Blergh.

Finally some time to write/type! But I don't have a cohesive post outlined in my head. Gah! So here I will regurgitate some of what has been going on lately, bullet-style. You're welcome.

• Block leave has officially ended. We've all sunk into a deep depression over it.
• But the end of block leave does not mean that the excitement is gone- oh no. We came home yesterday afternoon (from a rousing trip to Wal-Mart) to find that our water heater was flooding the washroom. After being on hold on the "emergency" maintenance line for half an hour, we got word that someone would come out to look at it. He said, "It looks like it's leaking from the bottom." As opposed to spewing from the top? Astute observation there, sir. He recommended a new one. This is why I love not owning a home.
• On Saturday we went to the zoo. And by "zoo" I do mean "pet store." Since it is Petsmart, we brought Odie with us. This was met with much enthusiasm from all parties. Sam pointed out every dog in the store. But not actual dogs, just pictures of dogs on labels. So you could easily find us in the dog food aisle, reciting "dog, dog, dog, dog," on every single can of food. We got a brush for Odie and checked out. End of outing. How exciting.
• Since I am still refusing to sit in the backseat, I got to drive home while Steve sat with the two babies and Odie in his lap. I decided to keep the fun going (what with our big trip to the zoo and all) and go home a different way. Some little country back roads, nothing crazy. As I come around a bend, I see a cop. As soon as he sees me, he pulls out. Crap. I might have peed my pants a little. He walks up to the car and already, he's smiling. He sees Steve sitting in the backseat with two kids and a pug, and immediately I know that I'm not getting a ticket today. I hand him my paperwork and license (thankfully still in-date) and ask if the speed changed from 45 to 35. He said it did and asked if Steve was giving me a hard time back there. I laugh and apologize for my speed. After running my license and realizing that this car just might be the least threatening group of people on the entire US highway system, he tells me that he's only giving me a warning. Then he laughs at Steve. I laugh at Steve too. This is the second time I've been pulled over in my ten years of driving. Second time to get a warning. I'm WINNING. So we laugh all the way home about how lucky I am to have boobs (was wearing a Tshirt btw) and then wonder how differently the Road Trip Of 2012 would have gone had I been driving....
• Since we got settled back into our routine, we have also settled back into being bored out of our gourds. Too hot to go outside with the kids, but nowhere to go inside in town. Steve suggested we go to Target and "just walk around." Obviously I am on board with that idea. I make a comment about how we need some hangers (you know, to get him used to the idea that we're going to BUY something there), and off we go. He's getting smarter though. He timed the trip pretty close to dinnertime, so there was not an excessive amount of browsing. Trip was cut short at $44. So obviously we were only there for approximately ten minutes.
• Sam is throwing more and more tantrums lately. I am trying to follow through on my threats of timeouts, and after making good on my word, it turns out that he spends a lot of time in timeout. I don't want to be one of those parents that says he's going to timeout and then doesn't do it. I think that sends the wrong message. I want him to know that if he misbehaves, there are consequences. If you whine about breakfast, you'll go back to bed. If you throw a tantrum about coming inside when there are bolts of lightening striking the ground, you will go to timeout. And if you refuse the food that is offered to you (that you have excitedly eaten in the past), you will be hungry, and probably go to timeout. (Must go off on a tangent here.) While I was making a nice gluten-free dinner last night (at a VERY appropriate time- maybe 5pm?), Sam started throwing a fit. Steve suggests that he's hungry (because he was an ungrateful snot picky with his lunch and hardly ate anything). Steve wanted me to go ahead and feed him something instead of waiting on dinner to be ready. I'm sorry that he's hungry. He must wait the extra ten minutes for this dinner to be prepared. I am not eating gluten-free food because I think it tastes good. He will eat it too, and not just as leftovers the next day! He gets hysterical and gets another timeout. Once dinner is ready, I make our plates and bring him down. WHADDAYA KNOW. He eats a really good dinner. Times like these make me think that Sam is going to keep making me do everything The Hard Way for him, just because.
• On a related note, I tried getting Sam to eat a gummy vitamin. Wants nothing to do with it, despite watching Steve eat a bunch. Suggestions? (Is it ridiculous that I am asking how to get my child to eat a chewy, fruity snack? Yes. Yes it is.)
• Steve just got home from PT and said that the fridge is leaking. Of course it is. HAPPY MONDAY.

Why was this coffee cup in the garden section? I deem it an appropriate size for the kitchen.