Seven on Sunday

1. There's a cat in the neighborhood that likes to bring special "treats" into our yard, scattering them around for the kids to find whilst "mowing" or triking. Mike has gone out with his gloves several times to dispose of the remains. This cat has also found a way into our garage, where he likes to sleep in the covered bassinet, stored car seat and swing, etc.
Well, he made an absolutely monstrous and disgusting mess of God only knows what all over the old infant carrier/car seat, and Mike and I were both about ready to toss it out on trash night. But that thing cost a pretty penny, and would have been a pain to replace, so put our hazmat suits on and are in the process of cleaning and disinfecting it thoroughly- taking it all apart and will make use of our new power-washer, which we got to help with stripping and repainting the back addition of the house. I'm not sure if I will ever be able to place a perfect and precious newborn baby within its contours ever again, but at least we'll be able to say we tried.

2. I'm thrilled that Jack will be a Lego boy so I can come down after the kids are asleep and play with those glorious little colored bricks. Right now, he plays with the Duplos-- all day. He asks for help building houses and pools, libraries and train tunnels, bullsoders and corn pickers. We just have what was left of my brothers' sets when we was little, but he enjoys them so much and even asks to sleep with them. I like building things with him now, but like I said, I'm excited for the smaller Legos and the intricate sets. I remember the Chritmas Tay and I got the Lego castle. That was all we did for the rest of the afternoon and the morning of the next day until it was all constructed, working draw bridge and boobie traps and secret passages and all.

3. On Friday, Gail had her 15-month appointment. She gained a whopping 11 oz. since her one-year (though she did grow considerably taller). She's so skinny. We try to get this finicky girl to eat, but eating time is rarely a pleasant experience. She swats and turns her head and cries. I fix all sorts of different meals just for her- eggs, avacado, appe sauce, bananas, macaroni and cheese, yogurt, grapes-- all things that she, at one point or another has shown interest in, but her preferences change daily.
The other night we went to Steak 'n' Shake, and while the kids usually do pretty well on occasions when we go out to eat, she was making a royal scene and fussed at everything that came toward her face with flailing objection "NO!" I finally gave her the fork loaded with mac and cheese (I've tried this before, and she's flayed food all over the room). She finished her bowl as well as Jack's in this manner. Such a silly girl.

4. I don't know where he got it from, but every night before he goes to bed now, Jack has to be sure that no monsters are going to get him. :(

5. Other things I don't know where Jack picked up: "Leave me alone!" "Get away." My guess is Oscar the Grouch, who I believe utters at least one of these phrases on the Sesame Street Alphabet audio tape Jack loves.

6. Jack is going to be a monkey for a Halloween. He wanted to put the costume on yesterday, and Abigail came running. I asked her, sympathetically, as I was helping put Jack's feet in, if she wanted to wear the monkey costume, and she said, "Yeeeaaaahh!" I went upstairs to dig out Jack's old Cookie Monster costume, which seemed to appease her until Jack got too hot (after running around and around and around "like a monkey") and wanted to take it off.

7. I was going to post a few pictures, but my computer is too full, and it won't let me do anything more with pictures right now.