Twisty Balloons

Have you ever seen those balloons that clowns use to create things like poodles, and giraffes, and crowns? My kids received a pack of those today. Guess who got to do the creating? Me of course!

"Mom, can you make a puppy?"

"Ummm, sure."

I looked at the diagram and figured out what kinds of twists and turns the balloon needed. Soon, we had a rather long-nosed puppy.

"Make another," my daughter exclaimed.

As I was creating this second puppy, my son left the room. A few minutes later he returned. I felt a cold drippy sensation on the back of my leg.

"Puppy is giving you a kiss!" (Apparently he had wet the puppy's nose at the sink.)

I just can't seem to get away from slobbery dogs!

Those Doggone Dogs!

In case you've been wondering where I've been, I've been in the great state of Virginia, covered in dog hair and dog slobber. My family and I went to Virginia to visit my father-in-law and his two giant yellow labs, Hoover and Clancy. They are the sweetest dogs, but boy are they messy!

I walked in the door with my kids, and was immediately greeted with slobbery kisses and a few good wacks with the tails. I reached down to pet the beasts, and found myself covered with clumps of hair.

"Do these boys need a brushing?" I asked.

"It doesn't do any good," was the reply.

"Okay," I thought as I looked around at the blanket of dog hair covering the floor.

My kids didn't seem to mind. Soon they were rolling around on the floor using the big dogs as pillows. They were covered from head to toe in dog hair.

"Mommy, can we have a dog, PLEASE!!!!"

I looked at my clothes. I looked at my kids' clothes. I looked at the floor around me. I looked at the wet slobber on my knees.

"No." End of discussion.

In Disguise

Blue bottle pop candy leaves stains on one's lips, teeth, and tongue. Make a mental note of that.

My son had one of those things just before we had to leave the house to run some errands. His teeth, lips, and tongue were a bright shade of blue when he was finished. I grabbed a wet paper towel and tried to clean him off. It didn't work as well as I had hoped.

"Okay," I said. "Wear these sunglasses, and maybe nobody will recognize you."

He was pleased to comply.

First stop was the bank. We pulled in the drive- through, hoping nobody would pay that much attention to us. "Hi Sherry," the teller said as soon as she saw me. "Does your son have blue lips?"

Ugh!!

"Yes," I replied, "he was eating a bottle pop candy."

"Oh," said the nice teller. "Then I'll give him a blue lollipop so it'll match."

How thoughtful!

Sticky Fingers

There's a neat program here in Cincinnati, where an artist painted thirty pianos and placed them in various locations throughout the city. If you see one, you can play it. Today my children and I found one at a local ice cream shop. I told them they could play it before they got ice cream, because I knew their fingers would be a sticky mess afterwards.

They played and had a marvelous time doing so. We got our ice cream and ate it. Everything was going as planned until my son decided he wanted to play again.

Let's just say I had to clean Mr. Sticky Fingers and the piano before we left! Who's brilliant idea was it to put a piano at an ice cream shop anyway? (I'm actually glad it was there. We had a lot of fun playing it!)

Squeaky Knees

My husband decided to teach my kids a new trick this evening. He lay down on his back on the floor, cupped his hands behind his knees, and alternately bent and straightened his legs in rapid succession, thus creating a noisy squeak. The kids thought that was great. Of course they had to learn how to do it.

After about five minutes, all of my "kids" were on the floor in my son's bedroom squeaking their knees. What a sight! I just stood there shaking my head.

(I think I know what my kids will be doing tomorrow. Thanks, Daddy!)

Name that Smoothie

I was browsing through my Family Fun magazine today and came across a recipe for a smoothie made with a certain green vegetable (which I happen to like). My kids always stick they noses up at it when I slice some up and put it on my sandwich.

I thought I'd have a little fun and see if I could get them to like it this new way. While they were out of the room, I got out the blender, the vegetable, milk, ice, and a couple other ingredients. I went to work.

When I had completed the concoction, I tasted it. Delicious!

"Kids, come here," I said. "I want you to try this."

They looked at the green thing. "What is it?"

"Just try it."

My son, the brave one, tried it first.

"Do you like it?"

"Yeah, it's good," he said.

My daughter tried it. "It has vanilla in it, doesn't it?" she queried.

"Yes."

"I like the vanilla, but I'm not sure about the back taste (whatever that meant). What is it?"

"Avocado."

"Ewww, mommmmm! You made us drink avocado?"

Hee Hee.

Here's the recipe if you want to try it: In a blender, combine a peeled and pitted avocado with 1 cup of milk and 1 cup of ice cubes, 2 tablespoons sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Blend until smooth.

Chainsaw Men

My husband decided that today would be a good day to prune trees. When my husband does things, it's no small job. Today was no exception. Out came the big, noisy chain saw. My six-year-old son decided that he wanted to get in on the action. So he came out with his little, noisy chain saw.

The boys started hacking away at the trees. When they were done, there was a big pile of branches and a little pile of leaves. Both were filthy, and both were grinning from ear to ear.

Hummingbird Friend

One of the most relaxing things in my life is watching birds feed at the bird feeder or play in the bird bath. Today I was inspired to get a hummingbird feeder.

We went to the Wild Bird Center and picked out a feeder and some food. Then we found a nice place outside to put it so that we could watch the birds as we ate our meals. As soon as we walked outside to place the feeder on a pole, a hummingbird flew by. My kids and I were impressed at how quickly the little bird found the feeder!

Later that afternoon we watched as the hummingbird perched itself on the feeder and drank.

"Mommy, that's awesome!" my son said.

I had to agree. Sometimes the simplest things in life are the best.

I've Got Mail!

I went to the mailbox today and noticed a peculiar - looking envelope in my mailbox. I looked at the front. It said, "Mama Dog," in strangely familiar handwriting.

I opened it up. Written on a white piece of paper in the same familiar handwriting were the words, "Mama Dog."

When I went into the house, my six-year-old son was grinning from ear to ear. Uh huh. "Mama" and "Dog" are the two words he can spell and write without assistance. I, apparently, am the Mama Dog.

Woof, Woof.

The Barber Dog

Loveland, the town where I live, is a quaint little place. Downtown Loveland has a candy shop, a coffee shop, and an old-fashioned barber - the kind that has the blue and red striped cylinder thing outside its door (what are those called anyway?).

I had never paid much attention to the barber shop, but today was a different story. The kids and I had just made a trip to the candy store. They were tightly clutching their bags of gummy fish, when we noticed an elderly couple peering into the barber shop window.

"There's a dog in there," they said.

Sure enough, there was a long-haired Australian sheep dog sitting in one of the chairs.

I wondered what that was all about. Surely it wasn't a pet grooming store! Then I noticed the sign on the door. It said, "Barber dog is in."

My kids were thrilled. So was the dog. It jumped off of the chair, grabbed its pink chew toy, and bolted to the door. It was ready to play.

The barber came to the door. He was a picture from the past, complete with handle-bar mustache and bow tie. "Gigi likes to play, " he said. He opened the door and let Gigi out. The kids and Gigi had a marvelous time until Gigi discovered the gummy fish.

"No candy for you, Gigi!" That was the end of their playdate. We'll have to visit Gigi again - without the bags of candy!

Voice Changers

My kids have a little hand-held device called the ya-da-ya-da-ya-da voice changer. They press a little button to record their voice, and then they play it back. It can be played back in a normal mode, a faster high-pitched mode, or a slower deep mode.

They decided to bring this little device in the car. What do you think they did with it? Well, they recorded themselves crying and screaming like babies. Then they played it back on the higher pitch. Why? They wanted to hear what they sounded like as babies.

I really didn't need to hear that. I for one, remember quite well what they sounded like as crying babies!

Taking Out the Trash

"Mom, I want to take out the trash," my six-year old son said.

I couldn't believe my ears. "Okay, " I said, "go ahead."

He pulled off the lid of the kitchen garbage can and attempted to lift the garbage bag out.

"Can you help me," he asked. "It's too heavy!"

I gave him a hand.

"I want to take it outside by myself."

I let him try. It was difficult for him, but he managed to lift it by wrapping his arms around it.

"Will you please lift the lid," he asked as we arrived at the outside garbage can. Again I provided assistance.

I helped him hoist the bag into the can. When he finished he grinned from ear to ear. He was very proud of himself!

I wonder if he's going to be that willing to take out the garbage when he's sixteen.

Tooth Fairy Visit

No, this isn't about the tooth fairy coming to give me something for my extracted wisdom teeth. I'm still waiting for that to happen! This is about my daughter losing her first molar. That is a pretty big event! Unfortunately, she is sick with a fever and sore throat.

My daughter is a very sweet, kindhearted person. She was very concerned that the tooth fairy might get sick. So, she left her little tooth pillow with the tooth safely tucked in the tooth pocket outside of her bedroom door.

Wasn't that thoughtful!

Paint in the Hair

This seems to be part two of an entry I wrote a week ago. If you recall, my son painted a trophy at a pottery store. We decided that it was an award for being the messiest painter in Cincinnati. The young man is living up to his title.

Once again, we were painting. This time, it was at our house. My son was supposed to be painting wooden race cars.

"Mom, Bubba has paint in his ears!" my daughter informed me.

I looked at him. Sure enough, he had paint in his ears, on his elbows, on his neck, and in his hair.

I looked at the race car. There was actually more paint on him than on the race car. I really don't know how he manages it. The kid is good!

Yanked Teeth

Here's how my day went today:

9:00 AM: Took son to T-ball camp
9:05 AM: Discovered that son was wearing crocs instead of tennis shoes.
9:07 AM: Returned home to get correct shoes.
9:10 AM: Took off son's crocs and put on tennis shoes.

9:30 - 10:15 AM: Miscellaneous running around
10:20 AM: Went to Subway to eat last meal of the day.
10:30 AM: Back at T-ball camp to watch son play final T-ball game.
11:00 AM: Went to dentist to have wisdom teeth extracted.
12:00 PM: Received shots in gums and roof of mouth to numb area for extractions.
12:05 - 12:45 PM: Wisdom teeth yanked out.
12:55PM: Got in car and drove home.

Rest of the day: Peace and quiet. Nobody bothered me! Maybe I should do this tooth yanking thing more often. It seems to be the only way for me to get a break!

The Box

My husband ordered some new speakers the other day. They arrived in two tall and narrow boxes. Of course my kids weren't interested in the speakers. They were interested in the box. That box became a vampire coffin, a locker, a club house, and a boat.

This evening, I noticed that my son was rather quiet. That usually means he's up to something, so I went to investigate. I looked everywhere, but could not find him. Finally, I heard snoring coming from the box. I lifted the flap. My little guy was sound asleep. Apparently boxes make good beds too.

Wacky Wednesday

Today was wacky Wednesday. What on earth did that mean? It meant that you could dress in mis-matched socks, mis-matched shoes, inside-out shirts, and backwards shorts. I did not invent this day (believe it or not). It was the creation of my son's T-ball coaches.

So my little guy dressed himself. His shirt was backwards and inside out. His shorts were backwards. Even his baseball cap was inside out.

This was fine for his T-ball practice. Unfortunately, I forgot to correct his outfit. We walked into the post office and got some pretty strange looks. I guess that means that I must be a wacky mom!

Personal note: My son learned to ride his bike without training wheels today! I was very proud of him.

Kids Loose in the Candy Store

As a special treat today, I took my kids to the local candy store. The plan was to get a little ice cream and cool off after a very hot afternoon at T-ball camp.

We walked into the store. My kids' eyeballs got as big as saucers.

"Look at these candy lips!" my son exclaimed.

"Look at these lemon drops!" said my daughter.

"What would you like?" I asked. (I know, that was a dumb question!)

By the time we left, my son had a huge lollipop in his hand, with blue sticky stuff on his nose.

"I wish our house was like this!" my daughter exclaimed.

I for one, was glad it wasn't! What a mess that would be!

Ghost Hunting

Today my family and I visited the National Airforce Museum in Dayton. My husband was interested in the history of all of the aircraft. The kids and I were interested in hunting for ghosts.

The National Airforce Museum is said to be one of the most haunted places in the nation, according to the book, Haunted Places the National Directory. So we had to do a little investigating.

Every two seconds my son would ask, "Where is the haunted helicopter?"

"That's nonsense," my husband would reply. "Don't you want to hear about the history of these planes?"

"I want to see a ghost!"

We only found three of the supposedly-haunted planes. I didn't notice anything particularly strange about them. I will however, say that the plane called the Midnight Serenade gave me the creeps. It was sitting in the corner next to the Bockscar plane that dropped the bomb on Nagasaki and ended the war. This plane was a night bomber. It was a big black plane hiding in the shadows. Oddly enough, the Bockscar was one that was said to be haunted. I'm wondering if the ghosts were hiding out in the Midnight Serenade, waiting for the crowds to leave so they could come out and play!

Breaking the Silence

I took my kids out to eat at McDonald's today. Normally McDonald's is a rather noisy place with lots of people chowing down. Not today. There were only a couple of customers, and it was really quiet!

We had some difficulties choosing a clean seat (maybe that's why nobody was there), but we finally settled on a place near a gentleman who was obviously doing some work on his computer.

"You have to be quiet so you don't bother the man," I said.

We settled down, and I hoped for the best. I knew it was going to be quite a challenge to keep my kids quiet. They were doing pretty well, when all of a sudden my son let out a really loud belch. I couldn't believe it!

Fortunately, the gentleman was good-natured about it and chuckled. Leave it to my boy to do something like that!

Books by Sherry Ellis

Books by Sherry Ellis

Mad Painter

Today the kids and I went to a little place called the Mad Potter. It's a place that sells pottery that you get to paint. My son picked a trophy. My daughter picked a coffee mug.

"Why do you want a trophy?" I asked my little guy.

"I like trophies."

"Okay, what's it for?" I asked.

He didn't know.

Then the painting began. When it was all done, there was paint all over my little guy's arms, hands, and face, not to mention the mess on the table. He was thrilled.

"I know what that trophy is for," I said. "It's for the messiest painter in Cincinnati!"

Fancy Books

I am amazed at how far book technology has come! My kids and I went to the bookstore today. My son got a pop-up Star Wars Guide to the Galaxy book that was absolutely unbelievable. Of course the price tag on that book was absolutely unbelievable too! Then my son found a Star Wars animation book. The characters in the illustrations actually looked like they were running. How do they make these things? Those illustrators must have some kind of paper engineering degree!

The Great Mis-Adventure

Today was adventure day. That's the day I take my kids to a new place and we go exploring. The plan for today was to visit the National Air Force Museum in Dayton, followed by the World Peace Museum, which is also in Dayton. Well, let me tell you how that went.

We were driving up the freeway to Dayton. Everything was going smoothly, except I noticed off in the distance, that the sky was black and looking rather ominous. "Hmm," I thought,"that looks like trouble."

Sure enough, as soon as we entered the Dayton area, we found ourselves in the middle of a huge thunder storm. Pink lightening was striking everywhere, and the rain was coming down in torrents. To make matters worse, we were also in a construction zone. I was looking for exit 54C. Of course, exit 54C was closed, due to the construction. "Oh, brother!" I thought.

I got off at the next exit, hoping to find some detour signs. No luck. In fact, the traffic lights were all out. Do you know how much fun that was? Meanwhile, in the back seat, my kids were complaining about the weather. They definitely did not like the lightening!

I managed to turn around and get back on the freeway. I figured that we would just head home. Then I saw the sign for exit 54C. "Yippee!" I thought. Unfortunately, the sign was a bit misleading. I have no idea where those roads led, but it sure wasn't to my destination! To make a long story short, my attempts to follow exit 54C led to me to a neighbor that I wouldn't want to visit at night!

After about ten more minutes of wandering through the storm, I found my way back to the freeway. Then I saw the exit for the World Peace Museum.

"What do you think, kids?"

"Mom, there is no way we're going to do that!' my daughter exclaimed.

"All right. We'll go home then."

We didn't go home. We went to Starbucks. We got out of the car. We got wet. We ordered vanilla milk and a strawberry-banana smoothie and sat at the stools by the window watching the rain and lightening come down.

Cool Art

I took my kids to the grocery store today. We made our way to the frozen food aisle. I opened the door and took out a box of popcicles. That gave my son a brilliant idea.

"Mommy, leave the door open," he exclaimed.

I looked at him funny, knowing that he was definitely up to something.

I watched as he began to draw a smiley face on the condensation that had formed on the inside of the door. Then he drew the body with stick arms and legs. My daughter thought that was an excellent idea, so she had to begin her own masterpiece. By the time they were done, they had created a masterpiece which would have made Picasso proud.

Mechanical Genious

If you have been following this blog, you know that my son had received a 1, 137 piece LEGO Starwars AT-AT set. I have been diligently working on this thing for over a week now. As of today's date, I have assembled the internal workings of the main body and three legs. That would be two instruction books.

Today, I was getting rather bleary-eyed and having trouble locating pieces and parts. My six-year old son assisted me many times in finding those miniscule things. At one point, I had attached one of the legs to the main body.

"Mommy, that's backwards," the little man told me.

"No it's not," I replied, as I double-checked the picture.

It seemed to work, and it looked okay to me. Then I went to the next direction.

"Something's not right, " I said.

"That's because it's backwards, " my little guy said. "Here, mommy, I'll fix it."

Wouldn't you know that little mechanical genious figured it out!

Sugar Buzz

Today is my birthday. My family must have decided that I needed some extra sugar (to make me less grouchy, perhaps?). First, they made me a wonderful birthday cake. I thought that was enough, but then my daughter made me a birthday pie. It was a strawberry pie with cool whip and sprinkles. She insisted that I have a piece. It was of course, delicious. A little while later, they offered me an orange creamcicle. Now they want to go outside and roast marshmallows. I think I will be dieting until my next birthday!