So Tucker wakes up this morning with a runny nose and I immediately slip into neurotic mode. SWINE FLU! I was certain for a while it was swine flu and we are All Going To Die. I didn't use to worry about crap like that, but ever since I had the kids I freak out at the drop of a hat. I'm still not convinced it isn't swine flu but I suppose it is highly unlikely. We haven't really been around anyone, unless it was that evil child that sneezed as we walked by him in the grocery store. And we haven't been to Mexico. It almost makes me wish for the good old days of SARS and bird flu and even a little MRSA. Those certainly weren't pandemics. Or were they? Anyhow, we didn't get them. Tucker will be fine but why couldn't he have gotten sick last week when I was blissfully unaware of the nasty swine and their dirty flu?

Old School Volcanoes

Willow is very interested in science and math, and while I go slightly catatonic, or completely fall asleep, while discussing these subjects, I want to encourage her in them. So we learned about how to make a volcano! We used colors and made play dough and had big foamy messes that were fantastic and somehow educational at the same time. We started with a small vase and poured in two tablespoons of baking soda. We added a quarter cup of vinegar with food coloring to the baking soda and had a good sized explosion with that mixture. And that was SO MUCH FUN that we decided to make play dough and make a big volcano to explode.

Play dough - 6 cups of flour

2 cups of salt

2 cups of water

4 tablespoons of veg oil

food coloring

Just mix it all together. That's it. We covered a 2 liter bottle and added more baking soda and more vinegar and had fantastic explosions. It was a great project that took up all day.

Lovely. Just Lovely.

The other day I was down to one kid for the day and thought I would lay down for, seriously, like five minutes. All of the sudden I hear, "MOM! MOM! MOM!". I open my eyes and see my two year old son holding his foot precariously in front of my face. It was COVERED in poop. I snapped to attention very quickly and thought OH, SHIT. I followed him into the hallway where I found his pants, diaper, and the rest of the poop. What on earth would have posessed him to take his pants and diaper off and paint his foot in poo? My daughter never did this. I've heard stories about kids doing this, but those were bad moms and unruly kids. Certainly not something that happens in my life. But, there was the pile of poop in front of me as proof. I shall never nap again.