In the Blink of an Eye

A few months ago, I used to be able to plop Finnley down on the floor and surround her with some toys while I would occupy myself. And, when I say "occupy myself" I mean cleaning, vacuuming, cooking...you name it. Household drudgery, to be exact. But, it was lovely to simply put Finn down and know that she was safe, non-mobile, and fairly happy for a good while.

Those days are gone. Long gone. Kiss them goodbye-gone. Gone, forever, and ever, and ever, amen.

Now Finnley moves. And she is not happy to stay in one place for more than a minute or two. And, she is not happy to stay out of trouble. And, I still need to "occupy" myself with household drudgery at times. Because if I didn't, we would all be swimming in dog hair up to our knees. Or armpits. And, I don't think I am exaggerating.

So, while I am occupied, for however brief of a time that might be, my little inquisitor is seeking out mischief in every corner of our home. What kind of mischief, you ask?

Well, Finnley has managed the following:

daily visits to the dog's water bowl for a splashing good time

sticking face in dog's water bowl to see what that might feel like...and trying to take a drink

dumping all of the treats out of her "non-spill" treat trap

playing "telephone" where it is then left on "talk" for 70 minutes and we have a "low battery" warning

pulling mommy's diaper bag onto the floor about 500 times and playing with the various contents

taking apart the plastic pieces that direct air into the room from the air conditioner vent

climbing the dog, over and over again

pulling all of the toilet paper off of the roll and then proceeding to eat it

removing all of the items from the dog's basket of "stuff"

climbing the stairs and then attempting to come down them head first

getting in the dog's treat bin, feeding the dog treats, and feeding the dog's treats to herself (I removed all 3 of them)

pulling herself up onto a candle holder and then knocking the candle down on herself

taking books out of my book bin one by one...and then playing with them on the floor

removing several folded items from the laundry basket and throwing them all over the hardwood

going through the garbage can in the bathrooms, taking out tissues and examining them

playing with daddy's Ohio State flag

banging on the wood-burning stove, which thankfully is not in use right now

climbing the front of the oven

tipping over in the highchair (ok, this one did happen, but it wasn't her fault...the dog was underneath and knocked it over with her in it...SCARY!)

And, all of this mayhem occurs IN THE BLINK OF AN EYE! No joke! It is all enough to make a mom laugh and / or have a heart attack. Hopefully the laughter will stave off the heart attack...or something like that.

I am a smart woman and mommy, so no one needs to point out that this list will only continue to grow as Finnley does. Walking will add a whole new dimension of trouble to our little world. Hopefully nothing that band-aids, some good "NO-NO's", and a little bit of redirection and guidance can't successfully treat.

Maybe I will just tape open my eyelids, too, and stop blinking...think it will help???