Sharp Tooth, the bi-polar dinosaur

My daughter, Havely, is obsessed with Dinosaurs. I do not mean that she shows interest in them, I mean that she will watch, read or look into ANYTHING that involves the once grand reptile. Her compulsion to the beasts started when she was about three, she watched the Land Before Time, and was instantly drawn to the villain of course, Sharp Tooth. From this point on ALL tyrannosaurus rex like lizards shall be referred to as Sharp Tooth. When she discusses Sharp Tooth with anyone, it depends on the mood of the day as to which Sharp Tooth she will inform you of. There is the mean tear off your head Sharp Tooth,

and there is a the love able pet bone fetching, cuddly, friendly Sharp Tooth.

You never have any idea which one you will encounter, the tales of the ferocious Sharp Tooth are told with wide eyes and emphasis on every sentence ending. They are warnings, they are fearful questions. Can Sharp Tooth get into our house? Can Sharp Tooth eat me on the playground? Does Sharp Tooth sneak around our house at night?
My favorite was when Jaaron was trying to get our family fire plan into place and asked her to review the steps for getting out of the house.
He quizzed her about the steps. What do you do with Lavender Lamb?
She responds, "Throw him out the window first, but what if he lands in dog poop?" I love that most of her responses are quickly met with another hypothetical question. I sat and enjoyed the volley and laughed secretly.
"He won't land in dog poop, but if he does we will wash him."
"But won't our washer be broke if it is in the fire?"
"Yes, but we will find a way to wash him. What do you do after you toss out Lavender Lamb?"
"Well, I guess I would go onto the ladder," eyes open wide,"BUT WHAT IF SHARP TOOTH IS WAITING FOR ME???"
At this point I no longer can hold in the laugh, so I snicker and add to the drama, "yeah what if Sharp Tooth is waiting?"
"Sharp Tooth and all dinosaurs are afraid of fire since that whole big bang extinction thing." Jaaron retorted quickly.
Well played husband, quick thinking.

Then there are the sunshiny days that Sharp Tooth is her best friend, this pal of hers, hangs out and watches movies, goes for walks, and sleeps in her bed sometimes. Hell there was even one time that he protected her from the elusive Blue Goat.

When she was starting Kinder this year, I told her that one of the best things about school was that you get to meet new people and make new friends. Instantly one of her stipulations for a "friend" was that they like dinosaurs, and she told this to many people, so I am wondering if there is some sort of quiz the kids at recess have to pass before they can play. She also forces her guest to endure documentaries on these now fossilized creatures. When asked if that's what her head to toe pink and in princess garb wants to watch, she says, "YES! She loves it!" To which I quickly notice that the pretty in pink play mate is bored out of her mind. I am glad she loves something and wants to learn everything there is to know about them. I admire her passion and I get it, it's very simple why kids are crazy about dinosaurs -- dinosaurs are nature's Special Effects. They are the only real dragons. Kids love dragons. It's not just being weirdly shaped and being able to eat Buicks. It's that they are real. And I hope to her, some part of all this remains real and her passion and imagination never fade. 01.25.12

Sundress with Dino Slippers, that's how we roll...

Oh the craziness that is our family. I am pretty sure that if ABC was to come in and watch us for a week they would be begging to do a sitcom based on our lives. It would have everything they needed for a hit, stressed and tired parents, check. Dramatic daughter, check, cute baby (every show needs a cute baby), check. Crazy sisters that live close by, check, production will begin immediately!
So the morning begins with a little boy full of farts that is way unhappy. Up at 4 am is one tired mom playing with his legs and tummy trying her best not to fall asleep right on top of him. He of course is wide awake and thinks most of this is pretty entertaining. At the same time all this is going on I also have a bitchy cat in the background screaming at me for no apparent reason at all, and two overly hyper dogs that think they need to comb the backyard for raccoons, skunks, or the neighbors cat, NOW! Am I the only one that knows what time it is? Yes, yes you are the only one that even cares what time it is, wahoo. Just when I think I have the tooter calmed down and ready for bed, I lay him down and he screams. I glance at the clock and can feel my nerves lighting up just knowing that climbing back into bed before my alarm goes off is just fluttering away minute by farting minute. Finally after an hour of bouncing and massaging he is out, and it is time for me to get going for the day. I turn around and longingly glance at the inviting pillow and pulled back covers in my bed and drag my tired ass to the bathroom instead. A hot shower brings me to life and I begin getting prepared for the day, not feeling to peppy though I decide today is a good day to wear scrubs. Who wouldn't wear basically pajamas to work if they were allowed, done. After I finish my morning routine I head upstairs to wake the drama queen. I am relieved when I open the door and notice she is awake and singing her dinosaur songs to the cast of characters that live in her room. These songs are great, each one is unique and I am determined to get them recorded by she won't perform when she knows there will be future evidence. I will have to hide a recorder (mental note, buy a recording device). She sees me and immediately smiles which of course makes my whole being smile. Her curly blond hair is in a mess all surrounding her little face and she looks up at me and says, I think I need to stay home today. This is daily argument and I can't say that I blame her, I want to stay home too. I explain once again mom has to go to work, but the weekend is here and it is three days this time! She squeals with delight and jumps off the bed still holding lavender lamb the standard choke hold. I ask her if she would like to wear a dress today and she says, "yeah, I think that would be nice." Her vocabulary cracks me up, she is growing up way too fast. We make it downstairs and I hand her the shoes I have picked to go with the dress and ask her to put them on while I get your brother ready. She snags the shoes and goes over to the couch, I scoop up the infant carrier and head to wake the beast. I come out and quickly grab my coffee off the counter and the three of us head out the door. As we walk down the stairs I look down to see two beady eyes staring up at me, frog in the garage again. This frog thinks he needs to take up residence in my garage and I am worried he is going to fry up and die, or that I may run him over one day. So I tell Havely go ahead and get in the car, and I set the carrier down and proceed to look like a fool chasing this frog around the garage floor. I finally catch him and take him over to the side of the house and gently place him on the lawn while I give him a lecture about how the garage is too hot for him and how dangerous it is. The frog just stares at me in awe, I am sure he is taking in every word I say. I quickly return to the garage, clutch the coffee mug in one hand and hoist the carrier up with an umph and head to the car. I get Grant in with all my might (kid is heavy) and I see the damn frog making a break for the entrance of the garage again. I quickly hop in the front seat and close the garage door and let out a sigh of relief, whew! Out of the neighborhood and onto daycare! We usually begin our day with Trains, Hey Soul Sister aka the school bus song and scout out the big yellow birds. This song makes me smile no matter what, and when I am with my kids I never get sick of hearing it. There is just something about that little voice coming out of my four year old singing this at the top of her lungs. We get to the stoplight at the top of the parkway and I turn back to sing along with her and look down and just crack up. She has decided to replace the shoes I gave her to wear with her dinosaur slippers. One hell of a fashion statement, but that is totally my daughter. Pretty sundress, beautiful blond curls, and some scary dinosaur slippers and all the wonderful war wounds on her legs. Total tom boy. I wouldn't have it any other way. It is Friday and I need my weekend, my three day weekend. I need to escape the chaos that work has been this week and I am so excited to enjoy my days off with my amazing family. It is loud, fun, crazy, tiring, fast paced, and completely unpredictable. I wouldn't give any of it up for anything, I love my life. 09.03.10