Cranium Bloom Cooking Game Meets Bizarre Foods...Sort Of

Our boys, 5 & 8, are highly amused by all things gross. Here's what happens in our home when you get to choose anything you want as a "special" ingredient in a board game. Yes, ANYTHING.

They turned a very innocent kids Cranium Bloom cooking game into something absurdly disgusting. If you've ever played the game, you know that when you land on a star you get to choose a special ingredient to go in the meal you are "cooking". Well, in our game, the special ingredient(s) went something like this:

tapeworm infused poop.

Daddy's underarm hair

Earwax

a gallon of spit

And, that is actually not the worst of it.

Yes, I know, it was nauseating to say the least. All boys are like this right? RIGHT???

Can you believe these are the same boys? Don't they look so sweet and innocent playing by our creek?

Morning Conversations With My 5 Yr Old Son

Mommy, does my brain have its own toys?

Mommy, does a brain have a toy box?

Mommy, is my brain picking out toys out of its toy box when I play with my toys?

What if my brain is dumping its whole toy box out?

When I'm eating does my brain get its own snacks?

Stop talking to my lungs, brain.

You need a sandwich not dessert, brain.

He blurted out this list of questions in less than 5 minutes. And, I'm still sitting here wondering how to answer him, and consequently questioning my ability to home school.

The Boy And His Music

Our 5 yr old son has always had a "thing" for music. Many a nights he has fallen asleep listening to music while sitting in his Daddy's lap. For a while that was the only way to get him to sleep especially during those times when he would throw up for days on end (due to his EE).

When we are in the car he wants the music on and he wants it loud despite my incessant warnings that he will go deaf at an early age. And, his taste in music certainly isn't Barney, the Wiggles, or those Kidzbop Cds. We've tried putting "that" kind of music on for him to listen to and he literally freaks out. He'd rather listen to Black Label Society, Maroon 5, and the like. It's always been this way with him... even when he was baby.

Now he's progressed on to making up song lyrics. Yesterday evening he shared with me his latest very short song...

"Oh No! Oh No! I don't want to be little" to the tune of something very hard rock-ish.

While it's cute, I think he will be eating those words when he gets older. Something tells me that when he becomes an adult he will be wishing he was a child again...unless he actually does become a rockstar. In that case, I guess he will be living the dream life.

Reviews & Ridiculousness

This review stuff (for lack of a better word) is beginning to get ridiculous.

Last week I received an email asking me to review a product. So I took my time and looked the product over like I normally do when I'm interested in a product then I emailed the rep back telling them that we would be interested if they could mail a sample. I received a reply that they would need the sample back, and since they knew these weren't my terms could I please just review the image of the product instead. What?????????????????

At this point I had to take a step back. I was furious. Let me get this straight - You want me to mail back a piece of plastic that is worth no more than a few dollars? Huh? And, if I can't go by those rules - you want me to review an image? Are you freaking kidding me? I mostly politely declined but really wanted to say what was on my mind.

Is there a Mom out there that would agree to do this? And, if so then blogging as we know it is over. We can kiss the possibility of ever getting an advertisement goodbye.

I don't know where I'm going with this post. All I know is that email really made me stop and think about this whole review situation. I'm not saying that I'm going to totally quit accepting products for review but it is not what I am about. Furthermore, I'm also not saying that every PR company is like the one mentioned above. I've worked with and continue to work with some great companies. I've also worked with some horrible companies that either just don't get it or just don't care.

Overall, my biggest problem is that these greedy billion dollar companies think they can buy us for a bag of chips and a roll of toilet paper. And, they will as long as we let them. If we continue to blog for all this free stuff then there's no need for advertising. IT IS the advertising, and we are doing it for free. These are the same companies that act like they are truly interested in Moms. Are they really?

Summer Fun On The PlasmaCar!

Our 5 yr old is thrilled beyond words with this toy!

Visit A Mom's Review for our complete review of the PlasmaCar & for a chance to win one of your very own!

It's Just One Of Those Days: Tuna Salad Edition

Ever had one of those days when pretty much nothing goes right. Today is one of those days...at least when it comes to tuna salad.

Round 1:

Fix tuna salad for the husband and I to eat for lunch.

Husband opens our front door and the dog runs in the house.

I try to get the dog back out of the house with some food.

Cat takes this opportunity to eat half of the tuna salad I made for lunch.

Husband throws the remaining tuna salad out to the dog.

Round 2:

Fix tuna salad AGAIN.

5 year old son walks through the door. Guess what happens?

The dog comes in the house.

Leaving the tuna salad, I go get a dog treat to get the dog back out of the house.

Cat goes for the tuna salad AGAIN. Shhhhh. At this point I was too frazzled to make more tuna salad so I just gave it to the husband anyway. The husband doesn't know that the cat ate out of the second batch too. This can be our little secret.

Round 3:

Husband makes a tuna salad sandwich

And accidentally dumps the rest of it in the floor.

I give up. Maybe I should resign from cooking for the day.

BTW, I hope everyone had a wonderful 4th of July holiday. We did the simple (mostly crazy-free) community free food & fireworks up here in our neck of the woods. Seriously, we are in the woods.