Bye-Bye, March!

À bientôt, Monsieur le Mars! This girl is ready for warmer weather and cook-outs!

Hiya, Friends!

Well, it's Tuesday, and also the last day of March, Twenty-Fifteen. 

You know, I thought that March was supposed to come in like a lion and go out like a lamb.  I suppose it could be said that compared to the way this March came in, today's more lamb-like than things were in the beginning, but still. 

Maybe what March is going out as is some kinda mutant lamb that got crossed with a puma or something.  I mean, it looks all fluffy and cuddly on the outside, but the lamb is still packin' some really sharp teeth and an attitude.

Whatever.  This girl is ready for warmer weather.  I wanna wear sundresses and sandals and my heart-shaped sunglasses. 

I'm ready to start thinkin' about goin' to the Lake.  I'm ready to start plannin' cookouts!  I'm ready to get out my squirt-bottle and microfiber cloth and help Daddy detail the cars for car-shows.

What I'm saying is that I had fun this Winter.  I did.  I enjoyed the snow.  I enjoyed everything about the winter.  Except that awful cold I got and the accompanying pink-eye, but the only reason I really resent that is that those eye-drops really stung!  Winter, I'm okay with, but I am ready to march along into Spring.  I'm ready for April showers and jumping in every mud-puddle I see.

I'll see ya tomorrow, Friends!  I love ya lots!  Muah!

Darn Ol' Monday, Anyway!

It's Monday: This IS my happy face!

Oh, Friends.  It's Monday again, isn't it? 

Yep.  The calendar has confirmed the worst.  The weekend is indeed over, and it is once again Monday. 

I realize that I usually encourage you not to be miserable on Monday.  I realize that you might have a point if you were to call me a hypocrite for bein' all grumpalupagus today, but ever since we went at changed our clocks to Daylight Saving Time, my weekends have either been crumb-bum weekends where I have had very little fun for whatever reason, or I've had lotsa fun, but the time has gone by like a flash.

I mean, really.  Nothing messes up a perfectly good weekend like Monday Morning. Back to the rat race.  Back to the grind.  Back to work, ya bums!

So I'm not gonna tell ya to make the best of it today, Friends.  I'm not gonna cajole you into bein' of good cheer.  I'm not gonna tell ya to fake it until ya make yourself happy today.  Usually I do, and I might next weekend, but I'm not gonna do that today.

What I'm gonna do is tell ya if ya feel like you need to be grouchy today, let it out.  Not at anybody who doesn't deserve it, mind you, but let it out.  If ya need to cry, cry.  If ya need to listen to loud music and yell along, do it.  We all have days like this.  And nobody can feel a hundred percent fizzy every day.  Not even me. 

Roar.

I love ya lots, Friends, no matter what kinda mood we're in.  I love ya lots, and I'll see ya tomorrow.  Tomorrow's a new day.  Tomorrow's always a new day.  Muah!

It's Daddy's Birthday!

I'm gonna jump outta this present and surprise Daddy for his birthday!

Hiya, Friends! 

Guess what!  Today's my Daddy's birthday!

What I really wanted to do for Daddy today is all of us get in my brand-new motorized Pink Jeep so I could drive us to a classy restaurant like Chuck E. Cheese and we could enjoy a nice meal together, celebrating the anniversary of Daddy's birth. 

That's what I wanted to do, but there are a coupla complications with that plan.  First of all, as it turns out, Big People don't like to go to Chuck E. Cheese on their own birthdays, and when they take a Little Kid there, it's under extreme duress and out of a deep sense of obligation.  There is no enjoyment.  So that wouldn't have been the place to take my Daddy for his birthday.  A sub-complication to this plan is that I'm not sure where there is a nearby Chuck E. Cheese.  Buffalo?  Rochester?  I don't know.  It's moot anyways, because Big People don't care much for Chuck E. Cheese. 

More troubling, however, is my acute lack of motorized Pink Jeep.  That's right.  I'm still pining for a PowerWheelz of my very own.  I asked Mommy to buy me one for Daddy's birthday, and would you believe she had the NERVE to flat-out refuse?  Then she wonders why Daddy's my favorite.

Awwww well, Friends.  I might have a thinger two up my sleeve, to make sure Daddy has a good birthday.  I hafta check to see what that might be, but I'm sure there's something.

I have some work to do, Friends, so I'll be seein' ya tomorrow.  I love ya lots!  Have a great day!  Muah!

Art Is Life Is Art

Watercolors are my favorite two-dimensional artistic medium.

Hiya, Big People!  Happy Saturday!

Well, ya know, I'm a kid that's interested in lotsa different things, and one of the different things I'm interested in is doin' art.

I guess if I had to figure out who influences me artistically, I'd hafta say Elmo.  Elmo makes art.  It says so in his song 'Elmo and I Know It."  Elmo's favorite medium is the crayon, though.  Mine is watercolor.

Don't get me wrong.  I love crayons, too.  They're portable, readily available, and bold-colored.  They're a fairly mess-free way to make art. 

Which is kinda why I really enjoy watercolors.  There's a messiness to watercolors.  There's a ritual to the artform.  You have to put down a drop-cloth on your table, then you get your paper, then you get a glassa water and your paints.  I love the ritual.  I love the way the colors can be bold and solid, or more watery. 

And yes, I like the potential for mess.  Makes 'em feel a little bit dangerous.  Like I'm rollin' the dice with every dip of my brush in the water.

I don't think I'm a great artist.  I'd never say that.  But I love doing what I do.  I love the process, and I get a little better at it, every time I try. 

Can't beat that!

Friends, I love ya lots.  I'll see ya tomorrow!  Muah!

Ridin' With The Hell's Toddlers, Revisited!

I'm gettin' searched by a K9 Unit!

Hiya, Friends!

Well, ya know, even though my motorbike group the Hell's Toddlers do our best not to attract the attention of law enforcement personnel, every once in a while, we get pulled over for various reasons.  Apparently a big groupa toddlers on motorbikes is irresistible to the police. 

They always wanna check us out.

It seems like no matter what we get pulled over for, we end up gettin' searched.  And they always find some sort of contraband. 

Oh, you know how it is.  Harmless stuff, really, but if you're followin' the letter of the law, I suppose people could get all bent out of shape about it. 

Lemme fill ya in, and you can decry the unfairness of it all with me:

Unauthorized candy.  That's a big one.  Somebody's always gettin' pinched for havin' unauthorized candy on 'em, and if they do, it's a minute in Time-Out per age of the offender in years, times the number of instances of unauthorized candy.  Stinky Peterson got caught with about ten pouches of Pop Rocks once.  Tried to tell the officers that pulled us over that they weren't even his- he was holding them for a friend.  He wasn't foolin' anybody, though.  Those were Stinky's Pop Rocks.  Stinky got off with a warning, and the officers' sympathies for bein' named 'Stinky,' but they took his Pop Rocks, and boy was Stinky ever mad!

Of course, besides unauthorized candy, somebody always gets found with a toy that's too old for 'em.  You know.  A two-year-old carrying a toy labeled for Ages 4+.  A three-year-old caught with a stapler.  And there's just no talking to the authorities.  They see it, they see you're not old enough to have that toy, according to the label, and they take it away. 

I want my stapler back, by the way. I did three minutes in Time-Out for having that stapler, and they didn't even give it back after they took it.

Don't even get me started on the disturbin' the peace.  Listen.  We're a club of toddlers.  Somebody's always melting down, and when a toddler melts down, it's gonna disturb the peace.  If they get you for that, you can plan on headin' straight for the Naptime for one to three.  Hours.

Well, you know, there's never a dull moment, when you're ridin' with the Hell's Toddlers.  Never a dull moment at all, Friends.

Hey.  I'll see ya tomorrow.  I love ya lots, Friends.  I really do!  Muah!

Ridin' With The Hell's Toddlers

Shoulda worn my goggles on my bike ride today!

Hey there, hi there, ho there, Friends!

What I really mean to say is "Hiya!" 

Hey. 

Recently, I realized I love my bike that I got for my second birthday.  I don't know why I snubbed it for so long.  It has real air-filled tires, and handlebars, and a padded seat...

Why, it's practically a motorbike, for which I'm the motor.  In fact, that's what I pretend it is when I ride it.  A big ol' loud motor bike. 

I'm a stickler for safety, so I always wear a helmet when I'm riding my motorbike.  Gotta protect the ol' noggin, after all!

The thing I always forget, though, is my goggles.  I always wind up pretending I've taken my motorbike down a dusty dirt road, and darned if that dust doesn't get in my eyes.  Goodness that's the worst.  Especially because I usually pretend I'm ridin' my motorbike with my pretend motorbike club, Hell's Toddlers (Mommy would say this name is redundant), and I'm rarely the lead motorbike in the pack.  So a lotta dust gets kicked up on our pretend rides.

Anyways, Friends, I think I'm gonna go goggle-shoppin' online now, so I'll be seein' ya tomorrow.  I love the heck right outta ya.  I love ya lots!  Muah!

I'm Tired, Just Thinkin' About It!

Nine months until Christmas, and I'm tired, just thinkin' about it!

Hiya, Friends!  Happy Wednesday!

Well, hey.  Didja happen to catch the date on the calendar today?  That's right.  It's the Twenty-Fifth of the Month!  That means it's time for me to do my Countdown Til Christmas!

As you know, I love Christmas.  I love everything about it.  I love the snow.  I love the hot cocoa.  I love the endless tables of food.  I love seein' Aunt Colleen and Uncle Lorentz practically every day.  I love the presents.  I LOVE THE TREES AND THE LIGHTS!!!

I cannot stress enough how much I love Christmas trees and Christmas lights. 

So.  That's why I get excited every time we come upon a Twenty-Fifth of the Month.

Today marks nine months until Christmas.  There's really no action needed at this point.  I'm just stating how much time there is.  We all know that the first few Twenty-Fifths of the year are just mile-posts.  The real Christmas Crunchtime doesn't begin until at least June or July.  So we've got a little time before I start making my reminders more urgent, Friends. 

Maybe for this Twenty-Fifth, we can all celebrate it by taking some naptime.  What do you think?  Kind of rest up for the Easter Holiday coming up.  Rest up for Spring and all the fun we'll have as soon as the weather warms up?

I know I've spoken out as a staunch anti-nap supporter in the past, but the older I get, Big People, the more benefit I see in a little supplemental shut-eye.

I love ya lots!  I'll see ya tomorrow, mmmkay?  Muah!