"and the boy was happy"...

for those who refer to my family as unconventional, thank you. i take that as a compliment. as normal & regular as i feel the running of this household is, i take (constructive & non) criticism, & smile! i don’t go out of my way to be unique or odd or whatnot. & though i appreciate the sweet face of condescension, it should be known that i, being brought up a witty, southern lady, knows well the difference between sweet & shitty. that being said, i will share the valentine that beats all!

hearts. kisses. hearts & kisses & the day that they are nationally recognized. (i sigh because i think this should be every day) it’s valentine’s day! flowers, candies, etc, right?! sure, we did the traditional cards for monkey’s classmates, of course. his choice, angry birds with stickers; so cute. no candy allowed at school though. actually, no homemade goodies at all per school-wide district policy. my heart hurts…i live for homemade yums!

but back to valentine’s gifts per the mass demand for marketing, & of course, another reason to treat my little love…my little valentine. now, some children may want toys, a special stuffed animal, or chocolates; my kiddo…a spider. yes, a spider…a real one…a tarantula one! & what a love connection was made saturday when he spotted the very (dare i say) gorgeous pink toed tarantula (pink, i can dig it). i mean love, guys! how could i say “no,” but we walked away “thinking about it” & the responsibilities & care that a fragile pet such as that would require. monkey agreed (my child is not a fusser or whiner, even when he wants something. he accepts nos & maybes without any rebuttal. which is probably why it is always a pleasure to reward him.) we stopped & looked at some adorable bunny rabbits nearby, shared an “awww,” & made our way back to the front of the flea market. when we reached our destination, his face met mine. “i liked that spider!” & i knew he did. a sudden eye contact with the hubs & then he excused himself to find a “bathroom.”

not 10 minutes passed & here comes daddy with a new family addition! that face, that smile…oh my goodness, so awesome. & it really is pretty cool. i don’t necessarily need to see the eyes or know the number of crickets since saturday (5) that have met their demise or calculate the amount of images that may/may not haunt my dreams. he’s my heart, that monkey. he loves

“spiderus” (named after ‘miss spider’s sunny patch friends’) & frankly, that’s all that matters!

ps…he’s thinking that the easter bunny will probably bring him another tarantula or perhaps an ant farm. hmm...we shall see. Ha!