he liked to pick out his new Big Boy underpants everyday but this was totally out of left field. I begged, bargained, and pleaded with him to wear them because I love them and they were brand new. Finally he gave in and said he would wear them to the bank but when we got home he was taking them off! Whatever!
Normally I wouldn't have taken a picture of him in this instance but since he made such a big deal out of it, I had to snap his picture looking ever so Mad about his Madras!



True to his word, when we got home he insisted that I change his shorts. I tried to talk him out of it but his dad said just change his pants so we can go. Jean shorts were much more to his liking. And there you have the beginning of the end of my getting to dress him in cute little outfits.


As I am writing this (at 2a.m.) he just appeared in the doorway clutching a pair of jeans, half asleep. Apparently he even has ideas about what he should sleep in now.

That's a Big Pooh!

Because I'm too tired to be creative and nothing eventful happened today other than the boy using his potty twice, Woohoo! I give you Winnie the Pooh and boy too!



Taken at the Children's Garden in Greenville Saturday. Please let she who doesn't like to think or cause other's to think, TKW, and me both know if you played.

Exercise and Fresh Air...A Forgotten Concept!

For my "W" them today I give you water...and lots of it! 56,000 acres of it to be exact! Also I wanted Angi and Kim to see more of what we could have done IF THEY WOULD HAVE COME DOWN HERE!

Since I was having a Blah day I decided The Boy and I should get out of the house for a while. We used to take drives all the time when we first moved here to explore and learn where things are and how to get around our new town. We haven't done it for a long time so I loaded him in the car today and we headed out. I thought since the weather was so nice we should head over to the lake for a while. We drove to the dam on Lake Hartwell. There are a bunch of parks there plus I really love the view from on top of the dam.



We stopped at one of the parks right before you get to the dam on the South Carolina side of the lake and walked on the beach for a little while. The water was really clear in the lake, the sand was warm and it wasn't too hot so it was perfect.



I hadn't been to this particular park before but it was like most of them. Lots of picnic areas, boat launches, a playground, and several beaches. I think we will have to go out there one weekend when Mike is off and take a picnic. I scoped out an area where if we get there before anyone else we could actually have our own private little beach.

Next we headed over to the dam. We have been here before, but like I said I love the view and Jayke just loves being outside so he was down for whatever.



We climbed the steps to the top of the dam and here is the view looking out toward the mountains to the north and the Georgia side of the lake to the left(west). You probably can't make out the mountains in the back ground but you can see them clearly from the dam. There are several small islands out there too.



We have been out on this part of the lake by boat with Mike's family when they came for a visit last summer. I think this is the largest part of the lake but it goes on for miles branching off all over into both Georgia and South Carolina. The lake has 962 miles of shoreline!


The walk from the stairs to the dam is a half a mile. We were the only people up there so Jayke ran and screamed at birds and worked up a good sweat. Here he is on the walk to the dam with the tops of the trees from the valley below.



We made it to the dam and looked over to the valley where the water is released when the lake is too high. It has been raining a lot so the water was a little higher than it was on our previous trips. You can read about the dam and the lake Here.



The view to the south of the dam is of the valley. The bridge is where you cross over into Georgia. This view is just about as pretty as the view of the lake.



I couldn't get a good picture of the dam from the lake side because my camera won't take good pictures from that far away. But here is one I found on the website you can visit above. Sorry, it's kind of small...the picture not the dam.



By the time we made it back to the car we had walked over a mile plus climbed up and down all those steps. I was amazed the boy made it and even more amazed I did. We actually ran part of it if you can believe that! We were a little creeped out by a guy who came out of no where and didn't have a car parked in the parking lot, which we could see below, so we made a fast retreat to our car. We were the only ones out there and it is pretty isolated. By the time we got to the car we were both sweating and worn out so we headed home. Tomorrow we may go explore somewhere else if it isn't raining. Not like we have a whole lot else to do.

If you posted a Wild Card Wednesday picture/story let me and The Kept Woman know!

Wacky Easter Theme

I don't really have a "W" theme today so this will be a stretch.

For Easter Jaykeb got one of those blow up punching bag-type things that bounce back up when you knock them down. His is new and improved from the ones when I was little though, as are most things these days. His came with these boxing glove things so you can really Whack Mr. Bop Buddy hard. He loves this thing! Way more than I thought he would. After we finally got it blown up and the water put in the base to make it pop back up, he went to town on that thing. He was punching it saying, "And this, and that!" Mostly he just wanted to run and tackle it though. The crazy thing talks and makes noise effects like it it really taking a beating.



It didn't take very long for Mike and I to put on the blow up gloves and take a turn beating the crap out of Mr. Bop Buddy either. And I know you know what is coming next. Yes, we then turned to each other and started using them on each other. Jaykeb and the dog had to get in on the action so it was a big free-for-all in the middle of the living room with my mom saying over and over that she was in a crazy house. Turns out whacking that thing is a pretty good work-out...punching Mike is a better one though. He fights back! We need to turn it into a nightly routine. Excercise all the way around and a way to blow off some steam. He also got the game Wack-a-Mole from the Easter bunny. We seemed to have a theme going on this year. A violent one too! I didn't even realize. We all had to take our turns whacking moles or smashing gophers as Opa kept calling it. Mike had the high score until my Mom cheated to beat it but didn't tell him she cheated.



Now that I look back over my post I don't think I had to reach as much as I thought I would to get the "w" in there, sitting at desk patting self on back. Didya play? Let me and TKW know if you did!

Waskilly Wabbit!

It was 10 degrees hotter than Hades here today so I decided to torture my child this afternoon. I took him to see the Easter Bunny. Normally this would seem like a kid-friendly thing to do but apparently not! Not when your child is first in line after waiting for the freakin bunny to come back from "eating some carrots in the garden" (aka lunch)for a half an hour. First in line means no warm up. No getting to see that the giant rabbit doesn't really eat the kids whose parents lovingly drag them to his lap for their opportunity to get a picture for the scrapbook/blog. Nothing. Just, "Your turn kid, hurry up their are people in line behind you who need to terrorize their children". Jayke was all for seeing the bunny until he actually saw him. Then my otherwise well behaved friendly child turned into a screaming panicked thing permanently attached to my side. Really, I could not pull him off of me for anything. After trying to persuade him with everything I could think of we stepped aside and let the next victim take her turn screaming at the bunny. We sat on the floor and watched as each child cautiously walked up then turned and tried to retreat as fast as they could. Finally some "big" boys took their turn and Jaykeb saw that the bunny did not mistake their limbs for carrots and decided he would go next but he wasn't sitting on his lap. NO WAY! So this is what I got...



The one I paid for that the keeper of the bunny took was a little better. It isn't what I was hoping for but better than nothing. And what a dope I am for not dressing my child in some cute Easter type outfit like all the other parents remembered to do. We were coming from the Easter egg hunt at Mom's Club though and I knew he would be all over that playground so I wasn't going to put him in anything too good and honestly I just didn't think about it. Just like I didn't think about taking a basket or bucket or anything for the poor kid to collect his eggs in. What is the matter with me? Luckily we borrowed a bucket from another mom and even though it was pink it worked just fine. He collected his eggs then asked if we could hide them again for him. I told him not until this weekend and he went off to play on the playground.



We were lucky to make it to the egg hunt today since I'm convinced there is some cosmic force trying to keep me from attending Mom's Club events. When I woke up this morning and headed for the shower the power went off as I walked into the bathroom. It was off for an hour but I managed to take the fastest shower ever and make it to church on what I thought was the correct time. Turns out I was a half an hour early after all of that. Crap!



Because he was so good at both the Easter egg hunt and finally with the Eater Bunny I told him I'd get him some ice cream...



Who knew Jack-in-the-Box had such huge milkshakes? He didn't mind that it was so big. He managed to get most of it on his shirt anyway.

When we got home we decided to do some more "Spring Cleaning" so we got Sophie out of the backyard and started giving her her summer do. That dog can't sit still for anything which made it quite hard and covered me with dog hair. After the cut she was heading for the bath where things got interesting. While trying to coral her in the tub we somehow managed to tear the shower curtain down rod and all. The rod of course, landed on my head and as I was trying to remove it Sophie thought it was the perfect time to make a break for it. She jumped out of the tub soaking wet and I caught her right before she made it to the carpet. Needless to say, at this point the entire bathroom was drenched and so was I. When Mike finally walked in he saw the shower curtain laying in the hallway, the rod stretched clear across the bathroom blocking the door, and me sitting on the floor soaking wet scrubbing the filthy dog. He just shook his head and tried to walk away but I insisted that he come in and help me finish her up. Thank God I don't have any pictures of this to show you or you would be convinced I'm nuts for sure. Okay, I know, half of you reading this already know I am but I don't have to give you visual proof.

After dinner we finally dug into the eggs The Boy collected at the hunt. He was very happy with his loot and especially happy that a couple of the eggs had chocolates in them.



Just look at that chocolate ring around the mouth! No, I didn't make him wear the bunny ears, he did it willingly.




The rest of the night, I would like to tell you was uneventful, but it wasn't. There were several time-outs and some arguing about parenting tactics but in the end everyone went to bed (or to the computer) happy. Now, I leave you with one more picture from today's outing. It's Jayke in the mall waiting for the giant bunny to come back.



Someone thought they were something else until that big bunny showed up! And that is all for today. I have to go hang the shower curtain back up now.

So, I really only used the "W" in my title...whatever works! If you played let me and TKW know.

Wild Card "Work" Wednesday

I'm really having trouble with the "W" theme today for Wild Card Wednesday. I think I have "blogger's block". So here is what I came up with...

The Boy, "Doing his work" as he puts it. I tell him all the time I am working when I am on the computer, whether I am actually working or just reading blogs. It seems to get him to give me the couple of minutes I need to get whatever I'm doing done and then go see what he needs. Now when I ask him to do something like pick up the 1 million plastic Easter eggs he has scattered about. He tells me he can't, he is "doing his work". His work is whatever he is doing at the moment causing him, or rather giving him an excuse NOT to do whatever it is I have asked of him. Here Jaykeb is "working" on his play dough. Very important business it turns out. Can't be bothered with picking up those eggs right now. Okay he can have a minute to do his work because that is what I expect him to give me but he is picking up those eggs as soon as his work is done.

Something else for Wild Card Wednesday...
I discovered this game at Rocks In My Dryer that I thought had some interesting tips. I didn't play, but I wanted to incoporate into today's post, 'case anyone is interested. I couldn't come up with any thing to add to it because NOTHING works for me right now with The Boy!

After reading TKW's post and seeing her spectacular "chics on the beach" she made with peeps, I decided to post this cute idea to do with the kids for either Easter or Earth Day whichever you prefer.
Egg Head


This is a fun project for Earth Day, Easter, or just about any spring day you can think of! No fancy materials are needed. With just an eggshell, a little soil and some seeds, you can grow your own egghead.

Age
5 and up(The Boy is only 3 but I'm sure he would enjoy this...I will just have to do most of the work)
This project is rated EASY to do.

What You Need

Clean egg shell with just the top broken off
Half a cup of potting soil
Teaspoon of grass, wheat or rye seed
5-6" strip of card stock
Scissors
Glue or tape
Black marker (optional)
What You Do

If you wish, decorate your strip of card stock. We flecked some yellow and blue paint onto ours with an old toothbrush.
Tape or glue the card stock into a ring to hold the egg.
Fill the egg almost to the top with potting soil.
Sprinkle the soil with seed. (try different seeds to get different kinds of hair)
Add a thin layer of potting soil on the top.
Carefully water so as not to overflow or soak it.
Keep in a sunny location.
Your seeds will begin to sprout in a day or two and your egghead will grow "hair" in about a week!
If you like, you can decorate the outside of the egg with a black marker by drawing a face on your egghead
I think we may try this. It looks like it could be cute and The Boy is really into the gardening thing right now.

So, there you have it. Wild Card "Work" Wednesday which really turned out to sort-of have an "E" theme, eggs, Easter, Earth Day, etc. Oops! Did you play?

"Wet" and Wild!

I wrote this post then discovered it was "Wild Card Wednesday" tomorrow over at TKW's place...so I am using this as my Wednesday post even though it is still Tuesday which I didn't even realize when I wrote this. I will be too busy painting later to post anyway so you get "Wet and Wild", wet dogs...it's a stretch but I think it qualifies. The original title was Not so Furry Murray.

Yesterday was Spring Cleaning day at our house. Spring Cleaning is a little different at Casa de Wendy than it is any where else. It involves scissors, combs, clippers, and a bunch of way too hairy and dirty dogs. We have several(ha) dogs who stay outdoors so every spring I shave them or give them haircuts to allow them to feel more comfortable in the hot weather to come. Because of our move last year the dogs were not groomed last summer so they were particularly bad this spring. I didn't actually plan on doing this yesterday but the opportunity came up to be able to sneak one of the dogs out of their kennel without the others noticing and trying to make a break for it too. When you have this many dogs they operate in a pack. There is the Alpha dog who is in charge, the in between members of the pack, and of course the Omega. Since all the other pack members where busy eating and Omega is not permitted to eat until they are all finished I snuck him out while they were busy with their heads buried in their food bowl. When the others saw him leaving they went nuts. Just because he is low man on the totem pole doesn't mean they don't love him. I'm sure they also wanted to come too. So I got Omega whose name is actually Murray up on the deck and started in with the cutting. The clippers wouldn't cut his type of fur so I just used scissors to do it. Murray was excellent, standing still and letting me do my job. I'm sure it felt good to get all that off of him. After his hair cut we brought him in for some food, water, and a bath. The Boy was a huge help!

Look at that dirty water! Murray was the best dog in the bathtub never once trying to get out. I think all this great behavior comes from being the Omega and always being kept in his place. He is very submissive. Anyway we got him all cleaned up and looking good.

I didn't take a "before" picture but this gives you an idea of what a mess he was. Murray has the type of hair that doesn't stop growing as some dog's hair does when it gets to a certain length so there was a lot to cut off.


After getting all spiffed up he really wanted to go back to his kennel so we took him back out. When he got back in with the pack he was literally prancing around showing off his new do. They were all checking him out and you could tell they were happy to have him back. Later in the afternoon I heard a strange dog howling outside. I immediately went to see where this dog was. I can recognize the bark/howl of each of my dogs and had never heard this one before. When I got out there I discovered it was Murray howling. I've never even heard this dog bark but he was howling. He was feeling good! Sophie is next...I have a one dog a day rule so that each one gets plenty of TLC and attention on their day.