Happy or painful?

I am babysitting two little boys.  They have been in bed for almost two hours, but they have been screaming and yelling for the past hour.  I checked on them when they first started to make sure the closet monsters hadn't emerge.  I opened the door and the noise stopped instantly.  Apparently they were fine.  I told them it was time to be quiet and go to sleep.  The screaming began again by the time I reached the bottom of the stairs.  

They seem to have quieted down now.  Hopefully they will actually sleep.

When I first arrived tonight, I noticed that ben's (the four-year-old) voice was hoarse.  I assumed he must be sick or getting sick, but now I wonder if screaming themselves hoarse is the new norm.

   Hmmm

Bump

And I slammed my head into the sharp corner of a doorway today.  Cuz that's just what I do.  Dave calls me "Grace."

There's a bump on my forehead.  😔

3 and clothes

1 in the trap today.  We're at 3 altogether.  

After trying unsuccessful to put all the boys' laundry away last night, I realized I needed to sort their clothes again.  This honestly should be done every few months.  The bottom of 2 of David's drawers were literally being pushed out because they were so packed.

So, I did Noah's first.  I filled almost an entire laundry basket with just his clothes that were too small.  

Anything too small for David was passed directly to Noah.  And any of his clothes that I hated (worn out, stains, misshapen, um... Ugly) were thrown in the basket.  

Afterward, his clothes fit nicely and I fixed those two drawers that couldn't take the pressure.  

I scoured Noah's closet and couldn't believe some of the stuff that had made the last few cuts.  There was a 24m sweatshirt in there.  TWENTY-FOUR.  This child is four yrs old!  I'm assuming the sweatshirt ran big.  Oh, there was a 2T t-shirt stuffed in the back of his dresser too.   

Just have David's closet left to do, but I think it was done not long ago.

I like Dave'd idea of getting rid of the dressers altogether and getting a closet organizer.  We'll see. 

Hmm

No mice today.  Hmmm....  

Is it possible there were only 2??

No they're not

"mice"

by Rose Fyleman

I think mice are nice. 

Their tails are long 

Their faces small, 

They haven't any 

Chins at all. 

Their ears are pink, 

Their teeth are white, 

They run about 

The house at night. 

They nibble things 

They shouldn't touch 

And no one seems 

To like them much.

But I think mice 

Are nice

 Author: rose fyleman

Truly adorable poem, but I disagree.  They are not nice!  Unless it is in a cage with a little wheel, or if his name is Ralph and he rides a motorcycle.  Otherwise, they need to be out in a field like their name suggests.  
While I was bringing up the fall decorations from the basement, I noticed that one of the tiny foam pumpkins had nibbles taken out of it.  Well, crap.  I know what that means.  Then I see that the scarf on a scarecrow has been clawed off and shredded into a fluff ball at the bottom of the box.  
All things involving mice make me want to vomit!  They just poop wherever they want!  They are filthy and have lice and have no regard for cleanliness!  At least on Ratatouille they all washed their paws!  I am now so thankful for the draft guard underneath the basement door.  There has not been a single sign of mice in the main part of the house, only the basement.
So, I found a couple traps under the sink, smeared those suckers with peanut butter and put them down stairs.   I did not check them the next morning.  I was secretly hoping that it had just been one mouse that had moved on long ago.  
Well, I heard the sump pump running this morning, so I went down to see if it was stuck on (yes).  Guess I should check the traps... Ugh...  Um?  Where did the traps go?  They were not where I left them.  I crept a little closer.  
At this point, I'm picturing them scurrying up my leg and dropping from the ceiling into my hair.  They're known to do that--they wage war when they hear you talking about traps.  
Then I spotted one.  Flipped over next to a support pole is a mouse, dead in the trap, with carnage squirted out to the side.  UUGGHHH!  Well, I guess I better find the other one.  But I'm sure this mouse had eaten off the missing trap, tripped it, but got away before getting caught in the second one.  Cause we only have ONE mouse.
Ooohhhh, there's the other one.  Flipped and full of dead mouse also.  
Well, crap.  I'm not completely stupid.  I know what this means also.  There are many, many mice taking up residence in the basement.  The traps will need to be reset every day till they come up mouse-less.  And you know I'm not touching that!  Well, I would, but it would be with a bag around my hand like it was dog poop, and I would throw the entire thing away and buy more traps.  
Dave will dump the tiny corpses from the trap and reset them.  He's manly like that.  Luckily, when I announced, "i'm not touching them!" Dave just said, "ok."  And I fell in love all over again.  He disposed and reset the traps while I took the kids to school.  Thank God for you!
And now, we will wait and see.  I will keep track of how many are found.  Oh, you know I will.  Report back later.

And they all went crazy

Noah was naughty all day.  Start to finish.  I love him--oh, how I love him!  But that little boy just pushed me to the edge all day.   

While David was at school, I decided to clean the boys' bedroom and playroom.  Noah happily set up camp in front of "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs."  I cleaned and cleaned.  Then I realized just how many toys had not been touched in the last year, other than to be thrown out of the way of something better.  So I sorted and bagged and threw out (trash and broken toys) many, many toys.  

Let me back up...  I brought out the fall/Halloween decorations yesterday.  Noah loves all things creepy.  Loves skeletons.  I had a skeleton garland draped across the fireplace.  So anyway, I came down for another bag.  "Look, mom!" Noah proudly displays his fist full of tiny skeletons.  I am at a loss.  First I am confused.  

Wow, I can't believe he was able to untie all of those guys! Wait--are those pieces of the twine on the hearth? Oh my--   Are those SCISSORS on the ottoman in front of him?  

I take a closer look and all of the skeleton are sporting a severed, twine noose.  He had cut apart the garland.  With scissors he is not suppose to touch...  

Well, that is just one of many of his shenanigans for the day, but arguably the biggest.

___________

On to David...

Ava was over this evening, and all of the kids were out playing on the swing set.  Suddenly, Dave whips open the door and yells, "uhn-uh!  Are you kidding me?!  Get in here!"  

Apparently, David had gotten up and moved slightly past the pine trees that separate our yard from the neighbor's.  So he was on their property.  And then... He began to push his pants down.  That's when Dave caught him---before anything was exposed.  David was going to PEE on the neighbor's property in nearly plain view of Ava.  A girl.   

Dave: "what were you just about to do?"

David: "pee behind the trees?"

What has gotten into these children?!

Everyone got a good talking to tonight.  Let's pray tomorrow is better.