Pittsburgh Vacation, Day 1: In Which Nolan Has Many Things Happen

"I eat my money."

This is never a good thing to hear on the morning you are heading out of town. Nolan's big eyes were searching my face, pinched into a worried expression. I can guarantee you, it wasn't as worried as mine- the last time we had a child consume money, it resulted in an X-ray, emergency room trip, and an ambulance ride to a hospital in another city.

Luckily, Nolan is quite verbal and I was able to determine the coin he swallowed was a penny, and not 2 Pounds Sterling. He wasn't drooling, gagging, or having difficulty swallowing (issues Matt had when he decided to investigate money with his mouth). We waited an hour or so, watching him like a hawk. After the hour had passed, he was running and playing normally- it was quite clear the child was fine.

We loaded up the children and drove for three hours to Pittsburgh's Children's Museum. It was a delightful place- with a climbing structure that reached three stories high, art studio, and several other interactive exhibits. Matt was enraptured by the art studio and the "garage," where parachutes and climbing nets were located.

Matt in the giant kid climber

Playing on a bubble see-saw

Matt tries his hand at silk screening

Both boys loved the water area. The entire top floor of the Pittsburgh Children's Museum is devoted to water play. Sprinklers, ground fountains, a water table, and pipes covered the room, and the boys were in heaven.

Nolan, prior to taking a swim in the water table

The museum offered rain coats and crocs to help keep clothing dry. This worked perfectly, until Nolan decided to take a swim in the water table. While Matt was tinkering with pipes and setting up a complicated plumbing design, Nolan was reaching for a toy and fell "overboard." Fortunately for us, his hearing aids had been removed as soon as we walked into the area.

Nolan was soaking wet (and more than a little upset), so we decided it was time to check into our hotel and head out to dinner. A quick change of clothes and the quiet of the hotel settled his nerves.

We took a trip to the Church Brew Works (a converted Catholic Church, which is now a micro-brewery). Matt was happy to get pizza, and was intrigued by all of the stained glass. The only downside is that there is a 90% chance that his next trip to church might involve a question on the location of the kegs...

Dinner at the Church Brew Works

Once back at the hotel, we took a swim before settling in for a good night's sleep. The boys rotated beds a few times during the night, but finally fell asleep. Around midnight, I heard Nolan crying, "Mommy, help me!"

I stumbled around the darkness of the room, looking for Nolan in the plush comforter of the boys' bed. I couldn't find him at all. I felt around the floor, all the while hearing his voice crying. Nearing panic mode, I called out to Dennis, "I can't find the baby!"

Seriously. We're in a hotel room, can hear him crying, and can't find the child. We turned on the light and played "find that sound." We finally found him.. under the bed. Curled up in a corner and hidden by the dust ruffle- he had crawled under the bed and gotten stuck. With a little tugging and maneuvering, we freed him and put him back to bed.

We can only hope our next day of vacation will not involve swallowed money, swims in the water table, or children lost in the middle of the night.

Visiting Chautauqua Institution Beach

The Chautauqua Institution is a famous center for the arts, education, religion, and recreation. During the nine weeks of summer, there is a hefty entrance fee. During the "off season," however, admittance is free. With a wonderful late spring heat wave rolling through the area, several "Mommy Friends" and I took our kids to the beach near the Miller Bell Tower.

Shallow water, bright sun, and a floating dock made for an exhilarating afternoon. It also made for two very tired boys, and a great nap time!






While the winter snow may be difficult to bear during the six months of winter, the warm summer days more than compensate!

I Blame The Weather Man

We were heading up to Buffalo for a routine hearing test, so I checked the weather forecast. It was supposed to be in the high 70's, and I did a dance for joy- we could go to the zoo after the hearing test. Even better, we could wear shorts!

At 10:00am, the parking lot of Buffalo Hearing and Speech Center was 55 degrees. I'm pretty sure the blowing wind was close to 35 degrees. Considering I had not brought warmer clothing along for the trip, this was not a good sign.

The lack of forethought to bring jackets and jeans could be attributed to poor mothering skills, but I far prefer to blame the weather man. Obviously, the forecast was a wee bit "off." Hey, at least I remembered sunscreen!

The kids were definitely pro zoo trip, so we braved the icy wind and drove to Delaware Park. There are parking options at the Buffalo Zoo- you can pay to park in the zoo lot, or you can park for free just around the corner. Because I'm cheap frugal, you can guess where we parked. At least the walk prevented hypothermia!

We're Erie Zoo members, and the Buffalo Zoo used to be free as part of the reciprocating zoo membership program. Alas, this is no longer true. I might have saved on parking, but I had to fork over entrance fees.

We headed to the rain forest exhibit, where it is always a balmy 80 degrees. We visited every indoor attraction available, and by the time we were done, the temperature did reach the mid 70's outside.

The boys played on the new playground, we watched the sea lions, and the boys played "vet" in the learning room. It was a good, if not entirely warm, day!

Matt on the playground

Playing vet

Sea lions rock Nolan's world

Matt, trying to "race" the sea lion

The Pet Ladder

When we were first married, we rescued two cats from a pet shelter. Two cats is enough pet for anyone, particularly when those cats have enough hair create a thousand tribbles every time you comb them. I was pretty sure we would never acquire another pet, at least not until our beloved cats were no longer with us.

The cat, who resents the fact that we had kids.

Then we had kids. Kids who love animals. Kids who want a dog.

I needed to find a smaller, less troublesome pet to satisfy the boys' need for animal companionship. This is not to instill a sense of responsibility, since we all know who ends up taking care of the household pets (hint: it rhymes with "Nommy"). It is more of a stalling tactic, hoping to delay the inevitable dog by a few years. I don't really want to use a pooper scooper in addition to changing diapers every day.

The "small pet" choice had to be carefully considered. I didn't want to start with something like a hamster, because I hate rodents and the smell of rodent pee they're too delicate for small children to care for. I'm not allowing reptiles, either, because I don't want to have to watch it feed every week. Around Easter time, I found the perfect pet. Sea Monkeys.

Future fish food. I mean, "Sea Monkeys."

Sea monkeys are great. Almost no care, except for replenishing water once in a while and dumping some powdered food into the "tank." And if they die, no one really cares. After all, they're a bunch of creepy crustaceans that look like bugs.

What I didn't count on was my husband's reaction to the Sea Monkeys. He observed our boys watching the underwhelming specks, and immediately declared, "They need a FISH TANK!"

And so we have started climbing the "pet ladder." You know, the one where you buy an innocuous "starter pet" and end up with a zoo in the family room. The fish tank has been purchased, three fish placed in the tank, and what do you know- one of the fish is already pregnant!

In a week or so, we will have a bazillion little swordtails hiding in the plastic plants. Unless Mom and Dad decide to eat all of their young, which is what I suspect will happen.

The expectant couple

So far, I have been able to stop the growth of Zoo Lefler, even as Dennis peruses advertisements shouting, "Adorable dachshunds! 8 weeks old! WITH PAPERS!"Because, apparently, having "papers" makes your dachshund even more adorable. My official stance is "No more pets," lest we end up with three turtles, ferrets, an iguana, and a herd of alpacas in the backyard.

I doubt I'll be able to hold out against the three other members of the family for long. Wish me luck!

Wordless Wednesday: The Tow Rope

Oh, For the Love of Mud

Boys are dirt magnets. It is a law of physics: the universe is subject to entropy, and boys are subject to getting dirty. A crystal clear spring day dawns, and my boys will find the only mud puddle within a 2 mile radius. They'll jump into it with their only pair of tennis shoes, before I can find the rain boots. They'll splash each other until their faces are covered in wet clay. They'll get so sopping wet that they squelch when they walk.

They'll also have a moment of absolute joy.

My washing machine may go on strike today, and I can't say I blame it!

Mud shower!

You missed a spot.

Checking the water level.

Jumping for joy.

Emptying out the excess mud.

The Cat

The cat showed up with a wound in his side. A rather nasty one, which had the diameter of a dime and was down to the muscle. We have two cats, but only Teddy shows up with strange wounds or disgusting illnesses. He is the cat which requires more grooming, and bathing him is definitely an ordeal.

Of course, the cat would show up with a nasty wound on Saturday evening. I called the vet's emergency line, and repeatedly got a busy signal. We live in a rural area, so there are not many emergency veterinarian services in the local area. Since Teddy didn't seem ill, I decided to wait until Monday for his vet appointment.


I got him crated up (which sounds so much simpler than the actual act of shoving a cat into a carrier) and we headed to the vet. One harried mother, a four year old running amok and "zapping" everyone with his imaginary laser gun, and a two year old hanging from the exam table. Not to mention the wounded cat, who was less than pleasant. I'm pretty sure they now have a warning note next to our file: "Tell family we have no available appointments."

While the wound in Teddy's side looked impressive, the vet looked at it and told us that it was fine- we should just smear some antibiotic cream onto it for the next few days. He thew in some oral antibiotics for good measure. Because if there's anything a cat loves more than cream smearing, it's swallowing a pill. If you don't hear from us by the weekend, we've all been horribly clawed to death.

Then the vet mentioned they could do a "shave down," to rid us of Teddy's terrible mats. I agreed, even before they tried to convince me that the Lion Cut was the newest rage among cats. They could have told me that Teddy was getting the Rat Cut, and I would have said, "Go right ahead!"


I retrieved him today. He promptly thanked me for his excellent medical care by peeing all over the dining room carpet. Cats like to share the love.

Pete, in the meantime, looks suspicious. He should- his appointment is on Friday.

I'm off to buy band-aids, leather gloves, and gauze. Fourteen days of oral antibiotics for a cat that is holding a grudge... this ought to be fun.

Twenty Questions

In the middle of a busy doctor's waiting room, Matt decided that "I Spy" had become passe. I had to find a new game, so I thought I'd try "Twenty Questions." After a few rounds of the game, Matt had the general idea. He decided it was his turn, so I started asking him questions:

"Is it alive?"

"Yes."

"Does it have feathers?"

"No."

"Does it move with legs?"

"No. It has wheels."

At this point, I thought his concept of "alive" was questionable.

"Is it a truck?"

"NO! Mom, it has fur."

By this point, I was thoroughly confused. An animal, with fur and wheels? I figured that his ability to understand this game was minimal, so I gave up and told him to tell me what the answer was. I figured he would say "train" or "elephant," and we could move on to another game.

No, he wanted me to guess. And after a long, long time of fruitless questioning, I finally begged him to tell me the answer. It turns out he was right- it was an animal, with fur. And it had four wheels. Care to guess what the item in question was?

A goat on a skateboard.

Well, why didn't I think of that in the first place?