New Puzzle Smell

Me: What are you doing Seth? 

Seth: Smelling my puzzle. I like it. 

Me: Does the puzzle... smell like something? 

Seth: YES! It smells like puzzles! 

– Mmmm...

- L.

Seven Things About Easter At The OP

1. Being the Easter Bunny is hard work and a thankless job. I was up until 11 the night before getting things ready and awake at 4:45 Easter morning with a little boy who needed "something"*. He went back to sleep around 6:15. I did not.

2. The power went out right after the boys discovered their Easter baskets at 7:45. 

The power going out was not a hit with anyone in case you were wondering.
It was a long 5 minutes in the dark.

3. I will never again buy things that need to be played with right away and that need my full-time help and attention while I'm trying to make breakfast:

I think DVDs would be a good choice for next year.

4. I will not leave promissory notes over something as important as a "Fox Book"** ever, ever again. Nate spent the better part of the morning wandering around and asking if the book would maybe come that day. It didn't. I hate disappointing my kids. 

My heart was in the right place, but my head was not. 

I still wish I could take the whole idea back. This photo was taken while the
concept was still settling in. It got worse. MUCH worse.

5. It turns out $2 puzzles from the dollar store are just as exciting as $40 Boogie Boards when you are 3 years old:

– "Wheee! Boogie Boards!"

– "Wheee! Puzzles!"

6. I will always dye Easter eggs and bake cupcakes before the big day:

We did Easter eggs on Good Friday after I thoroughly read the instructions on the
PAAS kit. I still can't believe I messed this up two years in a row.

At least the cupcakes turned out. Store-bought cake mix and store-bought frosting
led to the best cupcakes I've ever made. Home-made is overrated sometimes.

7. Most of the pictures I took looked like this: 

Maybe a video next year would be more appropriate.

As a Mommy I am learning things all the time and I'd like to think this year made me smarter, but it probably didn't. Remind me about the DVDs next year and I hope I will thank you for it.

- L.

PS. The baggy PJ bums made it worth it, but really it was a very long day.

• • • • • • • 

*I get woken up lately for calls about "something" all the time. It's not a euphemism. Sometimes it's about an itchy finger or a sore toe that needs kisses, but when it's the middle of the night and you happen to be 3 years old it's hard to come up with something that needs Mommy's attention, so for the most part it really is that vague at 2AM, 4AM, 6AM and all the rest of the AMs.

**The "Fox Book" is out of print. When I tried to buy it a week or so pre-Easter new copies from private sellers on Amazon (both the .ca and the .com variety) were selling it upward of $130 (some were close to $200). I see the price has come down a lot since then and you can find new copies for $40 from private sellers. Used copies are under $5. I paid $30 for a used version in "very good condition" because Nate would give up his Mommy and his brother for that book and I think the local library is getting tired of us requesting a copy. More importantly, I know how much Nate loves everything "Fox" and at the time $30 for a hardcover book in very good condition didn't seem like such a bad deal for a book that's out of print. Whenever it arrives and whatever condition it's it I hope it's a cause for celebration. We anxiously await the mailman in the meantime.