Raccoon Peepo

Huffle came home from the committee meeting bored out of his mind. We sat watching My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding (very strange. We have a different narrator here and most of the words are subtitled, they obviously think Canadians and Americans can't understand them, which is fair as we have trouble!), when Huffle heard a crash outside. We paused the TV and ran to look. The compost bin had been knocked over. A raccoon (our first sighting) was bobbing up and down playing peepo with us. We tried to take a photo but he ran away. It was quite funny. I know they can be vicious but he looked really cute hiding behind the bin. However, I did not think he was cute this morning when I found the contents of the compost bin all chewed and strewn around the garden and the black bin bag split and rubbish all in the bottom of the box we had put it in. Bloomin' nuisance!

This is a really bad photo but if you can make it bigger you can just see Rupert the Raccoon peeping. He is above the white stripe which is a bag of compost. I can make out his striped head but Huffle says I'm imaging it. I know he is there because I saw him in the flash when I took the photo!

Smallest and I were at home today. We had shopping to do. He played on the computer whilst I Skyped Yahoo and Maggot. We had a nice long chat. It was good to catch up as we haven't spoken for ages. Poor Maggot has been poorly in hospital and has to stay off school for two weeks - poor Yahoo too. Maggot showed me her new hamster (couldn't see it as it was asleep).

We had a fairly slow morning, bit of tidying and cleaning and then we went off shopping. By the time we got back and put everything away (not that Smallest would help!), it was time for lunch so we had it in front of Kung Foo Panda. I made my sock monkey whilst I was watching (I had permission from Smallest, as long as I watched when he told me to). We played a few games and waited for Small to come home.

He requested Macaroni Cheese for dinner (one of Small's favourites but Smallest is not normally a big fan). I made it anyway and they ate it hungrily (still not sure it is Smallest's favourite).

I taught them a new card game and told them it was one that we played when Grandma and Grandad and the Royals were here. They thought that was great and wanted to know when we could have cheese and crackers and crisps! cheeky Monkies!

They argued over who watched what on which TV, honestly, these two could argue for the Olympics! In the end Small stomped off in a grump so I let Smallest watch his thing for half an hour. Small came down "it's not fair..........," and watched TV in the basement. Then after half and hour, Small watched his thing on TV and Smallest and I coloured in.

When it was time for bed I said Small could stay up for ten minutes more at which point Smallest erupted and had a tantrum that lasted for an hour in total. I took away four of his precious soft toys, a puzzle and the contents of his Moneybox. He hit me, he screamed at small, he locked himself in our bedroom (luckily I know how to open it fromthe outside). He pulled all the covers off our bed (after I had changed all the sheets). Huffle rang in the middle of it all (he is out playing baseball or softball for work), and tried to reason with him but he didn't calm at all. Then he had a sit in (or lie in) in our bed, naked, with the window open where I left him for ten minutes to cool down (literally). Then I went up and had a quiet chat and told him I thought he should get into bed before Huffle came home and took more things off him. He had calmed down by then and cleaned his teeth, got his PJ's on and got into bed. I gave him three things back and told him he had to earn the others tomorrow.

All is quiet now. Am waiting for Huffle to come home and help me eat the Carrot and Tomato soup I have made.