Super Powers Update

I know it's a been a while since we've updated everyone on the state of superherodom around here. Today is your lucky day. Now you can get caught up on all our family has to offer this poor, powerless, human world.

Last night at dinner, Bennett asked what everyone's super power was. I guess he just wanted to compartmentalize all of us in his brain and organize his little world. He told us, we couldn't have the power of "all powers in the world" - that definitely does not count as a legitimate power. The other rule is, our powers can't overlap. How inefficient would that be if we had two shape shifters in the same family. That just won't work. This was almost as important a conversation as the big Mallott Family Fantasy Football League draft.

So...I will keep you in suspense no longer. Here we are in all our glory:

Do not be confused. We are only posing as regular citizens here. We are attempting to blend into our human surroundings. We are at the circus in this picture. But don't let that fool you. It takes only seconds to morph into our alter-egos.

Unfortunately, we have yet to perfect our costumes. Sadly, there will be no pictures of us in our all our regalia. But I can give you colors so you can let your imagination give life to the endless possibilities of colors and styles that we could be seen in.

Daddy's Powers: 1. flying (not at the speed of a sparrow, but fast) 2. telekinesis color: gray

Mommy's Powers: 1. invisibility 2. fluent in all languages (this would qualify me as highly coveted 'hero support') colors: black & white with pink accents

Gavin's Powers: 1. super strength 2. mind control colors: camo

Bennett's Powers: 1. speed 2. shape shifting colors: black and bright blue

Chloe's Powers: 1. good eyesight 2. seeing into the future colors: pink and purple

Read into it what you like. I've spent years trying to understand this myself. I thought we would be out of this 'phase' years ago. Seems as though we're still in deep. The best thing to do, we've found, is to just play along. It makes life much more interesting!

Parental Failure

It always seems to work out that the week Chuck is out of town, is the same week everything goes wrong at home. I'm not at the peak of my game when Chuck is gone. Today is a good example.

We were actually having a very fun day together. Then on the way home from a movie, Bennett and Chloe get into a little fight in the back seat causing me to silence them and send them immediately to their rooms once we get home. I told them I would call them down once I had dinner ready.

About 30 minutes transpires and I call Chloe and Bennett down for dinner. Chloe comes, but Bennett does not. I figured he was just pouting or fuming in his room to get back at me for what he felt was an unfair punishment (this wouldn't be the first time). So, I send Chloe back up to retrieve her brother. However, she comes back down saying that she looked everywhere and couldn't find him.

First anger set in, How dare he try to get back at me like this...ignoring me and hiding. I thought he was just having a pity party and I was going to have none of that. So I run up stairs and start calling out for him with my excitable voice, shall we say. Still, no Bennett. Then panic sets in. What has he done? How could he be this mad at me? Did he try to run away? Now I'm looking under beds, in closets, everywhere. He is nowhere to be found. I'm hollering at the top of my lungs. How could this silly little tiff end up so blown out of proportion?

I even run back out to the garage to see if he's still sitting in the car. Not there either. I'm not the one with the most reason between my husband and me. He's not here. Bennett's not here and I'm panicking. I'm on my way to find my phone to call the police. I can't believe this. Before I pick it up, I stand at the base of the staircase and give one last holler...and I mean loud!!

Suddenly, Bennett appears at the top of the stairs, "Ya, Mom?"

"Uh, hello!! Did you not hear me yelling for you for the past 10 minutes?"

"No."

"You've got to be kidding. Why are you lying to me, Bennett?"

"I'm not. I was on my bed (the top bunk - the one place I didn't look) thinking."

"Good excuse. But I know you're lying. Get back in your room and when you're ready to tell the truth you can come out."

There. I put an end to that! I call Chuck, relay all the details and ask, "What the heck am I supposed to do?!" He talks to Bennett and gets the exact same likely story. Except for now, Bennett's mad cuz I'm mad. Chuck explains this to me and says, "Good luck."

Gavin, Chloe and I sit down to a silent dinner. Nobody wants to say a word cuz nobody knows how mommy will react. Man I hate it when it gets to that point! As I sit there, calming down, avoiding eye contact with the kids, lost in my thoughts, Gavin says, "Mom, did you ask Bennett what happened?"

"Um, I'm not sure if you just witnessed that little charade a moment ago...but yes, I know exactly what happened. Bennett was mad and decided to lay low until the last possible second."

"But Mom, what if he really didn't hear you like he said?"

"Well then...why don't you go talk to him and get his side of the story."

I can't believe Gavin is now being the mediator. I also can't believe his sudden and most uncommon outburst of empathy. This doesn't usually happen.

He's upstairs talking to Bennett for a good 10 minutes. My emotions have finally calmed down enough for my heart to hear that 'still small voice', the one my yelling kind of drowned out earlier. I started thinking about the latest parenting book we read, "Loving Our Kids On Purpose". There was nothing in that book about this situation. If there was, we were missing a few chapters. Then I started feeling a bit convicted. Anger never changed anybody, even if it was justly deserved. How would I want someone to treat me if I felt unjustly blamed? What if Bennett really was telling the truth?

By this point Gavin came out of Bennett's room and said, "I believe him, Mom." Great. Now what? I've already overblown this whole thing...over-reacted, over-yelled, and over-assumed. Maybe it was time I took Gavin's advice and talked to Bennett and listened to his side of the story. So I did.

In my calm voice I asked him if we could talk. He was still sitting on his top bunk, crying. And then I asked him what happened. He said, "Mom, I really didn't hear you. Last thing I remember I was just laying here thinking."

"What were you thinking about, Honey?"

"I was thinking about 2 deers running in the forest."

At this point, I was attacked by a huge laughing spell. I didn't want to laugh, but I couldn't hold it in. I instantly knew he was telling me the truth. He didn't understand why I was laughing, so I told him, "Honey, people don't sit on their beds thinking about 2 deers running in a forest...that's something they might dream about though. Honey, you were asleep and didn't know it." At this, a look of huge relief crossed his tear stained face.

I explained how I became so nervous and was yelling out of fear that I might have lost him. I told him my world would come crashing down if I ever lost him. At this he started crying and we hugged and made up. I apologized for accusing him of lying. He apologized for the earlier incident in the car.

Poor kid...bad timing in taking an unexpected nap caused a huge meltdown in mommy and yet another hard lesson learned - for me. How 'bout I try listening first.

Reminds me of a Bible verse that I failed to remember until it was too late, "Be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to anger." Thank God His mercies are new every morning and my children's love is unconditional - oh how I wish it didn't take failure to see that so clearly now....

Just Another Day in Paradise

These crazy kids!!! There is no activity or space that is safe from their imagination. A pool is not just a pool and a place to swim. To these people, it is a vast world with innumerable options of activities to do. They are not just jumping into the pool - they are in another world, far, far away from here (reality), only I get the pleasure of listening to their narrative form of play since they're talking at the top of their lungs to each other, uninterrupted by all the other onlookers.

Today at the pool, the boys were using those long, skinny pool floaties and walking around the perimeter of the pool singing something about how they were fishing. Of course, this fishing involved hitting the water with the tube in order to make the most obnoxious sound and splash possible. They are singing songs about fishing, talking about fishing and what types of fish they might encounter. Each are talking at the same time, pretending that the other is just as interested in what they're saying. Neither of these silly people have ever held a real fishing pole or fished in real life. However, we did just read a book about a boy who went fishing in a river yesterday....maybe that's where this is all coming from. Hmmmm.

Then, they take it up a notch. Bennett decides that he is now fishing for the government. Oooooooo...nice segway into a new narrative play topic. The options are ripe with possibilities now. Gavin decides that he likes the sound of fishing for the government, so he joins forces with Bennett. Chloe, who was previously sitting outside of the pool with me, doesn't want to be left out of government work and runs over to the boys exclaiming, "Hey boys!! Hey boys!! I am the government!!" at the top of her lungs. If there is a way she can be in charge and lord it over the boys, she will take every and any opportunity. Upon entering the water, she asks Bennett, "How do you be the government anyways?" Oh, those deep life questions that come up, even at the pool. Doesn't she know that the people working in the government now are still asking that question?

She decides she knows what to do. She rips their goggles off their heads and hides them behind her back and yells at them that they didn't see her do that. Then, she suddenly changes personalities and out comes soft talking, nice voice, "Boys, I am now going to give you something for doing such a good job on your fishing. Here you go." And she presents them with the goggles that were already theirs to begin with. I think she knows more about this government work than she's letting on.

The boys are thrilled to have their goggles back and to be given such high praise that it seems the perfect time to segway into yet another fish type category of work....a cook in a fish restaurant. Now I get to hear them describe all the ingredients they are using to create fish masterpieces. Gavin is using the most eclectic combination of spices he's either seen me use or seen in our cupboard. Yet, his idea of going over the top with his ingredients is adding a whole bowl of sugar instead of just 1 cup. Bennett, of course, is adding such lovely delicacies as raccoon feet, stop signs, and shards of glass. Chloe realizes that she (the government) can no longer control such unruly, creative subjects and decides to join in the cooking fun.

Just another day at the pool. Tomorrow will be totally different (thank God!).

Mental note: No more watching the Food Network with the kids.

Allergies

How the time flies! When did my little girl get so big? From the time she could communicate, her life's goal has been to be 'a real mommy'. Dress like a real mommy, talk like a real mommy, wear lipstick like a real mommy. Oh, to attain the height of mommy-hood!

Just the other day, we were taking a walk through the neighborhood. She asks me, "Mommy, does this look like an outfit a real mommy would wear?" I look at her mismatched ensemble of tank top with long, black polka-dot, flowy skirt (that she tries to put with everything she owns) and respond with, "Sure honey, that looks kinda like something a mommy might wear." Oh no...that's not good enough. She comes back with (in her high pitched mommy voice), "No. It is exactly what a mommy would wear." Ooops...my bad. So I asked her, does my outfit look like a mommy outfit? She's looks me over and says, "No. It looks like an exercise outfit." Evidently, I'm not a 'real mommy' when I'm exercising because I'm not in a skirt. There are rules to being a mommy you know.

She's ever the perceptive one. Extremely detailed. She hears all the conversations around her and tries to use them in the course of her day. For example, she knows several people who are gluten free. This must have sounded 'big' to her, so she tried to find an appropriate opportunity to incorporate this into her play. The other day, her and a friend are playing kitchen in the same room I'm in. Chloe is supposed to be the guest and the friend is the cook. She feels she needs to tell the cook something so she saunters over to the kitchen and tells her friend in her most high tone and impressive mommy voice, "I'm gluten free you know. And also I'm allergic to fuzz." Her friend looks at her quizzically. Obviously she has never heard of this and responds like any 6 year old should, "You're what???" Chloe, ever the thoughtful mommy, feels she needs to expand her young subject's limited nutritional understanding and explains, "It means I can't eat normal food, okay. Just rice cakes and stuff." Satisfied that her friend understands her nutritional needs, she heads back to her table and awaits her fake food. Hopefully it is gluten free.

MFFFL

No...I am not trying to talk with tape over my mouth. We are celebrating a new acronym in our family. One that will soon stand in the hall of "Mallott Family Traditions" as popular as "DUFDN" and "PAMN" (translation: 1. dress up for dinner night and 2. pizza and movie night). Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce the: Mallott Family Fantasy Football League!!!

My husband, the faithful and ever faithful reader of ESPN, the one who knows all sports statistics on every sport for the past 15 years, the same one who pulled his groin in last year's all important Rogers vs. Mallott family Thanksgiving football game because he was trying oh-so-hard, has deemed now as the time for the rest of his non-espn loving family to begin to LOVE THE GAME.

Football is in his veins. He wears his Cowboys gear every game day. My sweet, wonderful husband, the football lover, wants to pass along his passion to his sports-challenged family. Truth be told, I believe Chuck's beloved gene has been kept alive through Bennett, the sole heir. His skill set is still sharpening, but his passion and love for the game already rival that of his father's.

Chuck asked me one night what I thought of this idea. I tried not to laugh. But really, what do I know about football, how in the world would I know who to choose. He was ready and waiting with answers for each of my questions. This is a sampling of our conversation:

Me: "First of all, I don't even know what a fantasy football league is"
Him: "Don't worry, I can explain it all to you."
Me: "Why would I want to do this?"
Him: "Cuz it would be fun."
Me: "I wouldn't even know who to pick"
Him: "Don't worry, I can tell you who is good."
Me: "And then you will pick all the good players."
Him: "No. Here look, we can even go over all their stats on espn.com"
Me: "That's okay. I trust you. I'd rather not spend a whole evening reviewing the stats of people whom I have no connection to - that would be weird."
Him: "So...what do you think? Sounds like a fun idea, huh?"
Me: "Mmmmhmmmm."

Admittedly, I did not go into this whole venture with the most excited of spirits. But Chuck's enthusiasm was contagious. First, he showed us all how we could pick our own team name and decorate our own helmet or logo. Okay...I can totally get into that. We all had fun coming up with names. Let me introduce our newly incorporated MFFFL teams:

Chuck - The Me Monsters







Me - The House Hunters







Gavin - The Flaming Fireballs







Bennett - The Stars








Chloe - The Dolphins







Other - The Dumb Old Donkeys







Notice that there are 6 teams instead of only 5. This 6th team was essential to the efficient schedule making of the team rosters. Each person has to play somebody each week. Therefore, we couldn't leave anyone out. Chuck's brilliant plan was to put a dummy, decoy team in that we would each have the opportunity to play - and beat. The goal is that this dummy team is so bad, that we will automatically get a win. Let's hope that it plays out that way. I'd hate to lose to The Dumb Old Donkeys. This team name does not mean to show or harbor any ill will towards donkeys. We love donkeys. It is a family joke and it centers around Brian Regan.

Tonight was the night of the Big Draft. We sat around our kitchen table, inhaling our pizza and calling out our picks with much enthusiasm as Chuck called our draft numbers. It felt like the big leagues. Granted, I was only calling out names that Chuck previously wrote down for me, Chloe, himself and the Dumb Old Donkeys. The boys gathered their names thru a highly scientific method - they looked through all their football cards and chose the names of whoever they had. Pure genius. I wish I had football cards.

I'll keep you posted as the season progresses. Gavin refers to our football match-ups each week as "fighting each other". He has no concept of football, but is excited about all the 'fighting' none-the-less. Chuck is taking this as seriously as if he were in the pros...as he should, this is very important afterall...to him. Chloe is thrilled just to be included. She's so excited to have her own purple helmet with a team that has her favorite animal name. It's the little things in life that make her happy. Bennett wishes he was actually out there playing with Tony Romo - he doesn't understand why this is 'fantasy'. I still don't think he grasps the definition of that word. And I, I look forward to seeing my beautiful logo on the screen each week as I check my stats. The colors and team name fit my persona. It was a long, thought out process, but in the end I felt I came up with a very intimidating sounding team name. Just picture these big, burly men tearing down the field with all ferociousness in search of the best house - it is just so exciting.

It's a wonderful thing to share and appreciate your spouse's passion and/or things they like eventhough you may not. If you take the time to enjoy what they value, it shows that you value them. I'm so thankful he's wanting to share all this with us. He could just do like he does every year with a bunch of buddies. But this time he chose to include us...a clueless bunch of people he loves more than football. I may just he hooked on fantasy football for life now.

Gotta love the game!

Bring on football season - we here at the Mallott household are ready!

Sentimental Bennett

Our children have just now started experiencing and/or noticing the joys of country music. Neither Chuck nor I grew up listening to country music (unless you count 'Alabama' for a short stint in 1983 - and that was completely by accident). As kids, you kind of just listen to the music your parents listen to. All that to say, that our kids have just now realized the 'coolness' factor of our music.

Everytime we get in the car, they always ask me to put in a cd. Now that they know the names of many of these country singers, they think they're hot stuff. Today Bennett asked for Tim McGraw. He's my favorite. On the particular cd we were listening to was one of my favorite songs titled, "I Know How to Love You Well." It's a beautiful, romantic, sappy love song. Chuck and I dance to it all the time.

Well...it seems Bennett had different notions in his head when he listened to the song today. He asks me, "Mom, can we repeat that song over and over. I like it." Sure, honey. No problem. Isn't that a sweet song? It makes me think of Daddy every time I hear it. He answers me with, "Well...it makes me think of Elizabeth." Seriously?!

If you will recall, Elizabeth was the wild, crazy, obstinate dog we had for 9 short months before finding her a good home. It has been over 2 years since we've had her. He rarely played with her. This is as much contact that he had with the fuzzy furball. As an infant puppy, she was quiet, cuddly and slept alot (the only way to have a dog if you ask me). As she grew, she became a menace. She dragged (literally, he was being pulled while on the ground) Bennett down the street while he was holding her leash, she attacked Gavin while he was walking to the table with his cereal bowl, she bit me every time I cleaned her paws, she chewed Chloe's doll head until it was a distorted monster baby. It is this very dog that Bennett has such fond memories of. That he sees himself loving so well. What a beautiful ode to the memory of Elizabeth.

A Schedule After My Own Heart

To appreciate this post, you need to know a little about me. I grew up an extremely scheduled person. I loved knowing what and when I could expect for my next meal. I lived by my bed-time. A schedule was a comfort for me, it was my security. I knew what to expect. That's why, it made perfect sense while in college, that I had a "Plan Board". It was divided into two sides, one for my room-mate and one for me. On it we would write out our plan for the day so we knew what to expect (why...I have no idea). There was not much spontaneity going on, obviously. Also, that may explain my lack of consistent room-mates. It appears that not everyone appreciated the "Plan Board" as much as I did.

Eventually, I became an adult (in age only) and my little scheduling tendencies followed me. It came in awesome when I jumped into my career. I was in charge of meeting with clients and arranged my own calendar. As far as jobs go, it didn't get much better than that when you're an efficiency, schedule freak like myself. It was pure bliss, actually.

Then I graduated to parenthood. Another scary foray into the future unless you're armed with a comforting schedule. Poor Gavin. He bore the brunt of my need for organization (read 'control' here). I was flabbergasted that the hospital would actually send us home with this new person without guidance or a nurse. The only piece of advice was, "Just make sure you feed him every 4 hours". Well then...that's all we needed. Chuck designed the best little spreadsheet ever to keep track of every and anything new little baby Gavin would need. We woke him up precisely every 4 hours to feed, whether he was hungry, awake or not. This is what the authorities told us to do and we will not waver. At each feeding there was the spreadsheet to fill out...we marked whether he peed or pooped, what time the feeding was, how much he ate, when we started and stopped. It was horribly anal. We did this for 3 months. Mercifully, our pediatrician told us, "Stop. You don't need to do this anymore." What a relief. Gavin grew up asking, "So, Mom, what's the plan for today?" Enough said. He was a kindred spirit. He knew that a good plan, made for a good day.

Once Bennett entered the picture, any semblance of organization or scheduling was utterly lost. That was the beginning of freedom for me. For the first time in my life, I realized I didn't have to stick with a bed time - for myself. I could eat when I was hungry, not just when it was time. The kids could nap before and/or after lunch. By time Chloe came, I was only a shadow of my former self. I still love efficiency, but can't stand being locked into a schedule. I NEED flexibility. I NEED freedom to change my mind. This blows Gavin's mind.

Now...knowing the rigidity under which Gavin's earliest, developing years were formed, you can have a slightly better understanding of what and why and how he does some of the things he does. The boys have a neighbor that they play with every day of the week. They have really developed a neat relationship. Evidently, they were tired of coming up with what to play on what day. So, they all decided to make a schedule in order to ease the brain drain caused by thinking so hard during the summer.

I walk into the gameroom to see them all sitting at the computer with Powerpoint up. Gavin has made a beautiful chart and each of the boys were contributing to all the blank spaces. They were all equally excited with this genius idea, it seemed. They excitedly asked if they could print three copies so they could all have one to tape to the place of supreme importance in their rooms. Here is what all the commotion was about:

Obviously, it's encoded, but I think I might could crack it for you. 'Kung Fu' refers to role-playing ninjas and having hours of fun doing karate moves on each other. But just in case they get bored of that, instead of taking a break from each other and retiring to their own rooms, they still have 4 more options to choose from - it's just pure genius. Once Kung Fu looses its initial thrill, then they can morph into Jedi's, complete with robe and light saber. This includes full scale battles with extremley life-like and realistic sounds emmanately forth from each jedi. Since there's more time to kill, why not play the game "Scene It" a few times, at least until you've memorized all the answers and it's no longer fun to play. Then I suppose Legos comes in 4th on the list of fun activities. That could get a little quiet and still of a game...but I supposed even boys need some 'quiet time' to their long, grueling days of making boy noises and running. Lastly, and if Mommy is in the mood, 'water' would refer to 'going to the pool'. This is normally a given on any day, as long as its not raining...which, why would it rain? It's Texas, in July.

Thus you can see the pride bursting forth from my bosom as my eldest carries on the beauty of 'the schedule'.

Necessity is the Mother of Invention

Point in case:
This particular invention was due to Gavin's need to continue applying 'ice' (i.e.- a frozen bag of peas) to a bump on his head that he just got (I promise, I did not give him the bump...or the peas) yet still be able to have a hand free to eat his snack and read a book simultaneously. As the next picture proves, you can still read comfortably while applying pressure to a bump and eat a granola bar ALL AT THE SAME TIME while pretending everything is normal.


Prior to this invention, he was in tears, upset, because I was sitting there reading and eating a snack and he wanted desperately to join me. But that darn 'ice pack' was hindering his deepest desires. He didn't want to miss out on the fun I was having. I told him he was a smart boy and would figure something out. And, voila...the rest is now history.

Bike Issues

It has become rather apparent that we have some major bike issues in this family. We went on a family bike ride the other night. Instead of looking like a sweet, little family enjoying a nice little ride through their community, we looked a little more like a motley crew / freak show.

First of all, Chuck and I received our bicycles as gifts 10 years ago. Read into that what you like. After multiple moves across the metroplex and the country, our bikes are witnesses to the fact that time and moving trucks are our enemies.

Chuck's bike has one wobbly wheel (the back one). He believes this was due to poor handling by the movers. I take the position that he has done maybe one or two too many 'pop-a-wheelies'. Either way, he can't drive in a straight line to save his life.

My bike has brakes that prefer to stay forever in the locked position. Nothing I do seems to loosen the grip my brakes have on my wheel. So I have to pedal very hard on consistently flat tires just to go.

Gavin had a wipe out a few months ago and ruined his gears somehow. Miraculously, Chuck was able to get the gear thingy back together. But the only problem is that now, out of the 18 gear positions Gavin's bike boasts of, he can only use 1 of them. If he tries to change gears, his bike will possibly implode. Plus, since a professional bike fixer didn't fix his bike, it makes a rather loud noise every time he pedals.

Bennett actually has two bikes, Gavin's old one and his own. Both the same size. Both too small for his 'enormous' body. The one he prefers has pedal issues. Both pedals have broken in half. So, he has two half pedals on either side. You can imagine how this improves his balance while bicycling. He is a constant accident waiting to happen. I don't think he believes in brakes. When he feels he's about to fall, he lifts both legs and arms up and just glides with bike to his final wipe out spot. Chuck even had to give him lessons in 'how to fall off a bike like a boy'.

Chloe received her little princess bike when she turned 3. That was 2 1/2 years ago. Since then, she's grown almost 4 inches...all in her legs. She looks ridiculously big for her baby bike. Plus, her tires are 1/8 of the size of ours, so she has to pedal at the speed of light to keep up with the rest of us.

Just another fun, family, bike ride through the hood during a lovely 98 degree evening in Texas.

Wouldn't You Want To Be Our Friends

Some great friends of ours have been so kind to watch our kids for us over and over again. We really wanted to show them how thankful we were and how much we appreciated them. So...it made perfect sense to invite them over for dinner...Dress Up For Dinner, that is. In all fairness, we let them pick out the theme for this special occasion. "The Rain Forest" was agreed upon by all.

You know you're friends when you can dress up like a fool and all laugh at each other. We have been lucky enough to share this tradition with most of our family and a few of our friends. So far, no one has rescinded our friendship (and thankfully, you can't rescind familial bonds)...we're taking that as a good sign. If you are our friends and have yet to enjoy this special festivity...just wait...I can promise you, your turn IS coming.

Remember the rules: You have to make your costume with anything you have lying around in the house. The kids get no adult help. You may use face paint. No underwear on your head. What luck that I actually had 2 fake bananas laying around the house? It was that fact alone that inspired my lovely design.

Chuck the Piranha

David the Red Eyed Tree Frog

Garrett the Vampire Bat

Gavin the Poison Dart Frog

Grayson the Piranha

Bennett the Jaguar

Chloe the Purple Flower

Me the Banana Tree

The Volcano, Brynn

Too Much Nature?

We were thrilled when we finally found a house that was surrounded by nature. Instead of the minuscule plot of land we used to live on, we now have a large backyard, huge green space of land on one side of our house and a bona-fide creek right behind our house with trees and all. It's the 'and all' part I never actually really thought about.

I love nature. I love walking on sidewalks or trails around wooded areas with gobs of bug spray on...I mean, I'm practically an outdoor enthusiast. I even learned how to camp last year. So, now that you understand that me and the outdoors are getting pretty cozy, you can understand why we were so excited to find this house with all this great outdoorsy stuff around it.

But what I hadn't bargained on, or either chose to remain completely naive about were the snakes. Snakes are a part of nature. And they're all around our property. It's too late to reconsider the house. It is now ours for the next 30 or so years. So...how did I find out that snakes also lived in my beloved suburban nature? I'm glad you asked...here's the story:

It was dusk, maybe around 8:30pm, and Chuck asks if I wanted to go sit on the front steps with him. (See, more proof that I love being outside around nature). I was sitting with my back to the house facing the street and Chuck was sitting in front of me facing the house. We were enjoying the cool part of the day, talking about how our days went and yada, yada, yada...when out of the blue he grabs my arm in a vice grip and calmly says, "Cori, why don't you step over here with me for a moment" and then proceeded to yank me from my current spot.

My first thought was, "Oh my gosh, there's a spider on my shoulder, isn't there?" But outloud I said, "What it is babe, what's behind me?" It all happened so fast...one second I'm sitting less than 2 feet in front of a snake and the next second I'm looking at it from 6 feet away and on the verge of puking. TOO MUCH NATURE FOR ME!!! GET ME IN THE HOUSE!!! But I couldn't run into the solitude of my own house because the snake was slithering right in front of the front door. I asked my rescuer in a panicky voice, "WHAT DO WE DO NOW???" And he replies with the ever so comforting, "I have no clue." So we sit there and watch it slither around our house.

I refuse to step off the sidewalk. There is no way I'll ever be stepping on the grass again without lace up combat boots and long pants. Then Chuck has a genius idea. He leaves me ALONE outside with our new friend and runs inside for the camera and Gavin. I knew he would come up with a plan...but what kind of crazy plan is this???

Gavin comes running out in his boxers anxious to see what all the commotion is about. He and Chuck proceed to throw rocks at the bushes to try and lure snakey-poo out of his hideout so Chuck can get a good picture of him. When the coast is clear, I make a running leap into the entry way, dead-bolting the front door lock behind me. There is no way that snake will enter my house now.

I am SOOOO FREAKED OUT. I can't turn a corner without looking first to make sure snakey-poo isn't curled up in the corner. The heebeejeebees plauge me the rest of the night. I can barely keep the contents of my stomach in place. UGH! I decide to take comfort in the solace of my bathtub (after checking the drain, tub, hamper and closet throughly for any 'new friends' first).

Meanwhile, Chuck is googling snakes and trying to find out what type we have lurking around. He was thrilled with his findings. He informs me that it is a harmless rat snake and that we should be comforted by his presense. He says, "Trust me. We'd much rather have a rat snake than rats." Alrightly then....how can I argue with that.

I still go outside during dusk, but now I go out back and sit on a chair and keep my feet off the ground. I choose to be thankful that we have no rats and spend a lot of time looking at the birds on the bird feeder...that's my kind of nature.

The Advocate

Chloe asked me what she could do to earn money today. Vacuuming out the car is always a good stand-by. So I told her I would be happy to give her $2.50 for vacuuming out Daddy's car. She was thrilled. I asked her what she wanted to do with the money she earned and she simply replied, "Give it away."

Bennett was with us when we were in the negotiation process of this exchange and piped up after about 5 minutes of listening, "Mom. I don't think it's fair that you only pay Chloe $2.50 for doing a very hard job. I think it's worth more than that. Last week when we all vacuumed out the big car it was very hard. And she's going to be doing this all by herself."

"That's a good point you bring up Bennett. What do you think a fair about would be?", I reasoned with him.

"I think you should pay her $5." was his reply.

I asked Chloe, "Did you see what your brother just did for you. He got you more money to a job you agreed to do for a little bit of money."

"Thank you, Bennett." she sweetly said to him. Since she has no concept of monetary value, the amount didn't really matter to her. What mattered was that her brother stood up for her and for that she had stars in her eyes.

Bennett cannot sit by and watch when he feels something is happening unfairly. He must speak up. This has its negative qualities, to be sure (as in, when we're asking something of him that he feels is unfair, quite the 'discussion' ensues). But I feel that the positives out-weigh the negatives in this instance. I'm proud of his character choice. He didn't benefit from this in the least bit - but he spoke up anyways. Way to think of others, Bennett. May you always stand up for the underdog, the down and out, the unloved and un-noticed.