When I Grow Up....

NO, that picture is NOT me! It's my younger sister Cherie (in case you couldn't tell). She is showing off her new "skills." Do you remember when you were a kid and you learned a new skill and you just had to do it over and over again to perfect it? Well Cherie is reliving her childhood :)
I love you sis - you're so cute :)
Half the herd was sitting at the kitchen table doing homework. Suddenly B1 announced "When I grow up.... I want to help the polar bears get more ice." Yes he was quite serious. I asked him to repeat himself and yup, that's what he said alright. After a few minutes of questioning we realized that he must have learned about global warming or something like that at school that day and being the compassionate kind of kid that he is, decided that that was his life's calling.... to help the polar bears get more ice! And we'll cheer him on in his endeavours.... from somewhere warm :)
My little guy Buzzy (yes. that's his REAL name) finally got to the groomers this week. He was so neglected he looked like a miniature sheepdog. I always feel like such a bad pet owner when I take him in to the groomers. He's usually all matted and stinky and long overdue for a cut .... poor little guy. So this time I asked my hubby to drop him off on his way to the office :) at least I didn't have to endure the accusing stares of the grooming ladies who have perfectly clean doggies with the prettiest hair-do's. I bet none of them have kids under four feet tall.
On a weird sort of note - I broke a filling this week. I thought it was a popcorn kernel from my smartfood (Mmmmm white cheddar goodness). How does someone fit an emergency trip to the dentist into an already full schedule? In speaking with the dentist's receptionist I have learned that they have just as busy a schedule as I do and NO they do NOT make house calls. So unless someone cancels an appointment between now and then, I can't get in to see him until Monday June 23rd. Oh well, I didn't need to eat anything too exciting before then anyway.
On Wednesday the 11th we all went to Tecumseh to the Mongolian Grill for an early Father's Day Dinner. (Ya, that's Cherie in that picture at the Mongo, showing off her skills again)

On the way there we drove past a cornfield. B3 piped up and said "look, a garden is growing Lisa!" A little further on we passed a cemetery with large ornate markers and headstones. In the center of the cemetery is a large crucifix. This caught B3's attention right away and he breathlessly said "Oooh, that's where Jesus died, Lisa" to which I replied "Jesus died in Jerusalem B3, not Belle River."
At the Mongo we had a great meal and even better fellowship. Mike became a legend in the eyes of our kids and nieces and nephew.... he beat "the claw". You know - that mechanical claw game where you pump it full of change and get the chance to reach down and grab a prize with "the claw" .... well after all the kids lost their money my hubby invested a small fortune and a few intense minutes into that machine, and he won, much to the children's amazement. When he secured the prize you could hear hootin' and hollerin' and applause throughout the whole place - he had a fan club happening. It was a proud moment. He presented me with an odd looking green and yellow frog thing. Thanks honey, I love him (*wink). After our dinner we sometimes walk down to the Sobey's store in the plaza and borrow their employee picnic table to rest at while the kids run off their meal along the grassy strip of turf next to the building. Someone usually makes a Timmy's run while the rest of us holler at kids not to run into the parking lot and get hit by cars and threaten to leave them splattered there if they do. On this particular night there were a few fish flies hanging round so the kids had some fun catching them and tormenting a particular child who doesn't appreciate bugs the way the rest of them do. Poor G2, she got a lot of exercise from running away screaming over and over again.
While we were at the Mongolian Grill we gave the Father's their Father's Day gifts. My hubby got the highly coveted Ghillie Suit he had been drooling over for a while now. It's a hunting outfit he just "had to have". Hahaha. So being the crazy kind of guy he is, he wanted to try it on (yes, right there in the restaurant). He went to the rest room and came out looking like he grew some greenery. I wonder what the restaurant patrons thought? They probably wondered what in the world was in that food he ate?!?!?!

There's never a dull moment in my world :)

On our way home we drove along a stretch of highway that had a familiar foul odor ... G2 suddenly blurted out "did we get run over by a skunk or something?" Which is almost as weird as the comment she made while we drove down the 401 the following day. G2 asked "do deer eat on you like bears do?"
I think the sun is doing something to my children's thinking - either that or the thought of summer vacation fast approaching has messed with their brain waves..... During dinner B2 got upset when I tried to spread out his food to cool it off so he could eat it. He "doesn't want his food spread out on his plate cause then he'll have more to eat and he doesn't want too much.

Shortly thereafter, B3 came into the kitchen. We had thought he was upstairs playing so my hubby asked "where were you?" B3 looked very confused so my hubby explained that we thought he was upstairs but then we noticed him coming out of the living room and into the kitchen - "what were you doing? Where were you?" He asked again. Then B3 held his head in his hands and "I don't knoooooow" Mike then said, well why did you come down here? To which B3 replied "I don't knoooooooow" I guess that was one of those "guess you had to be there" moments :)
Too funny not to share: I was bathing little G4 & G5 the other day. They were having a bubble bath together. Suddenly G4 starts shrieking Ewwwie!!! Ewwwie!!! and pointing to the bubbles in the water. I said "G4, what's wrong?" and G5 replied "she pooped in the tub." Hahaha she was trying to claw her way out of the tub after that.

We took the whole herd to the Drive In Movies on Thursday night. My sister and brother-in-law and their kiddos came too. We saw the Kung Fu Panda! The kids really liked it - so did the adults. But as you already know - nothing is ever easy or simple and nothing is ever dull in our family ...
To begin with, Al & Cherie's van headlights couldn't be shut off with the key turned to accessories (to keep the radio on to hear the movie), so an employee brought over garbage bags and tape to cover up the headlights. Instead of that, Al pulled the fuse out. Then....
after 4 hours of watching movies, the van wouldn't start - the battery was drained :( So he needed a boost. Hahaha. It sounds like a bad date doesn't it? Oh well, if our lives were boring we wouldn't have anything to write about.
A while back I mentioned that I had to go to court to testify in a trial regarding one of my foster children. Well it was held over and now it has resumed. I testified on Thursday morning. It was a little scary and weird feeling but over with in no time. I was amazed and pleased with one thing though ... They still make you swear on the Holy Bible in our courts (here in Chatham, Ontario anyway) It was a gold hard cover Gideon's Bible - looked like it might have just come from a hotel room dresser drawer. I am so happy to see that we have not kicked God out of our court system. If anyone knows about Justice and Mercy - He sure does! Check out this cool video someone sent to me .... go to You Tube and type in Cardboard Testimony.
What's YOUR cardboard testimony?