--1--
We have a serious infestation on our azaleas - these nasty little bugs called scale have invaded them, and I really don't want to spray pesticides (plus pesticides apparently don't DO anything against these disgusting things).
But I'm a parent, I've read plenty of Eric Carle and I know that ladybugs eat bad bugs!
So we bought some ladybugs on Amazon (who knew?) and they arrived pretty quickly. Now, I KNEW we were supposed to let them go at dusk, but it was supposed to rain a lot all day, so I figured we'd try it in the morning. The kids were SO excited!!! John Paul even got a few to crawl on his hand and arm!
But I checked back outside this evening and I couldn't find any... So we might be ordering again and trying it at dusk to make sure they stay! It was totally worth it for the blast the kids had with them, and there were only 10 or so that were dead after we let them all go.
Want your own? Find them here!
--2--
We finally set up the high chairs to let the babies try solid foods while NOT sitting on our laps. They've been consuming enough that it's evident in their diapers, and I wanted to see if they'd actually sit happily in their high chairs.
I think the faces pretty much show how they feel about this whole experiment. Mary Claire shoves ANYTHING into her mouth happily and won't let go!
Elizabeth kept biting off chunks and them spitting them out. And then spitting and spitting to get the taste out of her mouth... But by the end of dinner, she was scraping at the banana with her little gums, trying to eat as much as possible!
Best part? We actually had our hands free to eat dinner! And the convenient handle on a banana makes it a fairly non-messy food.
--3--
Speaking of shoving anything into her mouth, Mary Claire rolled into the pile of dirty shoes by the back door and starting going to town on the muddiest shoe she could find... So it looks like we'll need a better storage solution than "pile on the floor."
The plus side of the babies' newfound mobility is that Cecilia and John Paul are getting better about getting their stuff off the floor because they don't want the babies to eat it!
--4--
Weeell I said that only about 10 ladybugs were dead on arrival... And unfortunately we started opening the package on the front steps and a few flew right into a spider's web. Whoops! But it was really cool to watch the spider spin the web around them and suck out the insides. That's one happy spider! The kids were not even a little bit traumatized, they thought it was pretty cool! I'll call it a science lesson and pretend we're good homeschoolers.
--5--
The computer charger has been getting more and more finicky. First it only wanted to charge at a certain angle, then it needed pressure, and now the only way I can get it to charge is by wrapping a belt around it VERY tightly. Thank goodness for cheap forever 21 skinny belts! Works perfectly!
--6--
The babysitter had to cancel on Tuesday and I had to give exams so there was no way I could stay home... So Andrew was awesome and stayed home the first half of the day until I got home. And I came home to a clean kitchen, washed dishes, several loads of laundry done, and a feeling that he might be better at this whole stay-at-home-mom thing than I am!
But today I was home all day and got all the dishes washed and put away, made three batches of pizza dough, did a couple loads of laundry, and did the whole ladybug thing with the kids. So I guess it really depends on how the babies do - if they take long naps or play happily by themselves, I can get a LOT done! And now that they're pretty much crawling, they're happy to play on the floor for a while as long as I surround them with toys.
--7--
Best. Dad. Ever. These kids are having such a blast on the swing set, even though Cecilia refused to come inside for dinner last night because she was too busy going down the slide 25 times in a row. And then she didn't understand why she didn't get dessert after she finally DID come inside, and didn't understand why she wasn't allowed to go back outside after dinner!
The nerve some parents have...
Check out more Quick Takes at Conversion Diary!
Wow- ladybugs off the internet! Who knew?
ReplyDeleteJOhn stayed home one day this week too and he cut the whole yard, did the laundry, fixed the weed whacker and got J ready for the day with clothes, breakfast, drop off, etc. I'm going to get a complex haha
ReplyDeleteCecilia wasn't freaked out about ladybugs? Maybe because she knew what they were and knew they couldn't do anything bad to her—and they're cute? Because you know how she is about most bugs—SCREAMRUNSCREAMRUN!!!!!
ReplyDeleteHer swingset obsession reminds me of when she wouldn't eat her dinner (pizza) and so after five minutes or so of promises but inaction I took it away. SCREAMS!!!! "GWAMMA, DON'T TAKE MY PIZZA!!!1" Then two minutes later she was happy to play in the tub. She's a weirdo. I kinda like her anyway, though.
Love the science lessons you got out of the ladybugs! Project-based homeschooling ftw!
Can the babies sit up yet on their own? Somehow I thought that was a prerequisite for eating solids, and they couldn't sit up last I looked.
Good luck with your ladybugs!
ReplyDeleteGreat high chair pictures, about time to get ours out.
I think dads can just get more done when they are home because the kids aren't used to them being home all the time and don't ask them a million and one questions and for help with two millions things all the time.
ReplyDeleteIt's like that one meme/cartoon where the kids ask mom all these questions "I'm hungry. Where's my notebook? I can't find my shoes. Can you make me a sandwich?" and then the only question they ask Dad is "Where's Mom?" That's totally how it works in my house anyway.
Wow, my husband can barely keep the kids alive when I am gone ;)
ReplyDeleteI'm always so worried to leave him alone with them because I feel like it's too overwhelming, and he always does awesome!
DeleteI get nothing done when I'm home with Lucia. When David gets home, it's so much more of a mess than when he left. When David stays home with Lucia, the house is immaculate and dinner is done when I walk in the door. He's such a better househusband than I am housewife!!
ReplyDeleteThe ladybugs are so cool!
#6--Gosh, being at home with littles...some days are really great. Everything flows and has a rhythm and you're super productive. Other days...you're just happy to have made it to the arrival of your spouse. :)
ReplyDeleteMost days tend to be the latter for us... Hopefully their newfound mobility makes the babies a little less fussy!
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