Three is no crowd.: Toads and birthdays.

I have a million things to do. And I'm just going to blog about it, because there is much to blog. I want to wear lipstick and crank up the music and dance with my baby, because that's what I want to do when there are deadlines, two loads of unfolded laundry on the sofa and dishes in the sink.

He found a love bug. Not hard to find of course. But when he found a bug in our house, what a moment for ceremony. He eyed it down, repeating "bug, bug, bug" and pointing to the bug. Like, "Mom, you can't miss this, there's a bug in our house. On our very kitchen floor!"

Soon, he got the gusto to pick up the bug. Squeezed in his little pincer grasp, crushing the live bug, and bring it to his mamma.

To which I responded, "Ew, go put it in the trash can."

Jack loves peas. Isn't that weird? Not a big fruit fan, but peas and green beans, yum. Maybe he just likes the color green.

So I gave him a cup of peas to carry around the house and nibble on. But he can't seem to eat the peas out of the cup.

He likes his peas off the floor. Which leads to a peas-smooshed-in-carpet mess.

What else do we do in the Pacheco household other than torture love bugs? We torture toads! I was picking up the post the other night and saw a toad on the sidewalk. And I thought, wouldn't that be fun to show Jack. We could teach him toad, and what the toad says and how the toad hops. But I could never pick up that toad. So I got my post and looked at the toad. He hadn't moved. He was waiting for me. I found a sand bucket and a sifter in my car, and using some junk mail, eased the toad into my bucket.

I was so giddy with excitement and my heart was racing thinking about the toad I stole from his family. But the excitement on Jack's face will clean me of all this guilt. So I hopped back in my car, bucket in one hand and drove home very slowly. And the toad would hop and I would scream, in my car by myself, because I don't know what I'd do if the thing got out. Scream? Jump out of the car and run to the safety of my home to have my husband get the car and lure the toad out?

But I made it to the garage where Jack and Jose stood waiting. I had the biggest beam on my face as Jose thought, uh-oh, what did you do?

It was SO worth it.

And of course, we let the toad go. And my added disclaimer: no animals, amphibians or babies were hurt during this moment of fun.

Jose is a very good daddy. He knows how to love his baby. And with the new baby coming, he thought it would be smart to instill his baby-loving skills on his baby.

How to love your baby.

How to hold your baby.

How to gently place your baby on a seat.

How to buckle baby in.

So I only had to tell Jose four times that I really wanted pretty harvesty flowers for my center piece. He's deaf to subtlety. Until I told him, on his way out to Publix, "If you even get the urge to bring me a treat from the store, like sometimes men do for their ladies, I would really like some flowers for my centerpiece. This one right here, in this empty vase. I think flowers would go perfect in there."

I did good.