Interview With A Kindergartener

As I was sitting in front of my computer trying to muster up some inspiration for today's blog post,  I remembered something I had read a while back in which a Mom asked her child a series of questions and posted the interview on her blog.

I can't remember what the blog name was and I tried to find it again but came up empty-handed. Anyways, I thought it was a super cute idea and I decided to give it a shot. Kids come up with the craziest things so I thought it would be fun to interview Coder for today's post. The questions and responses that are in bold are me asking questions and commenting on his answers. The responses in normal text are his answers word for word, I did not change them at all. I think it is totally cute and I am thinking of interviewing him again each year with the same questions. I think it would be neat to see how his answers change as he gets older. Here is what Coder, who is five years old, had to say:


1) What is your happiest memory?
Going at the fair. 

On the Roller Coaster with Daddy!!

(He means Crystal Palace, which we just went to yesterday. I guess his memory doesn't reach too far in the past).
   
2) What do you like most about being a kid?
Cuz I get to have fun with my mom and dad and I get to play and stuff like that.

3) One word to describe you would be _______.
Silly!

4) If you could be any animal, which one would you be and why?
A moose because I like them.
(LOL, Alrighty then, a moose it is!)

5) Whats your least favourite animal?
Frog  
(What did a frog ever do to you?)

6) What do you like to do for fun?
Jump on the trampoline and swing.
(He hasn't jumped on the trampoline since the summer because we put it away for the winter but I guess he liked it more than I thought!)

7) Tell me something funny.
Imagine everything was made out of biscuits. 
(Haha, what the hell?!)

8) What is your favourite thing to do? Why? 
Ride my bike because I like to do tricks and stunts. 
(This is definitely true, he LOVES riding his bike. He has been riding with no training wheels since he was three. He is quite the daredevil and loves trying to do stunts. We even put trick pegs on his bike for him. You can see him in action by clicking HERE.)

My little stunt man:)

9) What is your favourite thing to do at school?
Do art class.


10) What is your least favourite thing about school?
When I have to be quiet and read books.
(*Sigh* Kindergarten ain't easy...)

11) What do you love most about your sister?
That she does funny things and that I get to play with her and chase her.

12) What do you want to be when you grow up?
Dirt bike rider.
(This is his answer every single time he is asked this question. At least the kid has goals.)

13) What is your favourite thing to do in the summer?
Go to the beach.
(Me too!)

The beach is my favorite too!!

14) What is the grossest thing you can think of?
A dead earwig.
(LOL, What the actual f*ck!?!? From the mind of a child)

15) How old is your Mom?
21
(Pretty darn close!! I am actually 24. At least he guessed under and not older!)

16) What is your favourite colour?
Orange
(Also his answer every time he is asked his favourite colour or anytime you tell him to pick a colour/flavor)

17) What is your favourite food?
Grapes and strawberries. And tacos.
(He does love strawberries...Grapes..not so much but he does like them. Who doesn't love tacos?!)

How can you not like these guys?

18) What is your favourite TV show?
Toopy and Binou
(Toopy is pretty funny...Not even gonna lie.)

19) What do you like most about mommy?
Because you cook my favourite food.
(Yes. Yes, I do.)

20) What is your favourite thing about daddy?
Because I get to play with him and work with him and he teaches me grown up things that he does.
(Awww. Such a Dad's boy)

21) What super power do you wish you had?
Be super strong and see through walls.

22) Whats your favourite song?
Little guy 
(*Heart melts* It is a song by Gord Bamford, about his son,that him and Daddy listen too together)

23) Whats your favourite toy?
My little Lego's and my dump truck.
(If I step on one more Lego in the middle of the night on the way to the bathroom...They freakin kill)

He does have a crap load of Lego...As you can see here!

24) Where is your favourite place to go?
The dollar store to get a toy. I am going there later.
(Oh, are you now? And who is paying?)

25) What are you scared off?
When icicles hang from my window I am scared because I think they are scary teeth. And lions and tigers.  
(I am pretty sure he threw lions and tigers in there when he noticed I was looking at him like he was nuts...Which he is! But aren't we all..)

26) How does your mom make you laugh?
When you tickle me.

27) What do you think your mom does when you’re not around?
Clean
(Smart kid!)

28) What is your mom really good at?
Drawing and painting things that are hard.
(At least he thinks I'm good at something..)

29) What is your mom not very good at?
Driving a car.
(Again...Smart kid!)

30) What is your dad really good at?
Taking care of me.
(I'm pretty sure Mommy does most of that but I'll let you get away with that answer because it's cute.)

31) What is your mom not very good at?
Lifting super heavy things
(LOL, Don't tell Daddy that, you will deflate his ego)

32) What colour are your eyes?
*Runs to the bathroom mirror* Green
(Actually, they're blue. Apparently my child is colour blind...)

33) How do you know your mom loves you?
Cuz you kiss me and hug me.
(<3)

34) What do you and your mom do together?
Do crafts

He loves crafting with Mommy!

35) When is the last time you got in trouble?
When I pushed my sister today.
(Little shit...)

36) What do you like to do with sissy?
I like to pick her up
(This usually ends in him dropping her and tears...From her hitting the floor. And me screaming)

37) What do you like to do with daddy?
Go for drives far away

38) What is your favourite game to play?
Mario, with Tyson.
(He means Mario Cart on Nintendo DSI)

39) Who is your best friend?
Tyson
(His older cousin. The Hubby's sister's son, who is 10...I think)

Coder and Tyson, his BFF & partner in crime!

40) What is your teachers name?
Mrs.Gallant

41) What grade are you in?
Grade four
(Errr..No. You are in Kindergarten, but good guess)

42) Whats is your favourite number?
One hundred and two thousand, together.
(For some reason this is his go-to number when asked anything involving numbers. The time, his age, how many toes does he have? One hundred and two thousand it is!)

43) Tell me a joke.

Your a nana (banana) face.

Knock Knock
Who's there?
Banana Peel
Banana Peel, Who?
Banana Peel, Apple Peel *Bursts out laughing*
(AHAHAH. Now that's a knee slapper. Comedic gold!)

44) Tell me something you learnt at school?
How to stand in a line.
(At least they're learning something!)

45) What's your favourite holiday?
Christmas
(I wonder why? Could it have something to do with the shitload of presents?)

Could this be why Christmas is his fave holiday?

After I finished the Q & A, Coder decided that he wanted to interview Mommy. I limited him to five questions to narrow the chances of a potentially awkward question. This is what he came up with:

Coder Interviews Mommy: (Coder in BOLD, Mommy in plain text)

1) Why did you leave up the Christmas tree for a long time?
Because it looks pretty and I always leave it up until New Year's Day.

2) Can you lift up super heavy things?
No

3) Can you drive a car?
 Yes, but not very well. Plus, I have no drivers license. (I know, I know...I'm working on it...)

4) Why are you on the computer so much?
Because I like it. I like to work on my blog and find fun ideas. (Shit! Don't show Daddy this, he already bitches that I am on it too much...But I am really NOT. Well, not THAT much. Plus, I do all the hard work so I deserve a few hours minutes on the computer a day.)

What is your favourite food?
Cap'n crunch cereal and Smarties McFlurry's from McDonald's (That counts as "food", right?).


So there you have it! Straight from the mind of a five year old. It was a really fun little project and I would love to see some other Mommy/Child interviews. They are just so darn fun! I came across a cute idea to incorporate these interview ideas into a keepsake craft but I can't for the life of me find the link or remember which blog I saw it on. Basically, you type of ten questions (or however many you can fit ) and get your child to write the answers in, or do it yourself if they are too small, then you frame it beside a picture of them with their name at the top. It is kinda hard to explain, I will try my best to find the link, but the one she made was adorable and would be a great gift for a parent or grandparent. If anyone knows the project I am referring to please share the link in the comments!!


*** Thanks to Kara for letting me know that the framed version of this project I was referring to can be found on the craft blog Oopsey Daisy! You can check it out HERE! Thanks again!***

Sunday Snapshot: Family fun at Crystal Palace!

The kids each received a Crystal Palace Day Pass for Christmas from Nanny and Pappy this year and had been begging to go ever since.

Crystal Palace is an indoor amusement park with rides and games for those who don't know. We had been putting off going since they got the cards but with Coder going back to school this Tuesday, we couldn't really put if off any longer. After a ten minute struggled to get the car started (It can be tempermental) we were finally on our way. We left around lunch time so we could get there kind of early. The kids wanted a PB & J sammy before we left, a request to which I happily obliged, hoping to save a few bucks not having to feed them lunch at Crystal Palace (who's prices on food are practically criminal! 3$ for one corn dog!! I could run to the Sobey's across the street and grab a box of them for the same price!).

 Nelly had been talking about going on the "Horsey's" (AKA the merry-go-round) for, like, three days so that was the first ride she wanted to go on. "Horsey bite me? Is horsey real?" was the first thing she asked upon seeing the horses on the merry-go-round. After I assured her they we indeed fake horsey's and would not bite her, she was ready to go on it. She absolutely LOVED sitting on the horses while they went up and down. She randomly shouted "Kiddy-Up!" throughout the duration of the ride.

Nelly flying on the airplane!

Nelly with Coder,  the pilot...

Next up were the air planes, which you sit in while they go up and down and spin around. Coder and Nelly went together on one airplane the first time, then Nelly rode solo later on in the day. Nelly also loved this and yelled "Look Daddy! Hi Daddy!" every time she went around. Coder, on the other hand, looked a little bored with that ride. Being a big boy now, he was ready for the big kid rides this time around. He insisted that he wanted to go on the roller coaster. After debating back and forth for a minute, Daddy and I decided to let him go, but Daddy had to go on with him. He tried the Roller Coaster last year with me and almost gave me a stroke by freaking out and basically trying to climb out of a moving ride. I was a bit nervous because this Coaster doesn't have over the shoulder harness just a lap bar. Last year he kept trying to pull his knees out of under the bar and I was sure he was going to fly out and fall to his death. Anyways, he went on with Daddy and did okay the first time around. The only part that scared him a bit was when it goes through a pitch black tunnel, but Daddy told him to close his eyes and he was fine. He loved it though and went on it about five more times with both Mommy and Daddy taking turns. At the end of it he was having a blast and holding his hands up in the air for the whole ride.

On "The Bullet" Coaster with Daddy!

 Nelly and brother went on the Choo-Choo Train together where they sat in the front car and got to toot the horn and ring the bell, which they did to no end.

Choo-Choo!

Coder liked going on the big monster truck ride, where you sit in a monster truck and go around the track. Next they went on the shooting star, which you sit down in a seat and it shoots you straight up about fifteen feet in the air then drops you down bit by bit. Nelly went on too and laughed her butt off on the way up. The drop down freaked her out a bit the very first time but she was shrieking with joy by the end of it.

The "Shooting Star" was a hit!

We all went on the Crazy Submarine (or whatever it's called) as a family, which is like a bus thing you sit in and go in big circles up in the air forward and backwards. Nelly loved looking out the window and laughed every time we went up because you had a view of the whole place. It was actually pretty fun and one of my favourite rides.

We took a break for a bite to eat, the kids didn't really want anything so Mommy and Daddy got something and gave them a few bites. Daddy got a poutine and I got a Nacho with cheese and salsa. It came to almost 12$ just for those two things but they were a decent size and I couldn't even finish my whole nacho. Daddy polished off his poutine and some of my nachos. After we were done eating we went back for another couple rounds on the rides.

There is a big play park built like a tree house that they wanted to go on, but poor Nelly was too small to go in it, so Coder played on that for a bit while Daddy brought Nelly on some more rides. We stopped at the arcade for a few minutes while they kids ran around "playing" the games (They weren't really playing because we didn't have any change on us, plus it is a MAJOR rip-off)." Honestly, it didn't even matter that they weren't actually playing because they still had a blast.

Taking turns "playing" the soccer game.

Daddy brought Coder to play Laser Tag while I brought Nelly to get some candy out of the quarter machine and we walked around for a bit. I kept asking her if she wanted to go back on the horsey but she would simply answer "No" and keep munching on her candy fruit (You know, the mini bananas, oranges, limes, etc). We never got around to playing mini golf this time and there were a few rides that they were both too short to go on, but other than that I would say that the day was a huge success.

Riding the big rigs...

We left around 5pm after Daddy brought Coder for one more round on the roller coaster. At this point Nelly was starting to get a little drowsy so I knew we better head home before a melt-down happened. I thought it was going to be a major tantrum when I said it was time to go but I think that they were so tuckered out that they couldn't be bothered. They left without a fight and both of them passed right out in the car on the drive home. Overall, we had a great day as a family and I can't wait to do it again soon.
 

Nelly ready to go home.,,

What was the last activity the you did as a family? What is your fondest family outing memory?

30 Fabulously Fun and Free Winter Activities...Plus: Get Featured on TTT!

With the shorter days and sub-zero temperatures its easy to understand why your kids may have a case of the winter blues. Shake things up and prevent cabin fever from setting in with these super fun winter activities. All of them are either very cheap or FREE! They are guaranteed to beat the boredom and create lasting memories! 

**Instructions on how to enter to be Featured on this blog are posted at the bottom of this list! You get a post featured, your blog name with a link back to it, your blog button featured on my homepage and an "I Was Featured..." button for your own blog:)**

30 Fabulously Fun & Free Winter Activities

1) Have a camp out in your living room. Spread out your sleeping bags, make s'mores in the microwave (Adult supervision required). Tell spooky stories, play camp games or sing camp fire songs.

2) Make Creamy Hot Cocoa with marshmallows. (Try this Valentine's Day Marshmallow trick by Martha)

3) Build a snow fort and "paint" it with Kool-Aid powder mixed with a bit of water in a spray bottle.

4) Make a Snow Measuring Stick to track the amount of snowfall. Graph the amounts on a chart.

5) Have a talent show. Give each family member a turn to show their talents and then vote for a  winner.

6) Go sledding! Grab your toboggans and have sled races on a nearby hill. Just don't slide near traffic.

7) Visit your local public library and cuddle up for story time. Many library's also have special activity days for different age groups. Call to find out!

8) Snuggle up for family movie night marathon! Pick winter themed flicks such as Jack Frost, Ice Age or Happy Feet!

9) Bake some cookies together! Designate each child a job such as dumping ingredients, mixing,
     spooning onto cookie sheets. Try this great recipe HERE. When they are done dip them in milk and enjoy!

10) Take your kids to try a class such as tumbling. Call around, many places such as My Gym offer a free trial class with no conditions.

11) Have a treasure hunt!! Place clues around these house with each one leading to the next. Clues can range from a simple picture to a riddle they must figure out. Have a small prize at the end such as a treat or new coloring book, it can be anything really...The real fun is in the chase! Smaller children may need a bit of assistance to stay on track.

12) Make a bird feeder from a pine cone. Directions HERE. Hang it up in your yard and bird watch. See how many different species of birds you can spot.

13) Go skating!! Play a game of hockey..Designate kids too small to skate as the "cheerleaders" or score keepers.

14) Make your own snow cones with REAL snow! Here is a great recipe for Snowcone Syrup. Keep it in the fridge in a squirt bottle and poor it over fresh snow or shaved ice whenever you want a treat.

15) Build a snowman together. Or even a whole snow family!!

16) Have an indoor snowball fight with wadded up paper! You could even make paper snowflakes to make it "snow"!

17) Go viral! Make a funny home video. Have the kids put on a skit and then post it on Youtube!

18) Have a family game night! Play classic family board games like monopoly or snakes and ladder. For some real laughs try Twister!

19) Play an interactive video game such as Rock Band or Dance dance Revolution. Have a friendly competition and crown the winner as the "Video Game Champion."

20) Give each other silly makeovers then have a fashion show at the end to show off your new looks. Take "Before" and "After" pictures.

21) Have an indoor picnic. Spread a blanket on the floor and have your lunch there! Don't forget dessert, too!

22) Make homemade valentines with your kids to give out to their classmates. Get some inspiration HERE.

23) Go swimming!! Let the kids put on their bathing suits and go swimming in the bathtub! Washing is optional!

24) Make Edible Play-doh and have fun making (and eating) sculptures.

25) Make a countdown to Spring paper chain and remove one link per day! Have a spring activity planned for when you reach the last link.

26) Get a huge empty box such as one from a refrigerator and transform it into a rocket ship (or whatever you want). Use your imaginations to act out different scenarios like pretending that you have just landed on the moon. (Ask around at local furniture stores to see if they have a box they were going to throw out that you can have...Most will be happy to give you one!)

27) Bundle up and go on a nature walk in a local park. Look for animal tracks, acorns, fallen leaves and whatever other treasures you can find. Bring them home and make a nature collage or scrapbook of your findings!

28) Get active and play some energy burning games indoors (or outdoors if you don't have enough room) such as Hide & Seek, Freeze Tag or Red Light, Green Light.

29) Go outdoors and blow bubbles in the cold. If the temperature is below zero or colder, the bubbles with harden in the air and then shatter when they hit the ground! Make your own Bubble Solution.

Frozen bubbles are SO cool!

30) Try to make a list of 30 MORE fun winter activities!! Post it in the comments her e or email it to me at babygurljrl23@gmail.com. I will  publish my favorite list with the most creative ideas as part two of this blog post! Don't worry you will get the credit for it, a link back to your blog and have your blog button posted on my homepage:) You will also get an "I Was Featured..." button to post on your own blog!So start brainstorming!!

Paper Bag Rudolph Puppet

Okay, I know I am a little bit late on this one but it was so adorable I couldn't pass it up.

Plus, I had promised my kids we would do a Christmas craft and they bugged me every single day so I couldn't say no. I don't really consider the holidays done until after New Years Eve anyways. That is when the tree comes down, officially marking the end of the holidays, so we are still allowed to do holiday projects until then.

Don't worry, I confiscated those scissors he is swinging.

While perusing the web for Holiday crafts that were easy enough for my kids to do and also did not require a lot of costly supplies, I stumbled upon this adorable little project. It is super easy for even very young children to do. My two year old had a blast making it although I did have to assist her with the cutting parts. My five year old did the whole thing no problem without assistance. If you have younger kids I would pre-cut everything beforehand so that they can do the whole project themselves.

Supplies:

-Brown paper bags (the kind used for lunches)
-Construction paper of various colors. (We used yellow for antlers and white for the eyes).
-Pompoms (Red if you are making Rudolph, black or brown for other reindeers)
-Scissors
-Glue sticks
-Markers (Pencil crayons or crayons would also work)
Optional:
-Small bells
-Ribbon
-Any other embellishments you wish to decorate them with.

HOW TO MAKE:

Step 1: Trace you child's hands onto construction paper (whatever color you wish the antlers to be)and cut them out.

Step 2: Glue the cut out hands on each side of the backside of the paper bag, to look like antlers.

Step 3: Cut out two circles from white construction paper and glue onto the front of the paper bag (On the piece that would be the bottom of the bag if it were opened) for eyes. Then create irises by either cutting out smaller circles from black construction paper and gluing them on the middle of the white circles. You could also just draw them on with a black marker.

Step 4: Glue a red pompom onto the paper bag underneith the eyes for Rudolph's nose.

Step 5: Now you can add further embellishments if you wish such as a ribbon color with bells on it. For the younger children simply allow them to decorate their Rudolph puppet with markers or crayon. The possibilities are endless!!

Step 6: Now for the fun part!! Open up your Rudolph bag puppet and put your hand inside.The kids will have a blast making their Rudolph puppets "talk" and putting on a puppet show. If you are feeling particularly inspired you can create a puppet for all of Santa's reindeer!! Maybe even a Santa puppet!!

Coder was super proud of his Rudolph!! I made one to and it was actually pretty fun. The kids love arts and crafts so this was a hit with them. Here is what the finished product looked like.

Nelly's (left), Mommy (middle), & Coder (right)

Do your children enjoy doing crafts? What types of crafts do they enjoy the most?

This post is linked up at the Today's Creative Blog Tuesday Crafty Linky Party. I encourage you to link up your projects as well:)

Holy, Mouse Infestation!!

So you know how I moved into a new place a few months ago? Yeah...

Well, I found a place that was not only (seemingly) perfect for my family but also available immediately at a really great price, so of course I snatched it up. Well, for those reasons and because I was staying with hubby's sister and her FOUR children...All boys...while I house shopped and one week into living there I was seriously considering throwing myself out of the third story window. Seriously, I have had my own place since I was 18 and I cannot...I repeat CANNOT..stay with other people. I am weird like that. I don't even like sleeping over at my own mothers house. So anyways, for those reasons I took the place immediately. Of course I went to look at the place first and it seemed perfectly suited for my family and our needs. Let us review the pros and cons.

PROS:
-Three large bedrooms so the kids can each have their own rooms (at our old apartment the baby slept in our room).
-My OWN washer and dryer (It was coin operated at out old place, 2.25$ per load..and trust me with two kids it adds up FAST).
-Large fenced in backyard (The yard at our old place was non-existent).
-Large baby barn for storage
-Very reasonable rent and security deposit

CONS: 
-No garbage bin so raccoons keep ripping the garbage open and throwing it all over my deck. Not fun.
-Infested with mice. Yeah. You heard me.

Apparently the landlord either didn't notice (and I find that hard to believe since the place was empty for a while and I am SURE there would have been droppings when he went in to get it ready for me to move in) or he simply omitted that little piece of information, but as I quickly discovered we were not alone. The very first time I had an encounter with a rodent was while I was home alone with the kiddos, while daddy was at work, about a week or two after moving in. I was sweeping the floor while the kids sat on the couch watching cartoons when I saw something out of the corner of my eye beside the shoe mat. I tiptoed over to inspect further and there. It. Was. A freakin' mouse, just chillin' inside my shoe. In my shoe! Needless, to say I screamed my head off and jumped up onto the couch, scaring the ever-loving shit out of my kids and causing them to both burst into tears. I realised I had to either catch the mouse or it would be roaming my house freely. "Stay on the couch until my Mommy's says, okay?" I ordered the kids. They both nodded their heads, eyes wide with fear. I grabbed a pair of hubby's old work boots and put them on. (When I told hubby about this later he laughed until he cried. "What were you gonna do step on it?" He asked. Uh, no, I just didn't want it to bite my toes, duh. *eye roll*). I looked around for something to trap it with and settled on my sons Lego box since it had a lid I could put on it. This all seemed totally reasonable at the time. Fear makes you do illogical things. Let me paint a picture for you: Me wearing a housecoat and size 11 work boots, trying to tiptoe (not an easy task in steel toes) around the house, with a Lego bin in my hands. The kids must have though I had really gone off the deep end this time. Well, I spent a good hour or two rooting through every closet, piece of clothing, under every bed, inside every cupboard. That little fucker was gone. I don't blame him, I screamed loud enough to wake the dead. After I calmed down a bit and my breathing was regular again I reasoned with myself that it was an old house, it had been empty for a while and it was totally understandable that a mouse would find his way inside out of the cold. I mean it was just one tiny mouse right? WRONG!

After that incident I was on hyper alert for mice. Suddenly the clues were everywhere. How did I not see the signs?! While watching a movie, hubby and I would hear them squeaking and rustling around from what sounded like behind the cupboards. After a few nights of this I was at my limit and made hubby investigate. After listening intently we decided that it definitely sounded like it was coming from behind the fridge. I got hubby to pull the fridge out and sure enough, this is what we found:

This is a mouse hole..

Those are mouse holes in case you were wondering. Like fuckin five of them! I almost died right there. Hubby, being a man, immediately ran for his pellet gun rifle. Like he was actually going to shoot a mouse. He camped out behind the fridge for a good hour with the gun aimed at the holes, trying to coax the little hellions out.Yeah, they never came out.

I emailed the landlord the next day and explained my findings and assumed he would take care of the situation. Well what does he do? Drops of one measly mouse trap. Just one. Ummm, I am no expert exterminator but one would assume that when there are, like, ten mouse holes in the very first place you look, you probably have more then one mouse. Well, we set the trap and snuggled up on the couch to watch a movie later that evening. We weren't even past the previews when SNAP! The friggin trap went off. Well, that was quick! Of course I sent hubby to investigate and sure enough we had bagged our self a huge mouse. It was still alive when we looked and I honestly felt really bad because it was caught right by its little pink nose. Hubby wanted to just leave it to die but I just couldn't bear to watch this little guy suffer so I ordered him to let it go in the field outside. He refused and said that it would just come back inside. Well, I was almost in tears at this point so hubby finally caved and just let it go outside. I am now sure that it ran right back in by whatever little hole it got in by in the first place, laughing all the way.

Gotcha, Sucka!!

 Later that night, your never going to believe this, when I went to bed I put my brand new 60$ purse beside the bed, as usual. Well, when I woke up in the middle of the night to grab my puffer out of my purse and reached down to pick it up I was left holding only the straps, no purse. The little bastards chewed the straps right off my freakin' purse!! Un-fuckin-believable! This kind of bullshit went on for another week or so. Well, fast forward to about seven mice later that we have caught. Lets just say I am not so soft hearted anymore. Now I sit there and giggle,  watching the little fuckers suffer. "Just DIE you little bastard, DIEEEEEEEEE." I called my landlord back to let him know that I didn't think one mouse trap was gonna cut it since I already caught seven with just one trap in like a matter of one week. What does he do next? Call an exterminator? Nope...That makes too much sense (actually I just think he is too cheap). No...He shows up at my door with a bottle of Rat Poisoning. Ummm, yeah, I have small children so I don't exactly feel comfortable scattering poison around my house. Plus, I read online that if you use rat poison they just die in the walls and shit. Not exactly the desired outcome. I was so pissed I called him back and told him to just bring me more traps. Honestly, if you want something done right you really do have to do it yourself.

So that was almost a week ago since the rat poison incident and we have still been averaging at about one mouse per night. We've been catching those fuckers left and right. Just last night while watching TV we saw one run out from behind the entertainment stand. Once again hubby grabs the pellet gun. WTF? Friggin' men. The thing kept poking his little nose out from the drawers of my entertainment stand over and over. I thought hubby was just waiting for a good shot, but when I gestured towards where it was peeking from he was just like "What? *Blank stare*. He didn't even see the fuckin' thing! Once again if you want something done...I snatched the gun from him and got into sniper position. I was NOT fuckin around anymore. Unless these little fuckers were gonna pay rent they gotta beat the feet. I already have enough mouths to feed. Well, I never did catch the mouse we saw that night so I know there is at LEAST one more mouse roaming around. Though there are probably wayyy more. I don't think I have to emphasize exactly how PISSED I am over this shit. I read online that mouse shit releases toxins that can affect your breathing. Well, since we moved in here my asthma's been acting up hella bad and both my kids, who have never really had breathing problems, are prescribed puffers. I initially thought this was because of winter being here and all the flu bugs and such floating around but now I am not so sure.

Anyways, I plan on emailing my landlord back and telling him either he calls an exterminator or I am going to be calling the Board of Health. I pay money to live here, I have small children, I am not a fuckin exterminator. It isn't my job to catch these nasty little creatures. If something doesn't get done I am going to have to move. Seriously, I am on a year lease and I am not putting up with this shit for a whole year. It is, for one, disgusting. Number two, it is a safety hazard. These fuckers obviously chew everything, judging by the wall behind my fridge. Well, if they are living in the walls what stops them from chewing on structural beams or wires? Nothing. How do I know my house isn't going to collapse as a result or burst into flames? I don't. Number three, I have kids and everyone knows that mice are filthy little, disease ridden animals. God forbid one bites my child and catch a disease or something. I would be out for blood . Anyways, I am going to give him until the end of the month to resolve this issue or I'm bringing out the big guns. In the meantime, I will definitely keep you all updated on this shitfest of a situation. So tell me...Have you ever had a problem with mice? How did you get rid of them? Any advice or tips?

Thursday Tidbits: Gingerbread Fun!

With so much going on during the holidays we hadn't got to decorate our gingerbread house until Christmas Day.

I hadn't planned on even buying a gingerbread house kit because last years attempt went horribly awry. The walls and roof kept collapsing, there was much frustration and a few choice words on my part and we ended up throwing in the towel and just eating the pieces as they were. However, while shopping at Giant Tiger a few weeks ago with the munchkins I saw that they had gingerbread houses marked down from ten bucks to two dollars in the clearance bin. The best part? They were "PRE-ASSEMBELLED" houses, with all the fixings to decorate it included. (Second best part? A free pair of New Year's margarita-shaped, glittery eyeglasses with purchase!) It came with a bag of gum drops, a bag of colored candy beads, two bags of white frosting, and some candy canes. The house itself was already put together so all we had to do was decorate it. I figured it would be a fun little activity for the kids to do together. I kept putting off actually doing it because I was either to exhausted to bother or I just didn't want to deal with frosting everywhere and the sugar-induced craziness that followed.

Finally, on the afternoon of Christmas Day the kids asked me if they could decorate it. Since the holidays were almost over and the house was already a mess from that mornings festivities, I didn't really have any excuse for saying no. I sat them down at the coffee table with aprons on to protect their new clothes that they insisted on wearing. Chanel had not only her new clothes on but also her new coat from Old Navy that she absolutely refused to take off. I figured icing couldn't be too hard to wash off and was for the most part right, although I learned the hard way that once icing has hardened it is not so easy to get it off of a microfibre sofa. I armed them each with a small bag of icing and some candies and let them go to town.                           

An untimely demise...

 Coder had a blast decorating it and had the most adorable look of concentration on his face the entire time. He had his tongue sticking out of the corner of his oh-so-serious little face, trying to line the candies up just so. Nelly, on the other hand, couldn't have cared less. She was concentrating purely on ingesting the decor. All in all, I would say that the gingerbread house was a success. There were no tears and barely any fighting (except when Nelly would eat a candy that Coder had just painstakingly applied) and the end result was totally cute. We displayed it proudly on the kitchen counter for all of one day until Nelly decided she wanted to relocate it and dropped it trying to pull it off of the counter. There were tears for a minute or so until they realized the could eat the candy now. It was a fun activity that kept them for the most part entertained for half hour or so and it was sweet to be able to display their handiwork, but I think I will skip the gingerbread house next year. It is a little to annoying for my liking, what with the candies repeatedly falling off and trying to get them to decorate with them not eat them. I think next year we'll do gingerbread men instead. Less room for error that way. So what kinds of activities did you do with your children this holiday season?