Get-away Booked

Thanks to everyone who offered advice on this topic.  We are indeed taking our friends up on their offer to watch Tai for an entire weekend (I hope they know what they signed up for!) and have a grown-up weekend to ourselves.  It's a hectic time at home right now and maybe not the best time to take off, but I figured we'd better do it before spring because who's ever gonna volunteer to watch two kids all weekend?

We're headed to Lenox, MA for two nights at a B&B in early April.  Hopefully this will help me get over my reluctance to stay in B&Bs (I've always been a large-anonymous-corporate-hotel kind of gal).  I loathe the idea of having to sit at a large table and eat breakfast with people I don't know and, possibly, even have to make small talk.  Ugh.

But I am whole-heartedly looking forward to this trip -- especially since the B&B has already sent us an extensive list of places to eat and things to do.  Is it April yet?

Renovation Update (and my kid is soooo cute!)

The fireplace is long gone, the playroom is all framed, and the plumbing is roughed in.  Before long, we should have a very large hole in our kitchen floor as well.

Buttons has been temporarily shipped off to Hadley, MA to sleep on exotic dog beds, harass different kitties, and take walks with her buddy Arrow.  Poor Smudgie cowers under the futon all day long.  He actually took off mid-breakfast this morning when the contractors arrived, not to emerge from the study until they leave.  Nibbles sleeps on the futon all day and doesn't give a shit about any of it.   

Each morning Tai looks out the front window in anticipation of the arrival of two pickup trucks.  And when the contractors enter the house he greets them with an enthusiastic "Hi Don! Hi Kenny!"  and, occasionally, an "I'm Tai!" (as if they don't know by now).  He then tries to pepper them with questions about what they are doing and the tools they are carrying, but they are too fast for him.  By the time he gets out, "Don, why you have..." Don is already halfway down the basement stairs.

Each afternoon we inspect the progress that has been made.  Tai is beside himself with this new development of Being Allowed in The Basement.  He's either going to be a contractor or a gymnast, for sure -- he's very much into examining the tools and walking along piles of 2x4s.  If he tries to stick the landing, we'll know which path he's chosen.  And yesterday afternoon he decided that his orange plastic slinky is actually a measuring tape.  He repeatedly held it up to the plywood wall where the fireplace used to be and announced, "I measuring playroom!!"  The game of "measuring" every inch of the house then lasted a good 30 minutes.

Practically our own Branch of the Public Library

As part of our preparation for construction, Tai and I organized the books and toys in his room this past weekend--and promptly realized that his bookshelf is full beyond capacity.  The books pictured below are just the ones in his room.  He has others scattered around the house and some of the very babyish ones are already set aside for his sister. 

Looks like we're gonna need a bigger shelf soon.  Since many of these were gifts and hand-me-downs, let me make a public plea.  Please, no more books for Tai.  At least not until we get some nice big shelves set up in the playroom.  I smell a trip to IKEA.....

Renovation Haiku

contractor chosen.

the big day is next thursday.

basement purging time.

Bravery Bribery

Saturday I took Tai to a local Butterfly Conservatory.  That morning I told him where we were going and he was so excited.  Five minutes into the 35 minute car ride he stated that we were "almost there" (which is clearly the first step toward the dreaded "are we there yet?" phase of life).

Walking into the place, he stopped to show me each and every picture of a butterfly.  On the sign out front, hanging in the cafe, on the coffee mugs in the gift shop, etc.  After happily looking at the frogs and birds and lizards in tanks that they (inexplicably) display just before you enter the butterfly room, we entered the main conservatory.  Instantly, thousands of angry butterflies attacked us with their razor sharp teeth.  Wait, actually I think 2 fluttered over and landed on my sleeve.  

Tai flipped out.

I've seen an adverse reaction to the butterfly room once before (you know who you are, Lee) but this was much worse.  "Up! up! uppy up!" he demanded the safety of my arms.  But even that wasn't enough to calm him down.  "I don't want it! I don't want it!" he exclaimed and his cheeks turned pink and the tears welled up in his eyes.

So we retreated to the safety of the room with the frogs, birds, and lizards contained behind glass.  We spent the next 30 minutes viewing those creatures, having a snack, and talking about how gentle the butterflies were and how he needed to be brave and go see for himself (I had paid $10 admission and was going to see some butterflies, dammit!)  He was not really buying it--each time I went near the door to the conservatory he bucked in my arms.

Finally, I decided to try good old fashioned bribery and asked him if he wanted some "Butterfly Bravery Beads" (they sell cheap Mardi Gras beads in the gift shop for $1).  A long time fan of sparkle, he, of course, wanted some beads.  So I managed to convince him that all we needed to do was go in and briefly say goodbye to the butterflies and then we could get some beads.  He totally bought it.  Sucker.

Once I got him in there, I kept moving constantly so no butterflies would land on us.  In the end, we were able to spend a good 20 minutes in there and he almost enjoyed himself, though he would not leave the safety of my very sore arms and he did flinch anytime a butterfly got too close.

He happily wore his beads all the way home.