Maria insisted on keeping the dress hidden away until last night.  When she got home from school, she showered and then I painted her nails and did her hair.  We put in some side knots and then curled it all over.

Dan showed up with a gorgeous corsage that matched her outfit perfectly.

Of course, Andrew couldn’t resist being involved, if only a bit (see his hand at the bottom of the pic below?)

And the Ham had to inject himself, too:

She’s beautiful, no?

Heaven help us when the dances don’t include the Daddies anymore.

Doesn’t she look beautiful?

The corsage (he remembered!):

The dance team:

No one told him it takes a couple of weeks before you can drink it:

In a fit of hilarity last night after bedtime, this came floating down the stairs:

There are a few of things I love about this note.  One, notice the signature.  Looks like somebody started to sign their name, then thought better of it and targeted his sister.  Also, the writer wrote “you” in cursive.  Maria doesn’t know cursive yet.  Finally, Maria is not exactly a girly girl, nor does she have the best manners.  Still, though, she’s not likely to write a note to her dad about cutting the cheese.

You should have been in my kitchen this morning when I questioned Maria about the note in front of Jack.

Hilarious.

Since the running store had a kid’s table with crayons and paper, we made it through unscathed.  Afterward, however, we decided to walk around the town a bit.  The area had a really nice downtown and the day couldn’t have been more beautiful.  As we walked along, we constantly reminded the children (the Von Traps we’re not) to stay together, to be careful, and to keep their hands to themselves.

We made it part of the way…

There were a lot of outdoor cafes in this town.  And these cafes were ready to serve their customers – with nicely made up tables.  And one of my children failed to keep her hands to herself.  So, as we walked along, suddenly there was a crash.  Involving breakage.  We all halted.  (I swear, the residents, watching us, must have thought there was a parade in town.)  I looked at each of the faces of my children and it became immediately evident who was at fault.  Maria’s sweet face held a mixture of disbelief, fear and sheer panic.  I’ve never seen eyes so wide… until we told her she’d have to go inside and tell the owner what she’d done.  Tears burst forth like fountains.  Trying not to laugh, Dan walked her into the restaurant to report the incident.

As we herded the children back to the car, we (re)lectured that THAT is why you keep your hands to yourself!!!

Maria sulked on the way home.

*****

Until, that is, Dan said he’d like to stop at the Whole Foods we’d seen along our way.  I groaned, as did the kids, but Dan insisted that his friend, Pauley, had told him about some really awesome special pickles only available at Whole Foods.  Dan had to have some.

Let me just say that this Whole Foods was NOT family friendly.  The aisles were narrow, the carts were small and there were WAY too many displays.  Also, we couldn’t find the pickles.  We tromped all through the store. Twice.  Then we found a very nice lady to ask, and she had us follow her…  All over the store.  It was like playing follow the leader.  The other patrons probably thought were were trying to get the bunny hop started.  We never did find what we were looking for, so the very nice lady went to ask someone else.  She came back and reported that they did not carry the super special awesome pickles.

As we were leaving the store, I saw the very nice lady stop another shopper to ask if they needed help.  Ha.  Good luck with that!

*****

After arriving home, I fed the baby and ran off to Target, as we were out of a few necessities.  While there, I picked up the game Trouble.    You know?  From when we were kids?  You press the bubble in the middle of the board and it rolls the die?

Anyhow, after playing it at a friend’s house, Luke had been asking me to buy it.  Why I did so after such a trying afternoon, I don’t know.  But, I did.

The kids were ecstatic when they saw the game and wanted to play RIGHT THEN.  I managed to hold them off while I put the groceries away and then Luke, Maria, Sam and I sat down to play.  It was fun… for about three minutes.  Luke couldn’t manage to roll a six and enter the game.  Who’d a thought you could pop that sucker EIGHTY times and one player never gets a six?!?  Of course it had to be Luke. He who wanted me to buy the game.  He with the least patience.  He with the most desire to win.

There were tears.  There was yelling.  There was stomping.  There was… TROUBLE.

Lukie did eventually get a six, and thereafter things moved along.  Until someone else got upset about something else.

We never did finish the game.

The kids teased him by walking around hunched over and moaning.  (As if they have a clue about old age.)

It was “misting” out as we got ready for school, so I wisely chose to drive the kids.  After walking Luke to kindergarten, it started to rain in earnest.  But, needing a few items for Dan’s birthday dinner, I decided it was best to run to the store while we were already out.  Sam had a play date lined up for later in the morning and I did NOT want to squander my baby-only time grocery shopping.

We grabbed what we needed and came back home.  I put the few things I bought away and then pulled out my cake mix so I could have Dan’s birthday cake baked and cooled by the time kids were home from school.  I opened the box (it’s the only way to make a cake IMHO) to find cake mix all over the inside… not in the bag.  I checked the bag, hoping it was just “extra” that had gotten into the box during packaging.  No such luck.  The bag inside was wide open along the seam.  Damn.  ‘Cause you know I’m not the type to have an extra box of cake mix in my pantry.

Luckily, Andrew was still in his car seat.  I grabbed him, grabbed Sam and off to the store we headed.  Again.  This time I did buy an extra box.

****

Luke and Sam were returned to me around 11 and we had an uneventful (for our house) lunch.  A little later, my friend Erin and her little boy came over to play while we waited for the big kids to finish school.  The usual chaos ensued, but we had a nice time and soon it was time to get the other kids.  Erin and Brendan headed out and Sam, needing a last goodbye, stood with the front door WIDE OPEN.

Off went Cheerio.

Off went Luke and Sam to chase her.

Off went Erin after them.

I stood on the front porch stoop and called them all back.  No time for the dog – we had kids to pick up.  (She’d come back.  Or not.)

I wave to Brendan and Erin, gather my two back into the house and close the door.  I run to the bathroom and hear a honk.  Rushing, I open the door – the dog is at the front door (the honk had come from Erin who almost ran over her backing out).  I open the screen door and off runs the dog again!  Off go the boys again!

I could have cried.  But there wasn’t time.  (I swear, people must think we’re a bunch of clowns – children, dogs, adults, babies bursting from the house.  Loudly.  Constantly.)

Erin left.  The boys ran back to the house with Cheerio chasing them. This time she chose to come back inside.  I quickly shoved three kids into the van and off we went.

****

Excited about Dad’s “party”, the kids had a very hard time sitting still to do their homework.  There were tears.  There was yelling.  There were distractions out the wazoo.  But, we got it done.  (And I do mean WE.)  As soon as pencils were set down, the children burst from their chairs and started grabbing party supplies.  Balloons were heliumnated.  Noise makers were tested. ( A lot.)  Presents were arranged.  The cake was decorated (I didn’t bother with a picture.  Trust me when I tell you that it wasn’t all that attractive after everyone had their turn “decorating”.)

We put the balloons, kids, noisemakers, party hats and gifts into my bedroom.  And waited for Dan to come home.

It. Was. Excruciating.

The minutes seemed like hours.  Or maybe days.  The kids jumped on the bed.  They ran around the room.  They ran from the room to the back door to check for Dan.  They ran back to the room.  They hid.  They unhid.

I had a glass of wine.

FINALLY, Dan arrived.  Amazingly, the kids were able to stay quiet for the time it took Dan to walk from the back door to the bedroom door.  And then it was quiet no longer.

Noise was made, presents ripped open and hugs given.  In the course of about 30 seconds, my space went from looking like a bedroom to looking like a regurgitated parade.

It was fun.

Maria, of them all, was the one who shied away from the bunny.

After seeing a few pictures, however, I’m not sorry I missed out on this particular event.

That is essentially a GIANT cockroach, people!

I have no words for this one...

P.S.  One of the moms reported to me that NOT ONE ADULT partook in the holding of the creepy crawlies!!!

The kids, of course, were thrilled.  Jack, especially.  He spent several hours outside this weekend building a snow fort. (Pictures to come.)

Yesterday afternoon, when our youngest little darling was sleeping, Dan took the other three to one of the area’s sledding hills.  In the peace and quiet, I was able to finish my book and talk to my sister.

Until Dan called.  “Call the pediatrican’s office,” he told me.  “Ha, ha,” I said, knowing he had to be messing with me.  (I like to tease him that he always seems to bring the kids back either muddy or bloody.)

“I’m not kidding,” he told me.

“What happened?” I asked.

“Maria hit her head on a fence post,” he told me.  “There’s already a HUGE goose egg on the back of her head.”

I hung up, called the ped’s office (which wasn’t open, of course) and then checked the hours at the urgent care clinic.  Dan came home, dropped the boys and headed off with Maria.  I got the story from the boys.  Apparently, Maria and Luke were headed down the hill, lost control, spun around, and Maria’s head hit the fence post and then Luke’s head smashed into her cheek.  Why there are fence posts so close to the sledding hill, I don’t know.  (Isn’t the purpose of a designated sledding hill to give kids a safe place to sled withOUT dangerous obstacles?)

The urgent care place sent Dan and Maria to the ER for a CT scan.  I tried to remain calm and felt pretty sure she was going to be fine, but as time wore on, I worried more and more.

Finally, Dan called in with a report – “Her brain is normal,” he told me.  (Interesting, considering this family ) I was relieved.

Her head is VERY tender and we’ve been applying ice regularly, dosing out the Motrin and coddling her.  She’s milking it for all it’s worth, so I know she’s going to be fine, even if she’s feeling quite stiff right now.

The fact that the injury is on the back of her head and impossible to see because of her hair is a little frustrating.  But, at least she doesn’t look like this:

Or this:

And, for the most part, he deserves those kudos.  He did have a lot of help at the other end, but hey, he drove all the way there and back with three young children.  And, he did all the mothering and fathering for them while there.

His recount of the weekend made me happy, as it sounded like our children behaved pretty well and Dan did a more than adequate job of caring for them.

With one exception (that I know about).

I was not thrilled to hear from Dan (and the kids!) after 9:30 at night on Saturday.  Not only were the kids all still up (normally 8 is the very latest for any of them), but they were in the middle of performing a “talent” show, which means bedtime wasn’t happening in the immediate future.  I managed to hold my tongue, though.  They were having fun at Grandma’s and they were in capable hands, after all. They’d be back to their normal routines soon enough.

I couldn’t hold my tongue, however, when Dan told me that he’d discovered Maria ASLEEP ON THE TOILET later that night just before finally putting everyone to bed.  I guess he put her in the bathroom and left her there while he took care of the others.  When he came back to check, he said, she was asleep!  He startled her awake and asked her if she was finished.  When she said no, he left her for a few more minutes.  During which, SHE FELL ASLEEP AGAIN!

Sheesh.