It's Good Protein

It's clear now that Aidan believes he has been hired into the family in the position of Eater of Anything Within or Nearly Within Reach. I'm glad he's a good eater, and extremely un-picky. So far I have had good luck with that and the other kids too, but Aidan takes it one step further. If I turn my back for a second he will inevitably be chewing when I next look at him. Cat food, pine needles, dirt, hair, cat fur, food scraps, magazines, books, seasonal decorations, black stuff, green stuff - he doesn't discriminate. However he gets VERY mad if you take any of these things out of his mouth. And he gets the stuff in there with amazing speed and precision. He'd been pretty good with the cat food bowl, but then lately realized how much fun it is to splash in the water. And then while he's there anyway, he figures he may as well have a little snack. This is all new for me. Liam, well he probably did collect some random samples off the floor to examine in his laboratory, but not to taste himself. As for Brendan, obsessive putting of things in his mouth was one of the few challenges he didn't try.

This video is a little over dramatic on the no-no-noing, which is why I thought of breaking out the camera. But it's pretty representative of how Aidan shakes his head no when he knows he is doing something naughty, or yes when he tries to pretend what he's doing is okay. Sometimes he then crawls away with an air of smugness, often accompanied by stopping to clap for himself. Other times he shakes his head no while chowing down on contraband.



Also, this video is the first we took of Liam's Billboard Top Ten "Too Many Monkeys" song. We made another that's a bit smoother, but I like this in spite of and because of the rough edges. You'll hear me prompting Liam to sing, but then he takes it away. The entire song was written by him. Obviously, Bob Dylan of the 21st century.

Happy Earth Hour

We've got our flashlights and candles ready for the big Earth Hour 2011. I'm no Papa (Don't Preach), but I do think it's a great way to start teaching your kids about forgoing mass consumption, starting with energy, and for beginning a dialogue about taking responsibility for your carbon footprint. In that vein I have been reading a challenging book, which I might have just blogged about recently, called The New Normal. I don't agree with everything he says, but there is much to reflect upon. I think it's clear to most people (perhaps not Sarah Palin) that we can't continue in the ways we've be trending since the start of the Industrial Age. I'd definitely recommend checking out this book, then going out for a couple margaritas.

Rubadubdub

Aidan is now big enough to take his bath with the rest of the rascals. And he is VERY happy about it! You can't really tell from the pictures of the other boys but they are very happy about it to.

Mmmmm

I know what I am making for St. Paddy's Day dessert, Guinness Cake!
Or maybe this recipe. Either way, why have I never heard of this?!?! And who's coming over? Of course, I will be in cataloging class, so that'll just be extra fun!

In Which

Aidan has decided sleeping through the night for six months was enough, and shall no longer do it ever again;

Eric accidentally bought 86 rolls of toilet paper;

The St. Patrick's Day crowd, at least near us, didn't cheer on hizzoner Da Mayor in what was his last St. Patty's Day parade - boo;

In which Liam remarked that the St. Patrick's Day parade "was fun, but wasn't as fun as (he) thought it would be";

The St. Patrick's Day party at my parents church had a lot of bumping, grinding and head shaving, but not a lot of Irish music or Irish dancing. The boys were happy but the adults were not;

Liam wrote a kick ass song tonight containing the lyrics "too many monkeys / too many monkeys/ we're lost in the middle of MONKEYS!";

One of The Kings is missing - again!;

Brendan thinks Luke Skywalker is one of the U. S. presidents;

There weren't enough hours in my day to begin with and now one of them has been taken from me.

Are You Kidding Me?

I can't Facebook this (because of my self-imposed Facebook Lent ban), but it must be noted. On the front page of the Chicago Tribune right now there is an article entitled "Newt Gingrich: Passion for Country Contributed to Infidelity." As if that was not ridiculous enough in and of itself, the article directly below this one is entitled "House Republicans Vow to Uphold Defense of Marriage." Wha? What? By the way, Newt Gingrich's "infidelity" occurred during his THIRD marriage!!! I'm not criticizing his decisions, but I'll be damned if he (who is considering a run for the Republican Presidential ticket) is going to say marriage can only be between one man and one woman. Because if he hasn't yet, I betcha he will. I just betcha.

On a funnier note, at Liam's preschool today another student told the teacher, "I don't have a cold, I just have some flu trapped in my voice mailbox." I hope that kid runs for president.