New post below...

I just posted a new entry about Mandy's haircut, but it's below "Eureka". That's because I started it three weeks ago and this site thinks it should still be dated as three weeks ago.

So, scroll down and take a look! Mandy's hair is shorter!

Eureka!!

I've been searching for my jump drive for almost two weeks. The last time I'd seen it, it was in my shirt pocket and I was carrying my laptop downstairs to sit on the couch and work on lesson plans. I didn't get them done, though, due to other things that demanded my attention that evening (like the movie Gary was watching...). And that was the last I remembered about the whereabouts of my jump drive.

I wasn't too concerned about it being stolen, as there wasn't any sensitive information on it. It just has some of Collin's schoolwork on it and a copy of my lesson plans for that week. It has a keyring with a little tag that says "school" on it, so there's no mistaking that one with the one Gary has from work. I use it to transfer schoolwork and lesson plans from my laptop to the desktop upstairs for printing. I'd really like to have all our computers networked so I can just send things from the laptop in the schoolroom to the printer upstairs, but that's going to have to wait until Gary has the time to do it.

So, it wasn't that big a deal, but it was really driving me nuts! What in the world did I do with it??

I searched my purse, Mandy's purse (because one never knows), my church bag, my other bags, all the pockets in all the clothes I've worn for the past two months, both vehicles, all the desk drawers, and everywhere else in the house I could think of. No jump drive.

Finally, today I called in the troops. I offered a reward of a free lunch from Sonic for the person who finds my jump drive. That caused Tim to launch into search mode. (Collin would have, too, but he was working on an English essay, and Amy didn't seem too interested.)

I didn't really have much hope of anyone finding it, but to my great surprise ten minutes later, I heard Tim call out, "I FOUND IT!!" It was under the cushion of the couch in the living room. I hadn't remembered sitting there so I didn't look there. ( *smack on forehead* )

So, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to Sonic with my very happy son, and a four-year-old who needs some fries, too. And, just to be nice, I'll probably bring back a slushy for Collin who was stuck doing schoolwork when the missing jump drive search was still on.

Hairdresser-in-the-making

I've been meaning to get this posted for over three weeks, now. Sorry for the delay!!

Yesterday, a certain four-year-old decided she'd waited long enough for her haircut and took matters (a.k.a. scissors) into her own hands.

I intended to get her haircut done that weekend. I really did! It's just that so many other things got in the way that I didn't get it done. Never mind the fact that I'd been taking care of two boys with the flu!!! -- but that doesn't count, does it? I had told her on Saturday morning that I would try and give her a haircut (first mistake) but it would have to be after her bath. I don't like cutting dirty hair, you know. Well, I did what I could that day, and I barely managed to get her bath done.

After her bath, I was just sitting down to rest and she came up to me and said, "Now can I have my haircut?" I'm telling you, this child doesn't forget ANYTHING!!! I had to tell her that I was sorry, but I was wiped out and I just couldn't do it (second mistake). So, she went on her merry way and found something else to do until bedtime. And that was the end of it.

Or, so I thought.

On Monday afternoon, I was downstairs doing something in the kitchen. And after awhile, I noticed things were awfully quiet in the house. I was downstairs alone and Mandy wasn't anywhere in sight. Time to investigate.

Amy was in her room on the computer. Collin was busy doing something, off by himself somewhere. Tim was watching a movie in my room (I don't remember whether or not he actually had permission to be in my room to begin with, but that's a moot point, now). And Mandy was playing with her toys...in my room, too. All was well...

Then Mandy looked up and saw me looking at her, and with a great deal of pride she said, "Look, Mom! I cut my hair!!"

I didn't notice it at first. I wouldn't have noticed it at all if she hadn't made such an effort to show me. "You did? Where?"

"Here!" And she pulled the hair on the sides of her head around to the front so I could see. There was a lot of hair missing.

I didn't see any suspicious items (like scissors) lying around, so I asked, "What did you use to cut your hair with?"

"Your scissors."

"What scissors?"

She grabbed my hand and led me to my bathroom, and pointed to the drawer where I kept my hair-cutting scissors and electric clippers. "Those scissors," she said. The scissors were in the drawer. Further observation revealed hair all over Mandy's shirt, the bathroom counter, and the floor, but not enough to have made me too concerned. Then I saw the HUGE wad of hair in the garbage can. She had cut her own hair, put the scissors away, and tried her best to clean up the mess! I took a closer look at the back of her head, and that's when the reality of it all set in. I had work to do to fix this. *sigh* So, I gave her the rest of her haircut. And she was happy.

However, when I was done, she wasn't quite so happy. She looked in the mirror and said, "I'm a boy, now." She had lost over six inches of beautiful brown hair.

The funny part of it all is that the hair that was really bothering her wasn't touched! Her bangs had been hanging in her eyes for a couple of weeks but she didn't cut those at all, much to my relief. The hair-cutting scissors are now kept safely INSIDE the box with the electric clippers, and I'm pretty sure she can't get that box open. I have a very hard time getting it open myself.

Since then, she has mentioned that she doesn't really like her hair short and she wants it back. I told her that she'll just have to wait until it grows back and that she shouldn't cut it again.

I wonder if she'll remember that!