Train Kept A-Rollin'

Grandma and Grandpa from Iowa came up this weekend and one of our stops was the local model train museum. I am really into trains, especially my friend, Thomas, so I was really excited. There weren't just model trains...I actually got to play with little trains, similar to what I have now. Best of all, I got to be the lead engineer on Thomas the Train, himself. I could be heard saying "Chuga-chuga-choo-choo" many times during our afternoon.

P-A-R-T-Why? Because I Got To!

It's been a long, rough week and sometimes the only thing you can do is dance.

Then we wound back the phat track and danced to it a second time.

Ealier in the evening, completely unprompted and out of nowhere, I did actually tell dad "Every day I'm shuffling, shuffling"

:

The Li-berry

While, yes, the winter has been mild, it has severely hampered my ability to mill around outside and commune with nature. So, I've taken to reading during the winter months. One of my favorite activities that I have discovered this winter is going to the library. I have found all sorts of books on animals and manners as well as a fire truck puzzle that I really enjoy. Today, I made my stop at the library and enjoyed a good book, "The Bear Snores On"; one of my favorites from school. However, this narrated itself and I could just listen and follow along with the pictures.

Pre-Spring Cleaning

I've decided that I need to get started early on my spring cleaning. Technically, I guess, it's not really spring but it sure feel's like it. Plus, Mom and Dad are such slobs I need to get started now if I plan to do anything this summer. So, I picked up my spray bottle and was rag and got to work. Not a window or wall was safe. I sprayed and wiped down every surface I could find. Who drews these green circles all over the walls? I don't have any definitive proof, but I suspect Mom or Dad - possibly even both. All I know is, whoever eventually gets caught - and they will - will regret every picture they drew on the wall. No one escapes my wrath.

Turns out the garage was also dirty. Seriously, what does Dad do out there? He certainly isn't cleaning up after himself. I've accumulated quite the assortmet of tools in the past year. I got out my broom and my rake to clean up in the garage.

Next, I got my garden hoe out to chip up the ice. I've learned the hard way, ice is not my friend.

Even a hard working, no nonsense guy like myself can find some time to relax. After a hard couple of hours cleaning out the garage, I hopped in my ride and drove around by myself for awhile..

I Can't Spell BMW, but I'm Driving One

Before you jump to any conclusions...yes, I am behind the wheel of a BMW. Dad took the Mini in to get a light bulb changed and the next thing he knew the car needed a lot of other immediate upkeep. The dealership didn't have any Minis instock so he was sent home with a BMW loaner car for a couple of days. Dad said it was a tough choice, but he decided he could drive a Beamer around for a couple of days.

We weren't going to have the car very long so we decided we better take advantage while we could. I don't quite understand why, but apparently Mom and Dad are convinced there is no way they will have the ability to be driving a car like this again. Something about the "basic of economics". I don't know that that is. I just know they better figure out how to get their hands on this kind of vehicle, because I could grow comfortable to this kind of lifestyle.

In case anyone is wondering, yes, there is a difference between a BMW and a Saturn Ion. My God, there is.

Close that door!

As I get older and wiser with each passing day, I find it incumbent upon myself to fix things up around the house. Mom and Dad sure aren't going to do it. No matter how many times I point out light bulbs or batteries that need to be replaced, Mom and Dad never seem too quick to just drop everything and fix it right then and there on the spot.

One of my favorite activities has been to take the screw driver out of the kitchen drawer and promptly begin unscrewing the hinges off the kitchen cabinets. I like to tell Dad that I do it because "I need to."

I've also been active helping Dad clean up his room...I mean it's only been about a year since they moved it, so obviously it would seem natural that he still has numerous boxes unpacked. I wonder what he spends all his time doing that prevents him from cleaning? Oh well, I helped give an inspection of his clothes cabinet.

New Year Fondue PSA: Fon-"do and dont's"

Happy New Year - I know it's a little late, but honestly the party doesn't ever stop with me. I had a great New Year's. I brought in the New Year in style...fonduing. It was a lot of fun...oranges, strawberries, bananas, marshmellows and Oreo cookies dipped in chocolate. What could go wrong. I had a lot of fun dipping my food in chocolate. My favorite were the oranges; suprisingly I didn't find the marshmellow's as appealing. I learned a lot though, dipping bananas in chocolate - that certainly is a Fun-do. Scraping the metal tongs across the pot - that most definitely is a fon-don't.

Yessir, it was a good new year celebration, but the fun didn't end there. I kept Mom and Dad on their toes. On Monday, the 2nd I told dad to "cut me some slack" - a phrase he often utters to me when I am letting him know he is not quite meeting my expectations of speed and mind reading. On Wednesday, the 4th, I shocked Mom and Dad on the ride home from school by counting from 1 to 10...in German. The next day, I suprised Mom and Dad on the way home by singing Salt-N-Pepa's "Shoop" to the radio.