The power of a clean desk

A few weeks ago I cleaned off the table in the play room and put some of their office supplies (pencils, scissors--yes, I'm starting to leave them out, tape, envelopes, etc.) in little caddies. Since then there has been a flurry of writing, taping, mailing, and everything else. Letters are written everywhere. Colored masking tape has covered everything. We've gone through a whole pile of construction paper, a box of envelopes, a roll of scotch tape (Evie calls it "teeth tape" because of the dispenser), and mountains of masking tape. So, I highly recommend keeping a flat surface clean that belongs to the kids. The trick is keeping it clean since they never want to get rid of their creations.

Another cool thing: colored masking tape. You can get this from Discount School Supply and probably other supply places. We got 10 different colors and it has been so fun to watch them play with it and cut it.

Adults don't need sleep

Did you know that adults don't need sleep? Well, everyone knows that kids do most of their growing when they're asleep, which is one reason why they need so much. Spencer has been waking me up a lot at night for things he can do himself--going potty, putting on covers, fetching a toy that has fallen out of bed, etc. This morning he explained why.

"Mommy, I can wake you up whenever I want to. Grown-ups don't need to sleep because they're not growing anymore."

Boy, that clears a few things up for me.

Consequences

This afternoon I found chocolate frosting hidden among the stuffed animals behind the recliner in Spencer's room. This involved 4 no-nos:

1. Taking a treat-type food without asking.
2. Climbing to get the food.
3. Hiding food in a room other than the kitchen.
4. Lying about it (the kids claimed they were quietly playing with Legos)

So, Alan and I have decided a few consequences. First, the stuffed animals have been removed from the behind the chair until further notice so they can't hide things as easily back there. I'd remove the chair, too, but the door has to be removed before the chair can go and I just can't do all that on my own. Second, the box of Legos has been removed, probably for about a week, since they used the Legos as an alibi. Third, they won't get to watch their 30 minutes of TV for two days. That last one is mostly to drive home how important we think the food thing is, since it isn't the first time.

Do you think these are reasonable consequences? I'd say no treats, but they don't really get a lot of treats so it might be days before they were denied something. By then it wouldn't make any sense.

I wouldn't have figured out that they had the frosting except I found chocolate on their clothing. When I asked Evie where she got it she didn't know enough to realize that she wasn't supposed to tell me. I knew they were up to something but since I thought I had put up all the sweets I didn't think they'd be able to get any or think to try. I guess I underestimated them.

I guess I need to relax

For Christmas, two people gave me relaxing lavender bath items. I also have some leftover from my birthday, so SOMEONE must think I need to chill.

And we're still baking

The cookies from last week are way gone. Today Evie and I whipped out some oatmeal cookies and started decorating the sugar cookies while Spencer was at school. Then we baked some more gingerbread cookies while Spencer was eating lunch. Sadly, I don't think we'll be able to make another batch of soy nut butter cookies before we go to Ohio, but that's life I guess.

I want to take a moment to say how totally awesome LeapFrog is. I ordered a bunch of stuff, including a LeapPad. When the big box arrived, all the accessories and books were there, but NO LeapPad. I called them in a panic and also sent e-mail. What good would the flashy side dishes be if the main course didn't arrive for Christmas? Within two days the LeapPad was here, no muss, no fuss. They have also replaced a broken toy for me under birthday part time pressure in the past and been able to help me get everything working when I wasn't sure how to make it work. I love these people and I hope they never go out of business.

Christmas baking season

I've finally started this year's baking. The family chose gingerbread, sugar, soy nut butter, and oatmeal cookies. I pointed out that the last two were really more general purpose cookies, but they were demanded of me. So there.

We made the soy nut butter cookies today (little do they realize I'm going to get rid of half of them at a party tomorrow) and the dough for the gingerbread cookies. The kids really don't have the patience to do all that in one day, but that's what they wanted to do. Then they played in the sand outside while I cleaned up.

That reminds me, is anyone else having trouble getting in the Christmas spirit this year? I've done no shopping. Nothing. And it's almost 60 degrees outside! Where's the winter weather? That would surely help my desire to be Christmas-y.

Nap news

Today, at 2:38pm, everyone decided to take a nap in their own beds.

Now it's 2:39pm, and everyone is awake and ready to go. If only batteries recharged that quickly!