Wild Man Henry

Henry has been a total tornado since he got out of bed. While we were getting everyone ready for mass he climbed onto the toilet lid, opened the cabinet, found the toothpaste, and started sucking it from the tube. He proceeded to find a tube of pink drink mix that can be added to a bottle of water. He bit it open, poured it on the furniture, rubbed his hands into it, and started licking. After he got into trouble for that we then found him in the trash going back for more. He lost a shoe seconds before we needed to put him in the van. He also tried to take off his pants.

Mass was a disaster. Henry kept talking and moving and talking some more. He really liked the high school girl behind us, and he wanted to be as close to her as possible. He also wanted to say, "Chubby cheeks," and poke his baby sister. This wasn't okay with us, so we tried to hold him. By "try" I mean wrestle. After he pulled Olivia's hair and hit Robbie, they made their exit. Just imagine more of the same for over an hour. Henry being loud. Us telling him to be quiet. Parents taking turns struggling to hold an almost 30 pounder outside the main doors to the church. We don't let him down because then he'll actually want to go out there. It was all I could do to hold him for the extended period of time it took for him to settle down enough to enter the church again. He kept trying to kiss me with his tongue. He bit my diamond necklace and wouldn't stop pulling on it. At one point he announced, "I bad boy." He learned that from his sisters, not from me. Behavior is bad, not children. I know. Once back in our pew he said loudly, "I want waffles. I want warm milk." This is such a hard age for mass. Olivia did it too, so I know this too shall pass. I really need to check out Children's Church again.

After the service ended we saw friends of ours who are expecting their fifth baby any day. Their oldest is the age of our oldest. We then saw friends whose oldest is younger than our oldest, and they are now expecting number five. The fourth and fifth children will be 18 months apart, which is their biggest spread thus far. The father said he is almost giddy with excitement. He kept smiling and talking about how cute Henry is. "I bet you can never get mad at that face, can you?" he asked. I thought to myself, "This has to be the nicest guy in the world, and he is either nuts or medicated." I'm joking, but his joyful attitude toward so many little kids in so few years made me feel like a cranky parent in comparison.

Once we fed the children at home, Robbie headed out with the big girls to Home Depot for parts to build a protective meshwork for the salsa garden he's building as my birthday gift. Fun, huh? I must water my plants this year, or I'm going to be in big trouble after Robbie puts forth so much effort.

I decided to do the weekly shopping since I made my meal plan for the week last night. For those of you who need some inspiration, here's my plan. You can always Google the topic for some recipes if something sounds good. I have no time to provide them.
Baked Deli Focaccia Sandwiches
Poppyseed Chicken with Mango, Pineapple, and Blueberry Green Leaf Salad
Sloppy Joes with Cucumber, Snap Pea and Mint Salad
Grilled Chicken with Lemon and Oregano
Spicy Tuna Melts

The shopping trip began well. Henry climbed into the van in our garage and went straight to his carseat. This is almost unheard of these days. He goes everywhere except his seat, and his seat is in the middle of the back row. That means I always have to climb somewhere to grab him and then fight him into his seat. Today I put Vivian into her Hotsling and unfastened Henry. He climbed immediately into the passenger side front seat. I went around to get him, and he climbed into the driver seat. He did this back and forth once more before I caught him. I was laughing at his smarts. He is such a little stinker. His sandal then fell off, so that had to be corrected.

I decided to put him in the huge semi-truck length car cart. It was right next to the store phone, and he pushed the intercom button and opened up the store mike before I could stop him. You should have seen me frantically pushing buttons and hanging up the receiver in an attempt to cancel the intercom. The trip proceeded Henry fashion. He was caught getting into the carton of eggs. He tried to open the bag of pretzels. He managed to get his free chocolate cookie from the bakery all over his face and hands. "I need a wipe!" he announced. At the checkout he pulled ten magazines onto the floor. And yes, once back in the van he climbed into the front seat of the car, again. God love him.

Henry is a totally normal and active 2-year-old boy. He's amazingly cute. His verbal abilities have us laughing several times daily. He has chubby cheeks and gives big kisses and exhausts his mother. He's sleeping right now. He'll wake up this afternoon fully recharged, and our family will experience exciting moments with Henry once again.

Grandparents beware. Robbie brought up the topic of his ophthalmology conference being held in Chicago in October. I said, "I can't see anyone being willing to keep all four, but you can always hope."