Fish tragedy

"Rose," our (male) beta fish, died tonight. Kenzie took it very hard. She broke into tears immediately and begged Cindy to not flush her, but to let her keep her. (It's confusing because technically we know this is a male fish, but Kenzie always referred to it as "she.")

In order to rescue the situation, we decided to have a little funeral. Cindy got the shovel. We told Kenzie to pick out a nice place in the yard for her/him. We said a prayer and thanked God for the good friend we had in Rose. Kenzie interrupted, "Mom, she wasn't a friend. She wasn't. She was my baby." We buried the fish, said some nice words about what a good girl/boy she/he was, then Kenzie brought her pinwheel over and stuck it in the ground near Rose.



Kenze was still very sad, so she got out a pad of paper. (This is an amazing skill she's developed for helping her express her emotions.) Then she drew this picture. In the center is the pinwheel and just to the left of it is Rose. The rest of the red are hearts.



In case you can't read it, it says:

ROSE DIED
beta
I loved her (crossed out) him
MacKenzie's fish died

After she asked me to scan it, she rushed into the room, grabbed it from me and said, "I'm going to go put something else on it. I'm going to put a cross. Just like Jesus. A cross for Rose just like for Jesus. Mom, I'm studying Jesus in Sunday School. Did you know that when it's Easter he'll die. Then, next Easter, he'll be alive again." And then she left the room as quickly as she had appeared. We may need some follow-up here.

Green [video]

Click to play...excuse the clothing, she just got out of the bath.

Word search

Kenzie loves to do word searches and has started making up her own for Cindy to complete. Take this one, for example. Notice the extra challenges - such as the fact that the letters aren't all in a line. Cindy was able to complete it, with just a little coaching.

New math

And, take two...

New bed time

Kenzie got a "big girl bed" today. It's bigger than she needs right now, but she's LOVING it. It took a little convincing to get her to give up her old one, but there's no turning back now. She's giddy with excitement.



I wasn't sure if Mason was going to give up his crib either, but I just took her old bed into his room, and...no big deal. He went to sleep in his "new" bed. He has his favorite yellow blanket and his two "babies" (two stuffed dogs), that's all that really matters.

Bathroom rituals

I realize that Mason may make me delete this entry at some point in his life, most likely when he wants to start dating. Hmmm...maybe it's good blackmail. Anyway, I found this too funny not to share.

He has interesting bathroom habits. Be sure to note the flushing technique, it's subtle. And, as for the drinking trick, yes, we do have cups...he prefers this method.

He is such a dude.

A tail with some indignities

I'm happy to report that they were unexpectedly able to save Zeke's tail (at least so far). He's home now, but he is at a serious disadvantage. He used to be able to get away from the kids (at least somewhat), but now he has a big ol' cone around his neck. (That, as you can see, is easy to grab.) Furthermore, his wrapped tail now resembles a type of handle. It's good news, though, as he's doing well.

Bobbed cat

Kenzie and Mason were playing with Zeke today in her room. He tried to make an escape and the door got slammed on his tail. It was really bad (really, really bad) and we just found out that it needs to be amputated!!!! He's in now for the surgery. Poor kitty!! Kenzie is so sad and feels horrible. Zeke is her baby. She's been sobbing and is scared to see him. :( (I'm not really looking forward to it myself.)

Game ending home run

While it's true that Kenzie did hit a home run that ended the game, it should also be noted the following league rules:

every batter hits every inning

the final batter in each inning runs around all the bases (gets a home run)

parents can/do stand on the field with their kids

if a player gets thrown out, they should leave the field - that is unless leaving upsets them, in which they can stay on their base

Preparing for the big game

In preparation for Kenzie's first t-ball game today, I asked her, "so...after you hit the ball, where do you go?"

She looked at me as if I'm a complete idiot and replied, "to first base."

I clarified, "where's first base?"

Still stupified at her mother's stupidity she said, "you know, it's the one straight ahead."

Not quite satisfied I pushed my luck a bit further, "and then where do you go?"

She replied "to second base."

Wow, she knows her stuff! One more question, "and then where?"

She shot me a look as if I was totally inept and, with the "duh" tone of a 13 year old, said, "to third base and then to fourth base, then fifth base...."

Meeting etiquette

Cindy had a dentist appointment downtown. Kenzie was in school, but we couldn't find anyone to watch Mason. As a last resort, I had her drop him off at my work. I had a meeting I needed to go to, but it was pretty casual, so I just brought him. He drew on the whiteboard, begged the group for candy, and enjoyed the attention. He asked for one more piece of candy and I replied, "you can't have any more until you take a nap." Magic!! He crawled on my lap and fell asleep! He was facing me, head on my chest, in a big hug, one leg on each side of me. I had my hands rested on his little bottom, giving him support so he wouldn't fall off. Everyone was amazed, it was very cute as he passed into a slumber.

Then he passed gas.

A long, squealing, reverberating one, yes, right in the middle of my meeting.

It was a sudden reminder of why kids in the workplace might be a bad idea. Didn't phase him, however. He slept right through it, through my giggling, and the laughter of the entire room. When the meeting was over I carried him carefully down the hall, into the elevator, and into my office. I transferred him to the floor where he slept a bit longer, until he got up and said, "pee Mommy, gotta pee." And then, rather suddenly, "sorry, Mommy, already did." So I cleaned up the puddle on my rug and waited for Cindy's dentist appointment to conclude.