Virtual Hilarity

In the course of the last month I have found my true love. . . RockBand!! I heart it huge. Josh's Mom got it for the Christmas, and we have all become true RockBanders. Josh likes the drums, and Ben loves to have me help him play the drums. He gets so excited that sometimes he's hard to control, but we can do pretty well together! I have only been hit in the head with his drumsticks twice.

Tonight, Ben came out with both of his small toy guitars (one of them does counting, farm animal sounds, colors, etc.; the other is a guitar that if you push certain buttons it plays a variety of songs, from S.O.S. to The Love Shack. . .), and gave one to me, and said, "Mom, play Guitar Band with me." I laughed so hard!!

Another good laugh Ben gave me this month when (through various ways and means, I'm cutting this story way short) he ended up without any underwear at Church for the last 15 minutes-- and then he proceeded to pants himself in front of my 7-turning-8-year-old primary class.

Two nights ago, when we were pitching our nightly battle (yes, the battle of wills/foods/whatever continues), I had a very hard time not laughing when he told me, "Mom, I LOVE Ramen Noodles!" Then, 15 minutes later, when he'd only taken 2 bites, and I was wrestling with his will to get him to eat more he said, "Mom, I DON'T love Ramen Noodles."

The last short I'll give you is Ben's new favorite subject-- the Scaries. I don't know what has given him the idea that there are Scaries, but apparently they are EVERYWHERE. We recently moved Ben into his own room (yay!!), and he asked me the first night, "Mom, are the Scaries down in my room?" He asks quite often in the car, "Mom, if I lock my door, will it keep the scaries out?" I have repeatedly told Ben that I don't like the Scaries, and I don't ever let them be where we are. To that, Ben responded, "I like the Scaries. Sometimes they BITE me, and I like it." Wild imaginations can't be broken, I suppose.

Claire is WALKING!!! And I don't just mean taking a step here, or a step there, she's walking whenever she gets the chance, and doing a good job of it, too! She has amazing balance. What makes me laugh about her is the difference between her and Ben. Claire's moves are all very calculated, and smooth. This is the reason why she did not walk sooner. Ben, however, was attempting to walk as soon as he realized that he had legs strong enough to hold him up. This caused many falls, trips, head-bumps, etc. When Claire falls, she always manages to land on her bummy, regardless of how much she wobbles before she falls down. Every fall is carefully controlled. So, I have both ends of the spectrum: Reckless and Cautious.

This is what I really love about my kids. Not only are they freakin' cute, but every day is an adventure, and I truly never know what will come next. Like the news I just got two minutes ago from my sweet husband-- Ben just polished off his SECOND piece of pizza tonight. I'm going to keel over! My child is eating!!!

I also, in case I don't get to post again, just want to wish everyone a HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!! Chances are if you're reading this you're one of my closest friends and/or family members. We love you all, and want you to know that!!