Clean bedrooms might be overrated

12 phone calls in 2 1/2 hours.
If they spent less time calling me about playing when the bedroom is clean then can I go to a friend's, they might actually have been done with the bedroom by now and really could go to a friend's.
But that would be too simple.
Instead I get, "can I go?"
"Is your room clean?"
"My stuff is."
That's code for the room isn't clean.
Or I ask, "Are you working on your room right now?"
"No."
"Why not?" asked in pure exasperation and frustration.
"Because I'm on the phone with you."
Do they think this is helping their cause?

B.S. for dinner

Last night as we were sitting down for dinner, Sean declares, "I'm eating nothing but b.s. for dinner."  And I choked on my bite.
Of course, when BLT's are what's for dinner, this easily translates to Bacon Sandwich.  As in, no L or T on his BLT, thank you very much. Still...

When I grow up I'm going to be...

I picked my circus up from being with their dad on Sunday night.  This means an hour and a half drive (just the one way that they're now with me), which means some interesting conversations.
We started talking about what they want to be when they grow up.  I have this need to stay abreast of their thoughts in this area, because I know I had a lot of ideas of what I wanted to be, but for some reason, they were just thoughts.  I never really believed that I would or could actually become a marine biologist, or a zoologist.  Do I regret that I never saw them as more than dreaming? Most definitely.  So now I listen to what my kids want to be and start suggesting things they can do, even now, to start down that road if they want.  I'm not pushing my kids, the decision and pace is completely up to them.  It's just my job to show them how to make those dreams reality, that those ideas of what they want to do, have practical steps to them, and don't have to be just thoughts of "what if" in their heads.
Cas wants to be a Chef.  I've told her she needs to think about culinary schools for college then. At 11 years she's already making dinners at home.  She can fry eggs, make spaghetti, taco meat, and she's my right hand girl when I get busy (*ahem* side tracked) and have to yell out, "Cas go check on the..." insert whatever may be on the stove.  I think the next step is to help her create the menu and shopping list and start broadening her skills to something that requires a few more steps to them.  We should look in to extra cooking classes for her also.
Brynn wants to be a veterinarian.  Her game plan is to call a couple of the vets or animal hospitals near our house and see if they have a volunteer program and what the age for that might be.  She wants to volunteer with simple things like cleaning cages and kennels.  The idea behind this is to get on familiar terms with the vet and the staff, and then as she gets older she can work in the office of the animal hospital while going through school.  It gives her an in for internships and references to begin work too.
Tayler doesn't know what she wants to be.  Maybe a nail technician.  Or work at Walmart.  We obviously need to work on this a little bit.  What appeals to her is the customer service.  We'll have to think on this a little more.  Maybe it's wrong of me, but I'm not okay with my daughter saying she's going to grow up and work at Walmart.  Not that there's anything wrong with working at Walmart, not by any means.  An honest job is a good job plain and simple.
Cali very confidently told me, "Mom, I want to be a vet too.  But not a vet for animals.  I want to be a vet for people."
"A vet is only for animals, a vet for people would be a doctor."
"Oh.  Well I don't want to be that then."

At least she's not setting her sights as a cashier at Walmart...

Conversation in a circus

West and I were debating over which glass of ice water belonged to whom. I finally said, "because you don't want my cooties."
Cali (age 6) pipes in, "I want your cookies!"
West stops and looks at me, "Cookies do sound good..."

Beeping Eye

I got home from work yesterday and Cali (age 5) comes up to me rubbing her eye. "Mom, my eye keeps beeping." It only took me a second to translate. Her eye was twitching.

Mom's need to earn their candy

Me: "Mom's get to take whatever candy they want from whatever bag they want." Tay: "Mom's need to earn their candy." Me: "Who do you think made your costume?" Tay (with out missing a beat): "Grandma" Never fear, I finally won with "and who asked Grandma to make it?" "You did." Thank you very much.

Song stuck in her head

Cali asked me to put the Sugarland CD in while we drove home. It's one of her favorites. Half way through the first song she says all agitated, "I can't stop singing in my head!"

In the closet, under the blanket, in a bag

Brynn: "Mom, can I clean the toilet?"
Me: (silently in my head... "and the crowd goes wild!") "sure" (and then quickly having a flash of thoughts in my head to where I put the cleaner, you know the kind of flashing pictures that TV shows and movies do to quickly recap at high speed, usually done in a case solving manner) "the cleaner is in the closet, under a blanket, in a bag."
Brynn: "OK. Mom?"
Me: expecting to be on to the next subject "What?"
Brynn: "Where's the soap to clean it?"
Me: "In the closet, under the blanket, in a bag."
Brynn: "Oh, OK... so it's with the thing?"
Me: "What thing?"
Brynn: "Where is it?"
Me: very sl-ow-ly, "the cleaner is in the hall closet. Under a blanket. Still in a sack."
Brynn: "And that's with the soap for the toilet?"
Me: "Soap for the toilet is called cleaner. It's in the closet."
I'm still not entirely sure what "thing" she was referring to. Sometimes my brain hurts like I'm losing brain cells.

Generational gaps

I just got to work, sat down at my desk and... my phone rings. My house number blinking up at me.
Me: "Hello."
Cas: "MOM!"
Me: in mock exasperation to match her intensity "WHAT?!"
Cas: "You know how Donny Osmond won 'Dancing With the Stars'?" Oh yes, the circus and I watched it diligently. They totally love it, and critique right along with the judges (they do this with American Idol also, "what did you think of that song Mom? I think it was...").
Me: "Yes..."
Cas: "He just sang on the radio!"
Me: laughing, having just heard the same Christmas song on the radio as I pulled into my work's parking lot. "Yes Cas, he's a singer. That's WHY he was on Dancing With the Stars."
Cas: (I can just see the light bulb turning on above her head) "OH!"

Weirder than you are

Casidee says, "Mom, what if you were weirder, I mean weirder than you are..."

I have the allergies

This morning while I was in the bathroom getting ready for work, my girls were in the family room coloring while they waited for me. Brynn(6) has been struggling w a stuffy nose and cough. While she and Tayler(5) were lieing on the floor side by side sharing a coloring book I heard Tayler say, "you really MUST be allergic to me!" To which Brynn replies, "I'm not allergic to you Tay, I just have the allergies!"