Life in Finnland

Living creatures far and wide have decided that Finnland is the place to be. Two ticks hitched a ride home on Aidan a week and a half ago (still dealing with that drama) and now some furry little mammals that squeak and chatter have set up residence. Yes, mammals, plural. I was greeted by a mouse in the laundry room on Tuesday evening and a chipmunk who appears to be living in our garage ceiling. What in the world could be so appealing about our house?!?! We have a dog for goodness sakes! Aren't predatory animals supposed to scare away unwanted riff-raff?

Other than extra inhabitants, the Finn household is operating as usual. Kyle is busy increasing our portfolio by trading options and watching the kids. I'm busy wrapping up the school year. (countdown: 9 school days left) As I finish school, Aidan will be starting a one-morning a week preschool program through our local school district. Open house is next Wednesday, so Kyle gets the honor of meeting Aidan's first teacher since I am still in school. He's really excited about that. (note sarcasm) Aubrey is Aubrey. Is she walking yet? No. Is she talking yet? Not really. She says "mama" and Kyle swears that she says "duck" all day long, but she has yet to say it around me. However, she can woof and whine like a dog, thanks to Roxie. I think she also tries to quack and moo, but I doubt any other person would know what she was doing.

So there you have it. Life in Finnland.

Sassy Pants

Someone in the Finn household has decided she's the queen bee and wants to let everyone know it. Nope, it's not me, (I think we all know that I run the show) it's Aubrey. When I picked her up from the YMCA the other day, the staff described her as a "Sassafras". I took that to mean "bossy", and I was not offended in the slightest. The teacher had Aubrey pegged. She knows what she wants. In the case of the YMCA, Aubrey has decided that the play kitchen is her domain and no one else is allowed to come near it when she is in there. Apparently she was screeching and hollering every time another child so much as put a toe in the doorway. We're going to have to work on sharing.

In Aidan's world, he's into exaggerating his comments. Here are a few that made me smile this week:

"Thank you, Mama. Thank you VERY much."

"You are VERY welcome, Daddy."

"Auuuubbbbrrey, STOP WHINING. You are going to have to go to your crib if you don't stop." (perhaps he should take his own advice)

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO, Roxie" (this phrase is heard multiple times an hour, every day)

"I'm SO SAD, Mama." (me: Why are you sad?) "Because I didn't get to eat dessert"

Battle Royale

As I type this, I am listening to Aidan whine and cry in his crib. Nothing makes me angrier than when he won't take a nap, he's loud, and he keeps Aubrey from sleeping. Grrr. Why do I engage in this battle? Because he's an absolute monster by 4:30pm if he doesn't take a nap. I realize we're probably winding down on naps, but we're not there yet. Any suggestions? Kyle uses incentives during the week, like watching Clifford or Super Readers. I try that on the weekends, to no avail. Last resort is spiking his milk with some Valium at lunch time. (kidding)