stitches

i have always said bennett would be our first E.R. visitor. maybe it was seeing him dangling from his high chair at 8 months old, or finding him on tops of tables, chairs or beds before he could walk. it could be the way he walks without looking at the obstacles blocking his path and laughs as he lands on his face. i did find him climbing to the top of our rock retaining wall in the backyard one day, which really could have been a disaster if he fell. i often hear, "maybe he learned his lesson." however, no amount of bumps, bruises or time-outs seem to have any effect on his ever-smiling face.

this brings me to saturday. i was enjoying a wonderful weekend with my mom and sister (dad was there too, although not quite into the scrapbooking and girl's talk... he did make us some yummy food and served us lattes...). anthony called me to inform me that bennett had "quite a spill," his head hitting the sharp corner of the coffee table. my husband is never an alarmist and although i tend to over-react, he is always calm and unrattled. "i didn't think much of it, but i don't want you to be mad when you get home if you thought i should have taken him to get stitches." my first thought was, if you are even mentioning that "s-word" it must be bad! so after emailing some pictures for nurse grammy to look at, it was decided that my wonderful husband would indeed sacrifice his entire day, including a much needed naptime to cart the kids to urgent care in order to preserve bennett's beautiful face. (we did consider the fact that a scar might make the tiny framed little man look a little more tough, but neglecting healthcare for a superficial motive is quite careless. we may just enroll him in karate instead)

so, after a long wait and fun games played such as "ring around the rosy...ashes, ashes, we DON'T fall down!" bennett received one lonely stitch (after lots of trauma of being pinned down by daddy and a nurse, with a drape over his face and a needle going through his forehead). well... maybe he learned his lesson... but don't count on it

our little tough-guy hugging (or is it choking?) his big sister... and his very cool band-aid

haircuts and more

last night, ella decided her little brother needed a haircut and since we clearly weren't doing anything about it, she decided to take matters into her own hands. not quite sure where she learned to use a shoe to cut hair, but it kept her busy, and bennett entertained, for quite some time.

later, a little rough-housing with daddy followed by a very intense screaming match. and of course, ella still trying to do something about that hair.

grilling with daddy

bennett very much enjoys being in the middle of everything and constantly wants to "help." not the safest method of involving the children in dinner prep, but no one asked me. :)

Never Leave Your Children Unattended

every parent is faced with defining moments in life. moments where you choose... you choose between yelling at your children and losing your temper or... you grab your camera.

i opt for the second option. it keeps life fun.

here is my tribute to my children and the creative things they find to do while I am otherwise occupied. (by the way, these things happen in mere moments. its not like i'm sunning myself in the backyard or lounging around watching soaps.)

bennett's favorite coloring spot has become the back door. should i forget the one lone crayon on the floor, he will find it, and create for me a masterpiece... one that isn't too easy to clean up. (this picture really doesn't do it justice. just trust me)

anytime you hear the words, "oh no, bennett!" in a very shrill, happy voice, followed by, "mama! come look!" it is not a good sign. i found bennett covered in liquid foundation (make-up). i wasn't sure who the responsible child was or if it was a group effort. later in the day i told anthony the story and when he asked who did it, ella overheard and interrupted and said, "i did it daddy!" she was very proud of herself. i forgot all i had to do was ask her. she hasn't learned to lie yet :)
oh, and it didn't clean up so well either. took quite a few shampoos and his hair looked gray for a couple of days.

ella was quite proud of herself... piling as many toys and miscellaneous items around Bennett as she possibly can.

a joint effort of emptying the ENTIRE contents of the game closet. it did take an hour to clean up. those battleship pieces, scrabble squares, trivial pursuit cards, and many other games with numerous tiny pieces... at least we only have one puzzle. :)