The (Mis)Adventures of Nate

It seems that two is the age when kids are trouble-magnets. No matter how hard a mom tries to keep her eyes on the little boogers, they somehow manage to get into some kind of mischief. If I wanted to write a book about my mischievous Nate, I probably could. For instance, right now, my dear little boy is missing an entire nail (it fell out after he tried to climb up my entertainment center, fell, and knocked over a chair onto his finger). Another example, the other day, some toys that I had put away on the very top shelf of his closet...miraculously appeared in the living room. When I went to investigate, I found Nate had climbed (like a monkey) up the metal shelving unit that houses toys in his closet, and was dangling from the pole that you hang clothes on, and teetering (leaning backwards!!) at the very top of his closet. I have to use a step stool to reach that shelf so I was very disturbed that he would even think to climb up there! Mommy was unhappy but couldn't stop laughing for some reason.

Anyway, most of the time when he is naughty, I am too frazzled to take pictures...but here are some recent Nate-esque things that I was able to document.

The Abstract Self-Portrait

Sometimes, Nate gets happy with a marker and pen and draws on the wall or the table...or the sofa...or if he is afraid of getting in trouble, underneath or behind the sofa. This isn't a HUGE deal, because most times I can wash it off just fine although I am still very unhappy about it. We are still working on that issue, everyday.

But, when you tell a child to "Draw yourself" you definitely don't expect to see....THIS!
He certainly took me VERY literally. It took a few days and some good scrubbing to get that masterpiece off of him. Fun, fun, fun! Still couldn't help laughing. haha.

The Haircut I didn't pay for...


This one is sort of a toss-up on whose fault it is. So, I will give you a play-by-play. I was putting away laundry in the boys room and the boys were 'drawing' in the living room. When I walked out to the living room, I noticed suspicious behavior but that is pretty normal. I didn't think much of it until...I saw this...

"Ahhhh!!! Oh no!! Please, No!!" That's what I was screaming inside my head. Then, I was thinking, "Ok, it's not curly, so it's not JT...Oh no! Nate must have chopped his own hair off!!" At this point, I'm afraid to look, but I force myself to look over at the boys. This is what I saw.


Yes, half his hair is missing in the front and half is missing in the back!!

Adding two and two together, I started interrogating JT.
Calmly, "JT, did you cut your brother's hair?"
Matter-of-fact answer: "Yes, Mommy."
Not so calmly, "WHY would you do that?!!"
Still very matter-of-fact: "Nate handed me scissors and said he wanted short hair. He was hot."
In the background, I hear Nate saying, "It's too HOT, Mama! Too Hot!"
What can I do? I was torn between hysterical laughter and manic rage. I chose to laugh and grab my camera.

Isn't JT the absolute sweetest and most considerate brother?! Little booger!
Well, if Nate wasn't Nate, I would say JT probably forced a haircut on his brother, but well...he's Nate. This whole episode sounds very Nate-like. If he hadn't wanted a hair-cut, JT would never have gotten those scissors anywhere near his head. This I know for sure. At some point, Nate consented to have his hair cut, but I'm still trying to figure out whose idea it was in the firstplace. I guess I'll never know for sure. I tried my best to even his hair out and now he has a very attractive bowl-cut look in the back and a Jim Carrey 'Dumb and Dumber' look in the front.
I'm just absolutely thrilled!