Where Do They Come Up WIth These Ideas?

So tonight the older two boys got an idea. They decided it would be... mmm, fun? a good idea? remotely reasonable? We don't know what they were thinking, but we know they weren't showing a whole lot of sense. Ingenuity, perhaps, but not sense.

At any rate, whatever they thought it would be, it was good enough for them. So while Pinky slipped inside to get the toilet paper, The Brain waited outside for the fun to begin. Unfortunately for their plan of World Domination, Pinky was caught by The Man on his way out the front door with the toilet paper. "I was, um, just putting it... back. Yeah, back." And off he trotted, back to the bathroom. While he was gone, The Brain came looking to see what the holdup was.

The Man was suspicious to begin with, but that little slip up caused the Conspiracy Alarm to flash.

Bars clanged shut over the windows.

Doors automatically sealed themselves.

A crocodile hatched in the moat, er, creek.

Break out the pinatas and party favors and let the interrogation begin!

This is why some people drink, you know. It's not the plot hatching, per se. It's not even the use of toilet paper (although we did determine the end goal and affirmed that it was not, in fact, good for their health, mental wellbeing, or freedom in general). It was the sneakiness that got to both Zorak and I.

Lately, these two have developed a real "us against them" mentality - ("them" being adults). Mostly it's originated with James, but John will pretty much do whatever James suggests. (Oh, to use those powers for good!) And we don't get it. We've bent over backward to really push the team mindset - family sticks together, we look out for one another. And we walk the walk, too. We don't hold double standards for adults than we do for the children. We don't pit them against each other. Heck, even tattling isn't allowed unless you're trying to prevent someone from getting hurt or in trouble! So where they've derived this mentality is a bit of a mystery to us. However, we're going to unearth it and destroy it at the roots before we have to scrap the first two youth models and start over. Man, and we just got the complete set, too!

Thankfully, the smaller ones seem to be unaware of the cultural battle taking place. But it won't be long. Smidge's mastery of our language is improving daily, and he's a smart one, he is. And the little one - she's just so cute! But can we get to their little minds before they become corrupted?

Alright, alright, yes, I'll get my tongue out of my cheek now. I'm just tired. And slightly exasperated. I suppose it's time for a little one-on-one, a little gentle tomato staking, a little extra emphasis on the integrity that it takes to live life well. They're little. They do stuff like this. Of course, we're totally making this up as we go. It sure sounds good on paper, though, doesn't it? Much better than, "What the hell did we do wrong?!?"

Today my little world decided that we all needed to pile on the couch and read together, watch a movie, and play in the yard. I tried to be productive. I did two loads of wash - but there was no wind, and by the end of the day, those two loads were still damp. I tried to mow the sports arenas around the house - but the mower ran out of gas and Zorak didn't lable the gas cans (one has chainsaw oil, and I'm ashamed to admit that I have no idea what that stuff looks like). I tried to paint, but the prepwork woke Miss Emily - er, rather, my stifled yelps from stubbing my shins were more likely the culprit on that one. So we baked and cooked and then sat around, enjoying one another. Not a bad day, really.

Ah, but now to figure out how best to handle the remaining adjustments we need to make. We do know some people who would probably let them stay for a week or two. The boys would be thrilled beyond measure to get to come home after that. Probably pretty well-behaved, too. he he. But then, I peeked in on them sleeping... I snugged the covers gently over their shoulders and completely melted at those precious, spontaneous smiles as I kissed their little cheeks. I thought of all the times they do make good choices, or ask for help in making their choices. This isn't so bad. One day it might even be funny. Maybe. So we'll keep them. And love them. This is part and parcel of the job.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy