cutting Barbie's/Riley's hair?

OMG! I had an insane memory flashback this afternoon. Kyra took the dogs outside for them to go potty. They'd been in the backyard for a while and I started to wonder what they were up to. I didn't hear her yelling commands or praising them, so I got that odd feeling that something was amiss. So I looked out of my bathroom window and saw Kyra cutting Riley's fur with scissors! She claimed that he has lots of burrs in his fur that she couldn't easily pick out, so she decided to cut them out.

This vividly brought back a memory from almost 9 years ago... On August 29, 2002, Kyra was in the bathroom a little too long... She was 3, almost 4, years old at the time and she typically wanted me to go into the bathroom with her. On this particular day, she told me that she was going to go potty all by herself. I remember saying a silent "WOOHOO!" that she'd taken the next step towards independence.

After several minutes passed, she was still in the bathroom, so I asked through the door if she was okay. Her reply was yes. A few minutes after that, I asked again if everything was okay and her reply was still yes. About 10 minutes after she first entered the bathroom, I really was starting to wonder. So I rephrased the question... "what are you doing in there?"  And her even-keeled, matter-of-fact response was, "I'm cutting Barbie's hair." At this, I immediately opened the bathroom door and was stunned with my response. I had majorly mixed emotions. I was enraged, yet laughing! How dare she do this just days before starting pre-K! Yes, at that very moment she was cutting Barbie's hair, but obviously before that, she cut her own hair. When I asked for an explanation, she said that her bangs were in her eyes so she decided to cut them too.  ARGH!!! She cut them to her scalp, as well as took a chunk out of the side of her hair!

At least today had a happy ending. Kyra didn't cut her hair before her first day of middle school, only Riley's. He looks a little odd, but I'm hoping his hair will grow back. And I'm grateful for her triggering a zany memory!!!

Daisy and Diesel

Just couldn't resist posting this cute photo of Daisy and Diesel lounging in the kitchen. We're really enjoying having them in the family! Sweet, fun kitties!!!

kitties like scallops

Today was a great day! I had an awesome run/hike on the trails at Stone Mountain this morning. Then I took my car in for a service and the service manager remembered my name. Didn't have to wait too long and then stopped by Whole Foods Market on my way home. I love that store! So much amazingly fresh produce and fun new things to try. I bought lots of fresh fruits and vegies. And I decided on scallops for dinner. I bought a pound, thinking I would cook enough for several meals and reheat lunches. In hindsight, that may have been a mistake. The kitties and pups played happily in the kitchen while I cooked. They had ignored the open trash can until almost immediately after I unwrapped the scallops and tossed the bag into the can. Guess Diesel likes scallops!

hairspray, 3 years later

Colleen came over to play and spend the night. In the beginning, the fun was centered around the kittens. But as the night went on, they started scheming. While I was making dinner, they were watching videos that I took of them on New Year's Eve, December 31, 2007. That night was hilarious! So, they decided to do a reinactment of one of the videos, a scene from "hairspray".

Unfortunately, I didn't capture as great of a photo this year as I did in 2007, but the videos are hilarious! They had so much fun and I haven't laughed that hard in... days? It's good to laugh, right? They thought the funniest part was when one of their glove boobies popped and the water totally soaked ME. I didn't think that was too funny, but hey... jokes on me!

It's amazing how much the girls have changed. And yes, that is a lot of fruit and pillows stuffed in those dresses (2007 and 2010).

happy family

The pups and kittens are getting along. Riley's still a little shy, but he's tolerant. Tasha loves having something new and fun to chase around! And she loves to put Tiger in her place when she hisses at the kittens. I used to think that the dogs tortured Tiger and kept her forced in the laundry room, but now I'm starting to suspect that it's Tiger that has the social problems.

Pictured above: Kyra's holding Daisy, Bryn is holding Diesel, Tasha is lounging in her classic pose of paws crossed, and Riley is a very tolerant ottoman.

below: close-up of Diesel (left) and Daisy.

tricycle fun

I sure am glad that I've kept the most amazingly sturdy tricycle around for all these years. I don't know why, but all the kids gravitate towards it! Glad that Bryn could come over and play! Looks like children grow in size, but stay young at heart. So much fun and it brings back great memories!

And it's hard to tell from this picture, but Kyra's on her old barbie skate board. The one with the handle that pulls up for those beginner skate boarders.

2 adorable reasons not to take your child to PetsMart on pet adoption day

I swear we went to PetsMart to ONLY buy crickets for Kyra's pet toad and dog food. Before we got there Kyra said, "Hey, it's Saturday... maybe they'll have puppies for adoption." I respond with, "we're only buying crickets and dog food". She says... "what if they have a rodesian ridgeback?" and I respond, "we're only buying crickets and dog food."

We walked in the door and there were crate after crate after crate of cute kitties and cats needing homes. Some older, some wee ones. I'm a cat lover at heart. So as we're looking at them the volunteer asks if we're looking to adopt. I promptly reply, "No, we have a cat, two dogs, a toad and a fish." And that was my stance until we came to Diamond and Diesel... Diesel, what a cool name! The card on their crate said they're only 12 weeks old and have been in 6 different homes so far and need a forever home. Diamond is a gorgeous white kitty with blue eyes and she was cuddling with her brother, Diesel. The card said they needed to be adopted together because they've been through so much change in their young lives and that they are the only stability they've had. They were so cute and their story broke my heart. Kyra asked to hold Diamond, and after a minute or so she insisted that I hold her. She knew I wouldn't be able to resist adopting her after holding her. My heart melted as she purred against my chest and looked up at me with those gorgeous blue eyes. The volunteer said that Diamond was the cutest, but Diesel has the most personality. Kyra picked up Diesel and he playful pawed at her face as he purred against her chest. She looked at me with those pleading, happy eyes and it was hard to say no. Then the volunteer said that if we adopted these two, we not only would be saving their lives, but we would also be saving another kitty's life because she had received a call from someone looking for a rescue group to take in a kitten that was just found abandoned. These people are trained well at pulling at heart strings...

Kyra kept telling me how much Diamond looks like Indy did as a kitten. She was wearing me down. Indy was the second kitten that I ever had as an adult and I've missed her over the past few years. And the next thing I know, I'm saying yes to adopting these two kittens. We both love the name Diesel, but weren't 100% sold on the name of "Diamond". We brainstormed on the drive home... Delilah?  Yes... Daisy? YES!!!  "Dang, what have you talked me into?"? Kyra didn't like that one so much.

We picked up Bryn and then came home to introduce the kitties to the household. By now, I'm beating myself up for not remaining strong and saying no. We really don't "need" any more pets. As the next few hours pass, I become even more stressed. Kyra and Bryn are going to play in the yard and Kyra asks me to check in on the kittens occassionally while they're outside. I'm really starting to stress and beat myself up mentally as I'm making a salad. Then I decide to go into Kyra's room and check on the kittens. They're cuddled up cutely in their new bed. I pet Diesel and he purrs loudly. My heart melts again. I keep petting him and feel the stress leaving my body. And this convinces me that I made the right decision after all. Welcome home Daisy and Diesel!

P.S. Tasha, Riley and Tiger seem to like the kitties too. Yay!

oreos?

Thanks to Riley, I am now craving oreo cookies!  I walked into the living room to find what looked like oreo cookies scattered about. Am I hallucinating? I didn't think we had any cookies in the house. We didn't... But we did once have black and white flip flops... One of which has now been chewed to bits.

recycling art

Beginning in July, our garbage collection service changed. It used to be that you chose which provider you wanted, paid that provider quarterly, and they picked up your trash on their designated day. The problem with this was that each provider picked up on a different day and there would be trash trucks driving through the neighborhood almost every day. The county that we live in decided to make a change. Beginning in July, there is now one provider/pick-up day per area. And... they accept a lot more items for recycling! Yay! Our recycle bin has always been almost full each week and now that they collect even more items, our bin was overflowing mid-week. So I asked Kyra to decorate an extra trash can that we have so we could use it as an extra recycling bin. I think she did a great job! And while she was at it, she decided to paint our mailbox as well. Bonus!

WARNING... frozen water bottles may do more damage than good

I keep a water bottle in the freezer and use it to roll the bottom of my foot on for my plantar fasciitis. It has provided amazing relief until last night... After grocery shopping and adding more stuff into the freezer, the bottle was perched precariously on the edge of the shelf. And then when I opened the freezer to get out the ice cream... I learned a painful lesson. WARNING!!! Frozen water bottles may do more damage than good! As I opened the freezer door, the bottle fell out of the freezer and landed hard on my left bare toes. I screamed bad words, then cried, and proclaimed that I had a broken toe or three... Kyra said that I should ice them immediately, but the thought of putting the offending item on my swelling toes was not appealing. It hurt so bad that I couldn't walk. By the next morning, I was able to limp around. I hope it's not broken... Can you guess which one?

On a happier note...  Enjoyed going to the theater and watching Despicable Me with Kyra and Grace. What a cute movie! I'm glad that Grace could go with us. Once upon a time, Grace's nickname was "minion", which made it even cuter. After the movie I dropped both girls off at Grace's new house for an afternoon of swimming and fun. Love their new house!