So Much Laundry

There is just always so much laundry to do in the Stott house!

Fifty Years and Counting

Abby and Daniel's grandparents celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary on November 28th. Abby and Daniel had a great time at the party! (And the grandparents did too!

And the Tooth Fairy Adds to her Collection

Abby asked her dentist to pull her tooth on Wednesday. Her dentist told Abby to go home and bite into a carrot. Abby actually did that even though she is not a fan of vegetables. It didn't work. She tried biting into an apple. That didn't work either.

I decided to take matters into my own hands because I was tired of Abby's complaints that the tooth hurt. It took me all of a second to pull the tooth out.

And thanks to me, tonight the tooth fairy will finally be able to pay Abby a second visit!

The Tooth Fairy is Impatiently Waiting

I'm convinced this tooth is actually no longer physically attached to Abby! However, she refuses to give it up! Little does she know what the tooth fairy has hidden away just waiting, and waiting, and waiting...

Things that Make Daniel Cry

Daniel's been crying quite a bit recently. He has an estimated eight teeth breaking the surface and has had a fever off and on for the past two days. To add insult to injury, his mean parents insist on occasionally taking his beloved shoes off his feet (you know, like at bath time). This is a sure bet way to make Daniel cry. Tonight I discovered a new way to make Daniel cry -- I took the red crayon away from him that he was using to decorate our sofa. He was not at all happy about this and cried and cried.

Poor boy.

Poor sofa.

Smile

Is this the face you'd expect to see after saying, "Smile?"

How about this one?

Yeah, I didn't think so! Me neither.

Ouch!

I'm completely swamped with work these days. Each morning I drop Daniel and Abby off at their schools and as I drive home, I cross my fingers hoping that both will stay healthy and remain in school the whole day (it is flu season, you know). I get home, go to my office and start to work. Each time our home phone rings I cringe, hoping it is not one school or the other telling me that my child has a raging fever, is vomiting and needs to be picked up immediately. (OK, so this may sound crazy, but I'm simply being honest and sharing my daily thought processes with you. Be kind, be supportive! Don't judge me -- these are trying times.)

I have an 8:30 AM conference call each Tuesday, so Will takes the children to school. This morning when my call ended, I dove right into all that I needed to accomplish today. The phone rang at about 10:45 AM. I initially thought it was a telemarketing call and was not particularly polite when I answered. I soon learned that Daniel fell on the playground and cut his eye. It had bled quite a lot and the school was concerned that the cut was deep.

So much for work!

Luckily, the cut did not require stitches. Daniel is fine. He's happy and tonight, one Mayo doctor, one Mayo physician's assistant, and two Mayo nurses go to sleep having been charmed today by a brave little boy who survived his impromptu clinic visit by talking to and laughing at his beloved shoes.

Sweet sister Abby was so concerned when she saw Daniel's eye. She's always a lovely sister, but tonight she was the star, repeatedly pushing Daniel through the hallway on his lion scooter. They both laughed and laughed.

Dirtball

Daniel, Daphne and I were hanging out on Sunday. (Will and Abby were swimming.) Daphne headed upstairs. Daniel walked to the stairs and started calling out. It was obvious that he was calling for the dog, but I could not figure out what he was saying. It definitely didn't sound like Daphne or Daffodil (a name I sometimes call the dog). I kept listening as he repeated the word over and over. And then it hit me!! My son was calling the dog "dirtball!" I got a grand chuckle out of this (I'm laughing again as I type)! I confess, I do sometimes call the dog dirtball, but in the most loving way of course! I just didn't realize I called her dirtball often enough for Daniel to pick up on it! Today he looked at her and said, "No, Dirtball!" Good stuff!

Abby's First Grade School Picture

We were delighted to see Abby's first grade picture! We are unabashedly biased, but we think this girl is CUTE!