Tickle Me Sami

I know that Sami thinks he's funny. I also know that my boys laugh at very silly things. Combine these two ingredients and you get a Finnish sandwhich that makes you giggle. If not you, at least Peter and David cracked up. Ok, they also crack up when Mama tries to cook, but that probably comes from following Papa's lead.

Sami is an expecting father, so he spent over an hour training with the animals. As a hardcore athlete, it is not surprising that he would train with two weights, knowing that when his race starts, he will only have one weight dragging him down. Have fun with that diapered anchor, Chorizo.

I spent the rest of the afternoon building Lego shit. I say 'shit' because that was Papa's word-of-the-minute as I put together all of the crap that Santa had so thoughtfully forgotten to put together. The label on these toys claimed 'a fun-filled building adventure for the entire family'. The tag might as well have read 'Sorry, but our sweat shops have been shut down, so our toys no longer come fully assembled - have fun trying to decipher our cryptic symbols and five million pieces.'

The doorbell rang and I welcomed the distraction to my destructive, yet somehow calming thoughts of blowing up the Lego factory. Dana, Daniel, Zack and Owen showed up and like the three wise guys, they came bearing gifts.

Despite what it may look like, a hot male with two weird-looking kids was not the present. The gift was the two hot (chocolate) mugs and some weird looking marshmallows. Thanks, Dana. For the sugar-filled hot cocoa powder, as well as the sugar-filled marshmallows. Did you include the spatula I will surely need to unstick them from the ceiling later on?

Angie was so close to cooking tonight, but after a surprisingly brief argument, she graciously allowed Dana to get her feast on. It had shrimps, it had basil, it was freakin' yummy. I was close to not drinking tonight, but after a surprisingly brief discussion, I graciously allowed Daniel to pour me a drink. It had malt, it had hops, I was freakin' thirsty.

After dinner, we drew up maps on how to take over the world. Peter displayed early signs of leadership:

So maybe Pictionary is not the best way to devise the end of mankind as we know it. At one point, Angie drew a lovely sketch of a pizza and cute little companion that resembled a fish. 'PIZZA FISH' is the slightly-sober-yet-still-intellectual contribution that I made to our little drawing game. Angie scolded me and mumbled something about anchovies and being a moron, but I was too focused on Daniel's gracious offer of a liquid dessert to really notice.

It's not that easy to top an action-packed game of Pictionary, but Zack proved that he is no easy rider. As Angie dragged Dana to the computer for a quick fix of Crackbook, Zack decided it would be the perfect time to play indoor soccer. Angie's wine glass vs. the soccer ball ended 0-1, but I kind of like the fermented grape smell that now fills the room every time the computer warms up. Thanks, Zack!

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Ladder Talk:
1) What was the best part of your day?
Peter: When Zack and Owen come.
David: When Sami and that Kika come by.

2) What was the worst part of your day?
Peter: When I couldn't today go to Dalia's
David: When I cry 'cause Clooney scratch me here, okay?

3) What would you like to do tomorrow?
Peter: To play with my new ramp.
David: When Zack and Owen come again, okay?

see related cartoon

Peter Pan and the Lost Boys

This morning, I wanted to show Peter that French toast involved more than just drinking wine and acting superior. Peter soon found out that it was hard work, but at least he was able to enjoy the sweets of his labor. C'est la vie!

After breakfast, I kissed the boys and headed off to war. They were sad. I was sad. Angie laughed her ass off. So much for the farewell french kiss.

The battleground was Brian and Clarice's old apartment and the mission was to displace their weary furniture to the war zone, also known as their new house. As we entered operation renovation, there was an eerie dust hanging in the air. Through the woody mist, I could see half-destroyed walls, low-hanging pipes, and strange wires hanging out of odd places that screamed 'boobytrap'.

Halfway through our first offensive, I suffered a self-induced flesh wound on the fleshy part of my thigh. Luckily for my leg, my jeans took the brunt of the attack, leaving only minor tissue damage.

Halfway through the attack, a kind Brazilian nurse fed us Sigrid-beans and bread. It tasted great, but I fear that Angie may need her gas mask in the morning. The bean power gave the troops the strength to march on, but like most military maneuvers, I sensed that we left the place more devastated than when we began.

After 'Saving Private Brian' I headed home to find the Lost Boys, Zack and Owen. It had been years since I had last seen the 'boys' so I was surprised to find a tall young man with a moustache and his bass-playing sidekick.

'Angie! Who are these strange men and why are they playing with our cat?'

'That is not our cat, she is my cat and...hey - what the hell happened to your jeans?'

Dana and Daniel had come over for dinner and either forgot that we were making the food or thought that somehow Angie was cooking. They brought enough food to feed themselves, our entire family, the neighbors and our cat which Angie thinks she owns ever since that time when she tried to steal our neighbor's cat. Let me flash back to that memorable moment...

We were in our old apartment. Angie went to the store and came walking back with an arm full of groceries. I was, what a shocker, in the kitchen cooking and saw her approaching. I waved to her and she started waving her free arm like a madwoman. This by itself is not so unusual, but then she started pointing to a cat on the neighbor's window sill that slightly resembled our cat. I watched as Angie put down the groceries and picked up the strange cat and began petting it. Since we have a cat door, it is not that unusual that Gizma would be out roaming the neighborhood. What was strange was the tiny furball rubbing my leg as I watched Angie catnapping the neighbor's pet. I scooped up our cat and held it up to the window for Angie to see. Even from the distance, I could see her face turn red as she slowly put the unknown cat back on the neighbor's window sill and raced back home to 'her' cat.

For our late Mexican thanksgiving dinner, we stuffed ourselves on burritos, just in case my body had not yet received enough bean input for the day. Afterwards, we played Poker Yahtze. I love poker, so the game itself was awesome. Not so awesome was that Owen was kicking everyone's ass all night. That kid can bluff and hustle like a true gambler. Watch out, Kenny Rogers!

Despite several lessons from my father, poker may have been a few years ahead of Peter. He was more interested in Owen's 'Sleeping Queens' game. After an hour too many, Peter finally got tired of the game and gave up. Perhaps this morning's breakfast lesson inadvertently taught him how to easily surrender. C'est la vie!
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Ladder Talk:
1) What was the best part of your day?
Peter: When Zack and Owen came.
David: When Dalia come.

2) What was the worst part of your day?
Peter: When I couldn't stay and play still.
David: When I cry and Dalia too cry 'cause Dalia make that close and I get bonk book my head and I cry.

3) What would you like to do tomorrow?
Peter: To play with Zack and Owen that game with the queens and the dragons.
David: To see Zack and Owen and play.