Men

Chad: "Why is it that you get to take a nap?"
Danielle: "Because I'm 8 months pregnant.  That's why."

Preparing for Baby (10 weeks from now)

Thatcher: "Mom, what are we going to do when you and the baby come home from the hospital?"

Danielle: "I don't know, Thatcher.  What would you like to do?"

Thatcher: "Maybe we could just chillax."

A RAISIN to Laugh

Thatcher: "Mom, I need you to get something out of my nose."
Danielle: "What's in your nose, Thatcher?"
Thatcher: "A snack."
Danielle: "Thatcher, how did a snack get in your nose?"
Thatcher: "Well, mom, that would be my fault..."

Dress Up

Thatcher went over to Lauren's to play yesterday. I am pretty confident this was his first time playing dress up.  Clearly, we need to go over some ground rules.

Santa List

The "Back to Basics Toys" catalog arrived last week. I managed to keep it hidden until a couple of days ago when I broke down and gave it to Thatcher in a moment of desperation. That catalog can buy some serious chunks of free time for me. The video is pretty self-explanatory. For those of you who knew my brother, Devin, when he was little, this may be a little frightening.

Oh, and in case you don't believe me about Hadley's obsession with her Georgia Tech hat, here is a shot of her at our neighbor's backyard kiddie pool party on Labor Day:

Sending Summer Off with a Bang

The Davis family rarely does anything low key. Trust me, it's not by design. It's not by choice. It's just the way God wired us, the way we roll.

After three months of negotiations, Chad finally decided that it was time to cross the threshold into minivan territory. I've been rallying for this decision ever since finding out that baby #3 is en route. After all, Thatcher would have to get in and out of the trunk to access the third row seating in the Honda Pilot once the baby arrives. How fun preschool drop off and pick up would be--especially in the rain--trying to get Hadley and the baby out of their respective doors AND Thatcher out through the trunk! Chad has wavered on making the trade, so I had put it out of my mind...until Friday morning when he unexpectedly announced that we should make the trip to Carmax to see what they would offer us for the year-old Pilot. That night, we bid adieu to Skunk One and drove Onezma, the 2008 Honda Odyssey EX-L, home.

If you ever need to make a significant vehicle transaction, here are some tips:

• Sell your car to Carmax. They offer top dollar and beat dealer prices by at least $4K.
• Don't take your children to the car dealer. Ever. Even if the dealership has a cool indoor playground for the kids. Trust me, even the coolest playgrounds become tiresome after four hours.
• Calculate the time you think it will take to make the transaction (i.e. trade-in, straight sell, purchase, etc.), and double it...at least.

The kids (and Chad) are completely in love with Onez. They LOVE to explore her new features - especially the navigation system and rear camera, which have lots of buttons for them to press. Chad is delighted to have more room, while I'm happy that Thatcher will not have to go through the trunk. Oh, and another big plus is that, unlike the Pilot, Onez doesn't smell like skunk.

Sunday afternoon, the kids and I were configuring the inside of Onez while Chad cleaned out the garage. It's a bit difficult navigating the inside of any vehicle with two kids flanking you, especially when you are seven months pregnant. After about 15 minutes, I abandoned the project and took Thatcher inside to make some ice cream, leaving Hadley playing in the open minivan under daddy's "supervision." Literally two minutes later, Chad summoned me to the garage whereupon he announced that Hadley was locked in the minivan. Unbeknownst to anyone, the kids had pressed the lock button while inside the vehicle with all the doors open, and then Chad closed all the doors...with Hadley inside.

After about 20 minutes of trying to convince Hadley to press the unlock button, I called the Loudoun County Volunteer Rescue Squad (LCVRS). Yes, these are the same WONDERFUL men who came to our house for the skunk incident when Hadley was born. Once again, the LCVRS did not disappoint. Just as Hadley was reaching meltdown mode, a fire truck, police car, ambulance roared up to our house. After several unsuccessful attempts to open the door, they were able to open my purse (inside the car), fish out the keys, and pull them through the door. After she freshened up, they presented Hadley with a big, stuffed, fluffy dog for being such a brave girl throughout the ordeal. Truly, these guys are amazing!

As amazing as the LCVRS is, my darling husband nevertheless provided the most entertaining part of the whole experience. When the police officer asked, "How did this happen?" Chad--who had closed all the doors of the minivan in the first place--coolly replied, "That's the big mystery. I suspect it had something to do with my three year-old son, who is inside the house."

Honda Pilot Trade-In Value: $26K

New minivan: $30K

Loudoun County Rescue Squad Service: Free

Blaming Your Preschooler for Locking Your Daughter in the Car: Priceless

Shine City

On Monday, we went to the "airport playground" outside of Wegmans. Hadley busted her lip trying to climb up a cargo truck toy. Moments later, Thatcher walked right into the same truck and nailed his forehead. He didn't hit it hard, but he hit it in just the right spot for maximum impact. Unfortunately, he is adamant in his belief that ice does not, in fact, make knots and bruises any better. Thanks to his stubbornness (wonder where he gets that), both of his eyes are now black.


On a bright note, the accident somehow managed to render Thatcher really helpful. Yesterday, I was sorting the laundry on the floor and he started putting it all into the same basket. I explained to him that we can't wash whites with darks, gentles with heavy duties, etc. I really didn't think anything of it until a few hours later when I went back upstairs. He had put all of the sorted laundry into separate baskets and took them into the laundry room for me. Who is this child - and can he train his father???

Now that the weather has turned cooler in the evenings, we usually have dinner and after-dinner playtime outside. With these hosta-eaters--I mean "spectators"--in our back yard, can you blame us?

All of the landscaping we did over the summer--or all of it that has not been eaten by the deer--is in full swing now, so we have a large contingent of bumblebees that enjoy feasting on our azalea, phlox, and sedum in the evening. Thatcher kept them company while they ate for a good half an hour last night. It went a little something like this: "Hello, bees. Are you eating supper? Will you go make some honey now, please? Hey, bees, did I tell you I'm going to go trick or treating this Halloween? I want Winston and W to go with Lauren and me. Bees, are you going to go on Halloween?"

More Gangsta

The aforementioned Georgia Tech hat. The Mickey Mouse bracelet really rounds out the ensemble of lavender shorts, pajama top, and hot pink Sleeping Beauty Crocs, don't you think?

Danja

Obviously we knew what we were doing when we gave Hadley a Gangsta nickname (Danja) before she was even born. She usually sports a pink Georgia Tech cap my friend, Bill, gave her when she was born. Today, however, brought the trendy ensemble of polkadots, teapots and cupcakes (on the leggings), Hello Kitty, and Thatcher's Atlanta Braves hat - naturally worn backwards AND askance. She is so street!